The Lost Child
Mandy Miller disappeared from Hallow’s End when she was just 3 years old. She was never found.‘The Lost Child is complex, mysterious and highly compelling reading.’ - Reviewed the BookThirty years on, Elaine Ellis is carrying her mother’s ashes back to Hallow’s End to scatter them in the place that she once called home. Elaine has never been there, but it’s the only place Jean talked about while she was growing up – so it seems as good a place as any.As Elaine settles into her holiday cottage in the peaceful Devonshire village, she gets to know the locals; family she never knew she had, eccentric and old-fashioned gentry, and new friends where she would least expect them. But she is intrigued by the tale of the missing girl that the village still carries at its heart, and which somehow continues to overshadow them all. Little does she know how much more involved in the mystery she will become…For fans of K.L Slater, Diane Chamberlain and C.L. TaylorWhat readers are saying about The Lost Child‘atmospheric, haunting and quite dark’ – Book boodle‘An unusual, beautifully written mystery.’ – The Disorganised Author‘A fabulous book that gripped me and left me wanting more!’ – Compelling Reads‘You won't spot the twists and turns coming and they will keep you on the edge of your seat!! You just won't want to put this book down until you find out what happens at the end!’ – Becky Lock
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Mandy Miller disappeared from Hallowâs End when she was just three years old. She was never found.
Thirty years on, Elaine Ellis is carrying her motherâs ashes back to Hallowâs End to scatter them in the place that she once called home. Elaine has never been there, but itâs the only place Jean talked about while she was growing up â so it seems as good a place as any.
As Elaine settles into her holiday cottage in the peaceful Devonshire village, she gets to know the locals; family she never knew she had; eccentric and old-fashioned gentry, and new friends where she would least expect them. But she is intrigued by the tale of the missing girl that the village still carries at its heart, and which somehow continues to overshadow them all. Little does she know how much more involved in the mystery she will becomeâ¦
The Lost Child
Ann Troup
HQ
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2015
Copyright © Ann Troup 2015
Ann Troup 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 authorâs 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, downloaded, 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.
E-book Edition © June 2015 ISBN: 9781474034968
Version date: 2018-09-20
ANN TROUP
tells tales and can always make something out of nothing (which means she writes books and can create unique things from stuff other people might not glance twice at). She was once awarded 11 out of 10 for a piece of poetry at school â and now holds that teacher entirely responsible for her inclination to write.
Her writing process is governed first by the fine art of procrastination, a field in which she is outstanding. Once that phase is complete, she knuckles down and writes, completely abandoning the careful plans made during the procrastination phase. At some point a story emerges and after a bit of tweaking and a re-acquaintance with the concepts of grammar, punctuation and the myriad glories of the English language, she is surprised to find that she has written a book!
Her writing space is known as âthe empty nestâ, having formerly been her daughterâs bedroom. She shares this space with ten tons of junk and an elderly West Highland Terrier who is her constant companion whether she likes it or not. He likes to contribute to the creative process by falling asleep on top of her paperwork and running away with crucial Post-it notes, which have inadvertently become stuck to his fur. She is thinking of renaming him Gremlin.
She lives by the sea in Devon with her husband and said dog. Two children have been known to remember the house which they call home, but mainly when they are in need of a decent roast dinner, itâs Christmas or when only Mum will do.
In a former incarnation she was psychiatric nurse, an experience that frequently informs her writing and which supplies a never-ending source of inspiration.
You can contact Ann on Facebook or at anntroup.wordpress.com
My thanks also go to Mike, Tom, Ellie and Naomi for keeping the faith and to Rooney, my constant companion and four-legged writing buddy. Without the five of you I might get a lot more books written! But with you, life is good.
Last but not least, Victoria Oundjian and the team at HQ Digital for picking me out of the slush pile and helping to bring this book to life. Thank you.
For Eddie and Ness, two of the very best.
Contents
It all began with the dead badger. Elaine had spotted it on the road to Hallowâs End, lying stiff and cold near to the grass verge that edged the narrow lane.
Ordinarily she would have ignored it, just swerved past and put the sight out of her mind. However, faced with an oncoming tractor, she had no choice but to drive over the poor thing. As the rear wheels bumped over its now thrice crushed corpse, she gave absolution to its lingering spirit with an apology made insincere by the shudder of revulsion that accompanied it. Rural Devon seemed to be inordinately littered with roadkill.
