While I Was Waiting

While I Was Waiting
Georgia Hill

‘A lovely, romantic and historical read’ – Linda’s Book BagJune 1963, Clematis Cottage, Stoke St. Mary, HerefordshireI am really not sure why I am writing this. A foolish whim by a foolish old lady and it will probably sit in a box unread and decay much like its writer when Death makes his careless decision.But perhaps someone will find it. Someone will care enough to read and somehow I know that will happen.April 2000, Clematis Cottage, Stoke St. Mary, HerefordshireTired of her life in London, freelance illustrator Rachel buys the beautiful but dilapidated Clematis Cottage and sets about creating the home of her dreams. But tucked away behind the water tank in the attic and left to gather dust for decades is an old biscuit tin containing letters, postcards and a diary. So much more than old scraps of paper, these are precious memories that tell the story of Henrietta Trenchard-Lewis, the love she lost in the Great War and the girl who was left behind.

While I Was Waiting

GEORGIA HILL

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First published in Great Britain by HarperImpulse 2015

Copyright © Georgia Hill 2015

Cover images © iStock (soldier); Shutterstock.com

Cover layout design © HarperColl‌insPublishers Ltd 2015

Cover design by HarperColl‌insPublishers Ltd

Georgia Hill asserts the moral right

to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue record for this book is

available from the British Library

This novel is entirely a work of fiction.

The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are

the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to

actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is

entirely coincidental.

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Digital eFirst: Automatically produced by Atomik ePublisher from Easypress.

Ebook Edition © June 2015 ISBN: 9780008123253

Version 2015-07-02

For Geoff. I’m so glad I waited.

Contents

Cover (#u888b6cc9-afaf-5cee-9b12-1daa45fb96b5)

Title Page (#ue4b1b7f7-30db-5a99-9605-db7593593666)

Copyright (#u742a477a-71c2-56bf-9923-f5f86f735aec)

Dedication (#u18d7e656-ae87-537f-a732-3e5f4af69ff3)

Prologue (#uacb2f412-2fe6-51cb-95b5-017707036848)

Chapter 1 (#ue33cef98-2e60-504c-9c22-960243fabc97)

Chapter 2 (#u50a10d5e-d12f-5fa3-80d6-1af37e2ce420)

Chapter 3 (#u18fedafa-d2ea-5d89-a6f7-fb0b410f7b05)