Joanna Trollope

Anna Bouverie is the rector's wife. She irons his surplices (badly), delivers the parish newsletter, and scrimps to get by on a pittance, all the while keeping up appearances. She rarely complains and rarely rebels. But now-as she watches her children do without, as her husband withdraws further into his work, and her …

In the rustic town of Aldminster, a crisis looms. Funds are short and the cathedral is in need of major repair. Some hope to finance the work by abolishing the costly boy's choir-while others are aghast at the idea. Drawn into the fray is Sally Ashworth, the lonely mother of a ten-year-old chorister. She is anchored …

Joanna Trollope delves into the dynamics of stepfamily life and introduces us to two couples whose relationships are complicated by the enriching-and sometimes enraging-presence of others. From the grown daughter who insinuates herself into her widowed father's romantic life, to the sullen teenager whose loyalties lie …