The Lost Wife: An uplifting page-turner about grief, love and friendship
Page 26
Thank you for reading this letter and my book. Truly! I do appreciate it!
Love, Anna x
Her Best Friend’s Secret
Get it here!
She deserves the truth. But it will ruin her life. What would you do?
Emily was meant to be the girl who escaped their small Cornish town. She was going to be the success story. But it didn’t work out the way she’d dreamed it would. And now she’s back home. With a secret that’s even bigger than her failure.
Emily thinks she can just hide away. But then she runs in to Lolly, her one-time best friend from school, who spontaneously suggests a small reunion with their once close-knit group of friends. Jess and Amanda still live nearby, though none of the four women have spoken in years now.
But after so much time, everyone’s lives have changed. Nothing is as easy as it was in their schooldays. And everyone’s got secrets. One of which is big enough to ruin not just the fragile friendships, but one woman’s whole life…
Full of truths about friendship, marriage, and the relationships that define us, Her Best Friend’s Secret is a powerful, relatable and emotionally gripping novel for fans of Jojo Moyes, Diane Chamberlain, and The Silent Wife.
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How to Mend a Broken Heart
A compelling, heartbreaking tale that will make you laugh, cry and believe in the kindness of strangers. Perfect for fans of Jojo Moyes, Lucy Dillon and Miranda Dickinson.
When Rhys is called to the hospital to meet Susan, a woman he barely knows, he is compelled to help her. Still grieving the loss of his brother months earlier, Rhys knows all too well the feeling of loneliness.
There are years between them, but Rhys is the only person Susan will respond to, and when she asks him to bring her her most treasured possession, a book of fairytales, he is intrigued.
Hidden in the book is a clue to Susan’s past, and the painful regrets she carries with her. And as Rhys starts to unearth Susan’s secrets, he finds that his own grief begins to heal too…
Together, Susan and Rhys must learn to live again. Can they help each other to find happiness and finally mend their broken hearts?
How to Mend a Broken Heart is a heart-wrenching and absorbing story about second chances, forgiveness, and making every second count.
Get it here.
Acknowledgements
Goodness, a chance to say thank you again! Where do I begin? Firstly, I should say thank you to every one of you who has read this book. Thank you so much for taking the time to, I really hope you’ve enjoyed it. And if you read my first novel, and have come back for more, thank you thank you thank you! That really makes my day.
To the book bloggers in this fine land, wow, they are amazing. Their support and encouragement and reviews and retweets and shares and… Honestly, they are amazing. I genuinely don’t know how they get through all those books, or find time to write the questions, to update their websites and support our cause. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. With my first novel, I learnt a lot from what people said. I was encouraged, I was made to think and question, I was nurtured and I was inspired. I await your thoughts on book two with bated breath and butterflies in my stomach. If I could high five you all, I blinking well would!
The Bookouture team are incredible, every single one of them. Thank you Abi for your patience when I send email after email. Celine, once again, you saw what I was trying to achieve and pointed me in the right direction. I wonder if I could have you live in my pocket? To all the other authors in ‘the lounge’, gosh, you’re a tonic. I feel so lucky to have you all in my laptop. You really do make a difference. And speaking of making a difference, Kim… how many dedications, acknowledgements and thanks can one woman have? I’m adding you to the list because you deserve them all. Thank you, what a wonder you really are!
To the beta readers, who read early versions of this novel. Mel, I’ve dedicated it to you because your love and total understanding of what I had written made a difference. You forgave the flaws in the story, in fact, I seem to remember you saying you didn’t see any… there were plenty, hopefully I’ve ironed them all out and you will still love it. To Jo, you said you could see it as a film, which is funny ’cause I saw that opening chapter in the exact same way. To Li, I promise I’ll ensure they play ‘Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead’ at your funeral. I’ll be the one in the open-toed slingbacks with talc in my hair.
I should also take this opportunity to say thank you to the staff at Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital. I had cause to accompany my mum there for a few weeks as she received treatment from their incredible, superhero team. In fact, I type this sat by her bed, surrounded by monitors and wires and drips and dedication. The doctors, nurses, consultants, specialists, cleaners, tea makers, food suppliers… other patients and their families, thank you for letting me plug myself in and work by her bedside. Thank you for making her better. Thank you for the laughs and the chats and the support at a really tricksy time. The NHS is a remarkable, vital and incredible thing full of people of all makes and models who are committed to the very best care. I doff my cap in their direction, which is nothing like what they really deserve.
And finally, thank you to my beautiful family. My him indoors who continues to support, congratulate, commiserate and celebrate my achievements. I am indebted to him for giving me the space to write and the forgiveness when I’m throwing some kind of writerly tantrum. He is the best. My kids, who are the most brilliant, funny, kind, silly and special people in my life. I am nothing without them. And our Olive Dog, my companion and confidant. She interrupts me when I need it least, she accompanies me to the toilet, and she has a total disregard for my ‘dance space’… and there is nothing about her that I’d change.
And if you’re reading this, hopeful of a mention, and are disappointed – know that it’s because I am rubbish, and not because you have not made a difference in my life or my writing. I am very lucky to be surrounded by brilliant people; know that, name-checked or not, you are never taken for granted.
Published by Bookouture in 2017
An imprint of StoryFire Ltd.
Carmelite House, 50 Victoria Embankment
London EC4Y 0DZ
www.bookouture.com
Copyright © Anna Mansell, 2017
Anna Mansell has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work.
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.
eBook ISBN: 978-1-78681-233-9
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.