EVE AND HER SISTER

When Eve and her sisters are orphaned and become homeless, a lecherous neighbour befriends the girls. To escape his clutches, they journey to Gateshead to the hiring at the Michaelmas fair but no one wants them. The spectre of the workhouse looms, but then Caleb Travis, a young innkeeper from Washington, takes pity on them. Eve vows to repay Caleb's kindness and works tirelessly at the inn while keeping her sisters out of trouble. She finds herself falling in love with Caleb but he has only eyes for the wayward Mary. Tragedy forces Eve to leave Washington and make a new life for herself. Too late, Caleb realises what he's lost, and that the woman he loves may be gone for ever. 'A flesh and blood drama to touch any soul' ? Northern Echo. 450pp, paperback, author extras.