An Orphan’s War: One of the best historical fiction books you will read in 2018
War rages, but the women and children of Liverpool’s Dr Barnardo’s Home cannot give up hope. An Orphan’s War is a gripping saga about love and loss on the Home Front.LIVERPOOL, 1940When her childhood sweetheart Johnny is killed in action, Maxine Grey loses more than her husband – she loses her best friend. Desperate to make a difference in this awful war, Maxine takes a nursing job at London’s St Thomas’s hospital.A BROKEN HEARTShe takes comfort in the attentions of a handsome surgeon, but Edwin Blake isn’t all he seems. And as the Blitz descends on the capital, Maxine faces more heartache. When she returns to Liverpool, she harbours a secret.A BRAVE SPIRITWhen Maxine is offered a job at a Dr Barnardo’s orphanage, she hopes this is the second chance she has been looking for. Do the orphans know that she needs them as much as they need her?A gripping story of love, friendship and hope in the darkest of places. Molly Green is an exciting new voice in saga fiction, perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries and Katie Flynn.
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Published by Avon an imprint of
HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
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London, SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollinsPublishers 2018
Copyright © HarperCollins 2018
Cover photography © Jeff Cottenden 2018
Background Images © Getty/ Shutterstock 2018
Cover design © Head Design 2018
Molly Green asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of 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: 9780008238971
Ebook Edition © May 2018 ISBN: 9780008238988
Version: 2018-04-09
For the five nurses who were killed on 10th September 1940 when a bomb completely destroyed the Nurses’ Wing at St Thomas’ Hospital (I have changed their names in the novel).
To all Dr Barnardo’s children during the Second World War who were the inspiration for this series.
Lastly, to all those who served in the RAF’s Coastal Command.
Table of Contents
Liverpool, September 1939
Three days after war was declared, Maxine Grey walked slowly down the aisle, her fingers nervously gripping her father’s rigid arm, towards the man she had promised to marry – her best friend, Johnny Taylor. In spite of the bad luck she’d warned him it would bring, Johnny had turned at her entrance, and now he gave her his wide smile and a cheeky wink. She knew it was meant to reassure her, but if anything it made her more conscious of the huge step she was taking. The strident notes of ‘Here Comes the Bride’ from the organist almost took her by surprise, making her pause, her ears hum. She pulled in a deep breath to slow down her heartbeat. Her father gave her a quick glance and patted her hand.
She could hear the swish of the satin-like material of her dress; feel it catch at the back of her legs with every stride. It had taken her a month of evenings and half-days off from the hospital to make the simple cream dress which swept the floor, and the little matching cropped jacket, from a McCall’s pattern – the same amount of time Johnny had given her when he’d persuaded her they should get married. There was definitely going to be a war, he’d said, and it would probably come sooner rather than later. She swallowed. How right he’d been.
Another step, then another, and another. She took a deep breath but the scent of the flowers left over from last Sunday’s service was cloying and she pulled her stomach in tight to stop herself from feeling faint. A final step. She’d reached him. Her father nudged her forward and a little to the right where Johnny stood waiting for her, watching her every movement. His smile had faded now as if it had finally dawned on him too that this was a serious event. How different he looked in his grey suit. Older. Not like her Johnny.
Her fingers reluctantly left her father’s arm and she was alone. But of course, she wasn’t alone. Johnny was here. They were going to be married. Every bride was nervous on her wedding day, so her mother had said when they’d shared a pot of tea that morning. It was to be expected. She wasn’t to worry. Johnny was a good boy. He’d always look after her, her mother had said.
‘Johnny’s who we always wanted for you, Maxine. Your dad’s so happy. He can die in peace knowing he’s left you in good hands.’
It was no secret that her dad had a dicky heart. Oh, he probably had another year or two left, Dr Turnbull had assured them – maybe more – but he’d encouraged the family to enjoy as much time together as possible. And now she was leaving him in the hands of her mother who constantly fussed over him, making him feel closer to death’s door than he probably was.
