LAVNDER FIELDS-THE 2ND NOVEL FROM ANGIE NORTHEY, AUTHOR OF 'AMY, THE STORY OF CORAM FOUNDLING'
Hello everyone! And greetings from a cold, grey SW London. This is to let you know that my second novel 'Lavender Fields' has just been published, and there's a FREE BOOK promotion until next week. It's an homage to my hometown of Mitcham, where, as with 'Amy', I've combined my love of history with my beloved home city of London.
It starts in the 1870's, and is the story of Emma Pagett, a young girl who grows up in the slums and rookeries of Seven Dials in a loveless and abusive family. She finds the courage to leave her violent parents, and embarks on a journey through life, which takes her from the costermonger stalls of Seven Dials, to the lush lavender fields of Mitcham, then in rural Surrey. It was then a centre of lavender production, but is now part of Greater London's urban sprawl. Emma's journey continues in the fairgrounds of South East England, then a hellish stint in a workhouse in Bedford, and includes the various relationships she has on the way -both good and bad.
The novel accuraty portrays the life of a working-class young girl in Victorian England, and the very limited oppertunities open to them to escape poverty. Many faced years of hard work and grinding poverty, and then constant pregnancies after marriage. Many drowned out their wretched lives with drink, and many turned to prostitution.
Emma's story is a lot darker than Amy's, and mirrors more of my own life, especailly my childhood, and once again, I've used my life experiences, and the various relationships in my life as templates. Many of the characters are based on real-life people I've known, especially Charlie Bateman, the larger than life costermonger, who is primarily based on someone I worked with years ago.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, and I will leave links to all amazon sites below.
Many thanks, and peace and love to everyone in the world.
Angie Northey. March 2022.
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