Ebook: The scarlet sisters : my nanna's story of serets and heartache on the banks of the River Thames

My Nanna's Story of Secrets and Heartache on the Banks of the River Thames . . .

�Oh my goodness � another girl Mrs Swain!�
Clara�s normal iron composure broke and she screamed, �No! That�s not the bloody deal!�
**And that is how my nanna, Bertha Swain, entered the world.

When Helen Batten�s marriage breaks down, she starts on a journey of discovery into her family�s past and the mysteries surrounding her enigmatic nanna�s early life.

What she unearths is a tale of five feisty red heads struggling to climb out of poverty and find love through two world wars. It�s a story full of surprises and scandal � a death in a workhouse, a son kept in a box, a shameful war record, a clandestine marriage and children taken far too soon. It�s as if there is a family curse.

But Helen also finds love, resilience and hope � crazy wagers, late night Charlestons and stolen kisses. As she unravels the story of Nanna and her scarlet sisters, Helen starts to break the spell of the past, and sees a way she might herself find love again.

**

Review

"Fascinating ... a moving account of survival" Yours "Fascinating ... a moving account of survival" Yours "This fascinating delve into family history reveals the ways in which women's lives have - and haven't - changed" Readers Digest

About the Author

HELEN BATTEN is the�Sunday Times�bestselling author of�Sisters of the East End. She studied history at Cambridge and then journalism at Cardiff University. She went on to become a producer and director at the BBC and now works as a writer and a psychotherapist. She lives in West London with her three daughters.�