Only a Mother Knows

Only a Mother Knows
Annie Groves

A compelling novel about four young women in wartime London, from the best-selling author of London Belles and My Sweet Valentine.In Article Row, in London’s Holborn – four young women, Tilly, Sally, Dulcie and Agnes – have already been witnesses to the heartache and pain that Hitler’s bombs have inflicted on ordinary Londoners.Tilly is desperate to wed her beau, Drew. Terrified that something will happen to prevent them from being together, her fears seem to be coming true when he is called back home to America.For her mother, Olive, this only adds to her worries for Tilly. But she has her own hands full when her friend and neighbour, Sergeant Dawson, gets some terrible news. When Olive lends a hand, she finds herself at the sharp end of some unwelcome gossip.For Dulcie, the war has brought an old flame, David, back into her life. But his terrible injuries have changed his life forever. Can something more develop out of their friendship? And for Agnes, she is about to find out something that will change her life, too.In this seemingly endless war, the girls will learn about love, loss and heartache. But they, like thousands of other Londoners, are determined to win the battle on the home front – no matter what it takes.

ANNIE GROVES

Only a Mother Knows

Copyright

Published by HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk (http://www.harpercollins.co.uk)

Copyright © Annie Groves 2013

Cover layout design © HarperCollinsPublishers 2013

Cover photographs © Colin Thomas (woman and boy)

James Eadie/Mary Evans Picture Library (background)

Annie Groves 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.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Source ISBN: 9780007361571

Ebook Edition © March 2013 ISBN: 9780007492565

Version: 2017-09-12

In memory of Penny Halsall

24 November 1946 – 31 December 2011

Contents

Cover (#uc55ea1f2-d3bc-5219-8388-db7b84aa0739)

Title Page (#ub0a5200f-e353-56bf-ba61-63d0d54ae70e)

Copyright (#u7e0f4792-67b5-5685-9c56-4643e26dec31)

Dedication (#ua073335f-4a5e-5d3e-af3f-dd7f457ac3e2)

Foreword (#uff447152-97c7-57eb-b493-67ce6fc0e8e6)

Chapter One (#ubd675ca9-dd09-5f6d-99e5-b9080d44e20f)

Chapter Two (#ud3d0e56e-8b25-5564-9f2b-79f74940960a)

Chapter Three (#u540ae053-744a-589e-9630-1960395fcce0)

Chapter Four (#u3bd872e4-ab84-54c8-99bf-b4188ae31c39)

Chapter Five (#u04b850f8-28b4-5a37-ae80-1160c4d4c695)

Chapter Six (#ub6940b2a-92a4-5b3d-af33-163430c75b42)

Chapter Seven (#u771ad273-ac0b-5f12-bc0a-fbbcac8ff967)

Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seventeen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eighteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nineteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-One (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Two (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Three (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Four (#litres_trial_promo)