Autumn on Angel Street

Book info: Autumn on Angel Street (Hardcover, 756 pages – Coronet Books, 1996) – Coronet Books, 1996. Language: Eng.

‘A first rate saga that never loses its grip on the reader.’ Bolton Evening News ‘This tale of life in Durham in the 19th century has all the ingredients for success - romance and struggle against adversity.’ Dorset Evening EchoWhat price will you pay to follow your dreams, and to uphold your integrity and principles? What do you do when loyalty to your family, and to your friends, conflicts with your sense of duty; and is the pursuit of truth worth sacrificing everything for which you have strived?These are the questions that confront the main characters in Autumn on Angel Street, the first book of the Forrester Family Saga.Edward and his adopted ‘twin’ sister Lizzie, the youngest of the Forrester family of coalminers, are determined to improve conditions and prospects for everyone living in their home village, Pincote Colliery. Against his cautious father’s wishes, Edward is building support to force the mine’s owner, Sebastian Laybourne, to introduce expensive new safety measures into the coalmine. Lizzie, who teaches at the local school, strives to improve local children’s education, and to introduce better social justice for their parents.Away from the colliery, in the comfortable surroundings and seclusion of Laybourne Manor, the only flaw in seventeen year old Rose Laybourne’s life is that her father is insisting she marries Hubert Belchester, the son of a close business associate, soon after her eighteenth birthday. Rose quite likes the refined Hubert, who reminds her of a sleek and beautiful cat, but she does not want to marry him, and she enlists the help of her older brother, John, to persuade their father to give her more time before committing to marriage.Rose and John form a plan but, before it can be instigated, a tragedy in the coalmine brings them into direct conflict with Edward and Lizzie Forrester, and causes a hardening in their father’s attitude which divides his family, splits the mining community, and reveals secrets that have remained concealed for decades. A febrile atmosphere develops throughout the community, friendships and loyalties are tested, errors are made, life changing decisions are taken, and the main characters find themselves living in places, and facing challenges, they never expected to experience.The sequels in this series are Winter in Paradise Square which is also available for purchase from Amazon, and Spring on Hope Street - which will be available mid 2022, followed by Summer at Solomon's Court - which will be available later in 2022