If Our Last Goodbye has had you reaching for the tissues, don’t miss Shirley’s first bestselling novel The Orphan Sisters. This beautiful World War Two novel tells the heartbreaking story of Etty and her sister, Dorothy. Order it now and have the Kleenex to hand!
The Orphan Sisters
‘I was gripped from the very first page… It was heartbreaking… I smiled through these happy times with them but also shed tears… I could not put it down… Will undoubtedly pull at your heart-strings. Just make sure you have a box of tissues ready!’ Stardust Book Reviews, 5 stars
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A heartbreaking, unputdownable and utterly unforgettable story of two young sisters cruelly abandoned by their mother at an orphanage. Fans of Wives of War, Lisa Wingate and Diney Costeloe will lose their hearts to this stunning World War Two novel.
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Get it here
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1929: Four-year-old Etty and eight-year-old Dorothy are abandoned at Blakely Hall orphanage by their mother, never to see her again. With no other family to speak of, the sisters worship their beloved mam – and they are confused and heartbroken to be deserted by her when they need her the most.
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1940: Etty and Dorothy are finally released from the confines of Blakely Hall – but their freedom comes when the country is in the grip of World War Two and its terrors. Amidst a devastating backdrop of screaming air-raid sirens and cold nights huddled in shelters, the sisters are desperate to put their broken childhoods behind them.
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But trouble lies ahead. Dorothy must bid goodbye to her beloved husband when he’s sent to war and Etty must nurse a broken heart as she falls in love with the one man she can never be with.
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Etty and Dorothy survived the orphanage with the help of one another and neither sister can forget the awful betrayal of their mother, which has haunted them their whole lives. But when a shocking secret about their painful childhood comes to light, will the sisters ever be the same again?
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Available now.
A letter from Shirley
First of all, I want to say a huge thank you for choosing to read Our Last Goodbye. I sincerely hope you’ve had as good a time reading the book as I did writing it. If you would like to keep up-to-date with my latest releases you can sign up here.
Some characters simply won’t go away and this is what happened with May after I’d finished writing my debut novel, The Orphan Sisters. May is such a lovely character who lived on in my mind and I found myself compelled to write her story. I do hope you enjoyed meeting her and Etty again, and finding out what became of them, their relationship and how May carved a future for herself.
Once again, I chose the lovely North East seaside town of South Shields – the place where I was born – as my setting. While most of the locations are real, I did take a few liberties. As well as inventing some street names, there is no such place as Edgemoor Hospital or Parklands nursing school. I also added an air raid or two that simply didn’t happen in the town but was needed for the sake of the story.
If you did enjoy the book, it would be amazing if you left a review as I love hearing what you think. Or maybe you could mention it to friends and family as it could help fellow readers find me for the first time, which is big help to an author.
Why not contact me on my author Facebook page, or on Twitter – as I’d love to hear from you.
Your support is most appreciated.
Shirley Dickson
Books by Shirley Dickson
The Orphan Sisters
Our Last Goodbye
Acknowledgements
Firstly, to Wal. Your help and support are invaluable. Driving me to book locations, searching out facts I’d never discover on my own, simply being there when I need reassurance – love you and thanks, I couldn’t have written this book without you.
Thanks to my wonderful publisher, Bookouture, who have made my writing dreams come true. The enormous amount of help and encouragement I have received over the past year is truly amazing and I am proud to be part of the Bookouture family. Heartfelt gratitude to Kim, Peta, Ellen, Noelle, Alex, Jennie and every one of the dedicated team. Huge thanks to Vicky Blunden for the brilliant edits that improved the book and made it so much stronger. Special thanks to my fantastic editor Christina Demosthenous for her continued encouragement and belief in me and for helping to make the book better than I ever could have imagined. Working with you is a delight.
Thank you to Mary Elliott who took time to read the script and help enormously with nursing matters. I truly appreciate the advice but any errors are mine alone. Thank you to Rob Macintosh from the RAMC (Royal Army Medical Corps) for all his help and explanations.
To my amazing family, Tracy, Andrea, Joanne, Phil, Nick, Gary, Laura, Tom, Will, Gemma, Dale and Robbie. Thank you for recommending my book to people and for the support and for being proud – I’m truly blessed to have you all in my life.
Thank you to my extended family and friends for their support and delight that I’ve achieved my writing dream.
Lastly, to all of you who read the book and took the time to review it – and not forgetting the book bloggers – a huge thank you.
Published by Bookouture in 2019
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An imprint of StoryFire Ltd.
Carmelite House
50 Victoria Embankment
London EC4Y 0DZ
United Kingdom
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www.bookouture.com
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Copyright © Shirley Dickson, 2019
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Shirley Dickson has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work.
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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.
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eBook ISBN: 978-1-78681-716-7
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places and events other than those clearly in the public domain, are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Our Last Goodbye: An absolutely gripping and emotional World War 2 historical novel Page 31
