The Secret Diary: Gripping and emotional WW2 historical fiction

Two women. One house. And a wartime secret that spans decades... Norfolk, 1945: Only a few months ago Nancy Jones was fighting for her country as a gunner girl. Now she’s struggling to adjust to her responsibilities as a gamekeeper’s wife. After a whirlwind romance, Nancy is deeply in love with her handsome husband Joe but there is still so much they don’t know about each other. When a secret from Nancy’s war years threatens to resurface, will the terrible truth about the worst night of her life shatter their new marriage? Norfolk, 2019: Devastated by the sudden loss of her husband, Lorna Haynes escapes to the beautiful but crumbling Gamekeeper’s Cottage. There, she stumbles upon a locked room. When she enters, it’s like going back in time. A soldier’s uniform hangs on the back of the door, the flowery wallpaper still intact, the spindle of the record player frozen and ready to play. At the back of the room, Lorna discovers a red, leather-bound diary in a hidden compartment of a desk drawer. As Lorna battles with heartache, she takes comfort in reading the ink-stained words. Turning the pages of the old book, she learns of the incredible bravery of the woman who lived in the house decades before her. And discovers a shocking wartime secret that will change the course of her own life...M.F ‘An absolute must read. I devoured this book in its entirety... I am almost speechless... a box of Kleenex is mandatory.I absolutely loved this book, historical fiction at its best!... Definitely worth ten stars.’ Page Turners, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1945, England: Brave and determined Nancy Jones is fighting for her country as a gunner girl. Each night she scans the skies for enemy planes, feeling both exhilarated and terrified by the responsibility on her young shoulders. And one dark night she’s forced to make a decision that puts her in extreme danger... When VE Day finally comes, Nancy allows herself to be swept up in a whirlwind romance with handsome Joe. They move to an idyllic countryside cottage with roses around the front door and Nancy hopes she can escape her past. But when the terrible truth about the worst night of her life threatens to resurface will the secret shatter Nancy’s marriage? 2019, England: Devastated by the sudden loss of her husband, Lorna Haynes escapes to the beautiful but crumbling Gamekeeper’s Cottage. When she enters, it’s like going back in time. A soldier’s uniform still hangs on the back of the door and the flowery wallpaper is intact. At the back of the room, Lorna discovers a red, leather-bound diary in a hidden compartment of a desk drawer. As Lorna battles with heartache, she takes comfort in reading the ink-stained words. Turning the pages of the old book, she learns of the incredible bravery of the woman who lived in the house decades before her. And discovers a shocking wartime secret that will change the course of her own life... Fans of The Nightingale, The Alice Network, and Lilac Girls will love this unforgettable, poignant tale of love, loss and courage during the darkest days of war. Readers love The Secret Diary: ‘Whoa! Don’t take those tissues away, I’m not quite cried out just yet! Happy tears, sad tears, who knows where one ends and the other begins!... Beautiful, heart-breaking, heart-warming, uplifting and inspirational.’ Fiction Books, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘I literally could not put this book down! From the very beginning I found myself pulled into the storyline... I couldn’t put this book down and I finished it in two sittings.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Pulled me in from the beginning, and it kept me wanting to keep reading... I loved both of the timelines... a wild heart-warming story of friendship and moving on.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Excellent... fascinating to see the lives of so many brave women..... Two women. One house. And a secret that spans decades The past merges with the present in an unforgettable, poignant story of love, loss and courage in this beautifully written story set between World War Two and the present day. She steps into the room and its like going back in time. Catapulting her right into the heart of the 1940s. The spindle of the record player frozen and ready to play. The flowery wallpaper faded but intact. A soldiers uniform pressed and hung on a door, coal still in the fireplace. A floorboard creaks beneath her and she notices a small desk in the corner of the room. She opens the top drawer and runs her hands along the edges, something catching at her fingertips. A hidden compartment. And behind it, the soft edges of a book. As she dusts it off, she can see it has a red leather covering, the pages yellowing with age. She realizes its a diary. Some of the pages have been torn out. The first entry has 16th June 1945 printed in neat little letters at the top. Below it, in hurried, untidy script are the words: My name is Nancy Jones. And I have a secret