Sheltering Rain - Tapa blanda

'I enjoyed this novel very much' -- Rosamunde Pilcher 'A very beautiful and very moving story' -- Lesley Pearse 'Although the story jumps frequently from place to place and from one generation to the next, the author is able to make these effortless transitions for the reader. The characters are strong, believable and endearing - and will evoke recognition and sympathy from all ages ... An enjoyable read - and a promising debut novel' -- Sunday Express 20020707 'Perceptive debut novel ... Be sure that your bookmark is a hankie' -- Elle, London 20020707 'Believable characters, faithfully described scenery, horses and hounds, mud and mould, this is good, old-fashioned storytelling at its best. Destined to be a bestseller, the book has a beautifully designed cover and, once opened, it is almost impossible to stop reading' -- North Shore Times, Australia 20020707 'An emotional roller-coaster of a read' -- Company 20020707 'The attitudes of these strong-minded women and their generations are masterfully captured' -- Hello 20020707 'Wonderful full-blooded traditional storytelling, but with a fresh slant' -- Sarah Harrison 20020707

On Coronation night the ex-pat community in Hong Kong gathers for a celebration party, and while they strain to listen to the wireless, twenty-one-year-old Joy falls in love at first sight. She is engaged within 24 hours, but will not see her fiance again for a year. In 1980, eighteen-year-old Patricia's rebellion is to run away to from County Wexford with her illegitimate child. Fifteen years later Sabine leaves trendy Hackney to visit the grandparents she doesn't know, and finds that time in Wexford seems to have stood still. When Sabine, her mother and grandmother are brought together, not only is a deeply buried family secret is discovered, but also some fundamental truths: about the conflict between love and duty, about women's choices, and about mothers and daughters.