Showing results by author "Hilary Boyd" in All Categories

Bel Carnegie's life is not perfect. Still recovering from her ex-husband's betrayal she lives with her narcissistic father in the family flat in Earl's Court. Then one summer she decides to swap the sweltering city for beautiful Cornwall. While renting a little cottage she finds that the sea, sunshine and new friends help heal her damaged heart. But Bel soon learns that you can't run from the past and it isn't long before it comes knocking once more...

What do you do if you’ve been married to a man for half your life and out of nowhere he leaves your bed – permanently? When this happens to Jeanie, she’s furious and determined to confront George, her husband of thirty years. Is he in love with someone else? What did she do wrong? He won’t tell her. The brightest day of her week is Thursday; the day Jeanie takes her granddaughter to the park.

Kitty Cox is adjusting to a new life alone. She’s spent several years caring for her ailing husband but now she’s having to adjust to a life without him.When Kitty’s old friend Vee reappears in the village in desperate need of a place to stay, Kitty quickly sees an obvious solution to both their dilemmas. She invites Vee, her new partner Raf and young son Bear to move in with her for the summer.

Romy and Michael have it all. Over 30 years of marriage, two grown-up sons, a beautiful London home, as well as a weekend bolthole by the sea. If Romy's had to sacrifice some of her dreams along the way to support Michael's high-flying legal career, then it's been a price worth paying. Until the arrival of a letter changes everything. At first Romy can't believe what it is saying. That Michael, an upholder of the law, with an unwavering sense of right and wrong, could do something so terrible. But then other lies start to emerge, and she starts to wonder who the man really is.

For eight years Flora's love affair with Fin was a whirlwind of fun and spontaneity - but when Flora wanted to settle down and have children, Fin vanished. Life moved on and Flora's world filled with other people, other cares. There were benefits to being single - no socks under the bed, no mess in the bathroom - even if the memory of Fin could never be completely erased. But then suddenly, shockingly, Fin reappears. He's a changed man, he says, and her wants her back. Is this a chance to put right the wrongs? Or a massive mistake?

Sara Tempest has been alone since her husband died and daughters left home. But over the course of one summer she meets and falls in love with the charming Bernard. The years of heartache and loneliness are finally behind her. She quickly moves into his beautiful home on the wind battered cliffs of Hastings. But, after a while, she begins to wonder if Bernard is all he seems. He's barely in touch with his children and with stifling reminders of his wife everywhere Sara looks, the walls begin to close in.

Hilary Boyd became an author after a life of eclectic careers as a nurse, marriage guidance counselor, charity manager and student of English Literature. Her first novel, Thursdays in the Park, was published in 2011 when she was 62 and she joins us to discuss her seventh, The Lavender House.

Annie Delancey is happily married with three grown children. But she guards a secret. Aged eighteen she had a baby boy, and gave him up for adoption. Out of the blue, she receives an official-looking letter from Social Services. Herson wants to make contact. As the son she has never known comes back into her life, his presence begins to expose the cracks in the family that Annie now has to try, desperately, to hold together.

Stella once thought that if she never saw Jack again, it would be too soon. But life has other plans for her and her stubborn, handsome ex-husband. Looking after their daughter in a time of need, Stella finds herself unwillingly reunited with the man she shared the best years of her life with - followed by the worst. Where tragedy once tore them apart, now Stella and Jack are being drawn back together. But each of them has a new partner and a new life. Should they fight temptation? Should the past remain the past? Or are some loves simply meant to be?

Connie and her GP husband, Devan, have led a charmed life since they married in their 20s. Forty years on they are the couple their whole village envies. Life isn't quite so rosy just now with Devan struggling to adjust to early retirement, but Connie hopes that getting away for a few weeks through her job as a European tour manager will help.

Peggy Gilbert left the hustle and bustle of London for the beautiful blue skies and rugged cliffs of Pencarrow Bay three years ago with her husband, Ted. While Ted has immediately taken to life in their new corner of the world and Peggy feels as though he's leaving her behind, so she’s determined to find her own passion. Peggy will do everything from a sunrise swim to a salsa class and a fishing trip. Can Peggy find what she’s been looking for? Or has it always been closer to home than she thought?