Fiction

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Clara is a young idealistic woman just finding her feet in the world, but life takes some unexpected turns which challenge who she thought she was, who she wants to be & more fundamentally, who she can really trust in a world where the Cold War rages & a women’s place is definitely not expected to be in espionage!

Clara seeks a new future in London. The spy world needs her, and she is reeled back in and enlisted into Office60, an arm of the Secret Service. But it is not just for her skills she is required; there is a far darker motive. As Clara gets to grips with her new life and tries to learn to trust her new friends, treachery walks beside her.

Into the Shadows	Heart of Ice
BUY HERE – signed, to include postage BUY HERE – signed, local collection/delivery (10 miles NE36) BUY HERE – takes you to Amazon	BUY HERE – signed, to include postage BUY HERE – local collection/delivery (10 miles NE36)

Read below to find out more about Book 1 and this series.

Click here to find out more about Book 2: Heart of Ice

“I couldn’t put it down!”
“Great pace and exciting escapism!”

The books chart Clara’s journey from a naïve university student to one of the greatest spies of our time. That is to say, she existed within the world of espionage, but whether she is ever really part of it, is a different matter… and who she ends up being only becomes apparent at the very end of the whole series. It is her grand daughter who finally pieces it all together.

It all starts (or ends?) with a letter and a diary from Clara to her grand daughter, Lizzie.

Clara’s Letter:

Dear Lizzie, my special and much loved grand-daughter.

If you are reading this, I will be gone. Please do not mourn me, I will be happy. And do not cry for yourself because your tears will blur your vision, and I need you to read this note quickly, and then destroy it.

Lizzie, looking back, my life has been foolishness – a lot of foolishness, how I chuckle over it and shake my head! I spent my life disregarding and ignoring love, when it was beside me all the time. I was driven to save lives as some kind of compulsion, but all those lives I saved – most of them did not even know they had been saved. I beat men at their own game – but they never knew – or most of them anyway…

My obituary will be a lie.

I didn’t think I would mind slipping anonymously from this life, leaving what I did unknown and unrecorded. But as the end is in sight I find that I do mind. I also realise that I need to tell someone. I want to tell it to you, my dear.

I must also confess to you Lizzie, that I am driven by anger: When my beloved gasped his last breath, ‘They’ were at his bedside almost before his family. Before his body was cold they had stripped his house – our house – of every written word, every document, every remnant of him and all the work he did. ‘Top security’ they muttered as they left us. How dare they!

The same will not happen to me! Let them come – they will find nothing to gather, nothing to harvest where they look. I will appear to leave without footprint, without echo – Always take people by surprise Lizzie – a good life lesson.

Lizzie, in the parcel with this letter is my walking stick. It is very important – one of the only three material things in this world that I treasure. One of the other items of personal value is in the top of the cane – twist the silver top thrice and a lever will pop out. Click and turn it and the top will open. The tiny space inside is just large enough to hold a tablet of arsenic – but I have need of that now my dear. In its place is my engagement ring – for you – and an encrypted microchip. These three things – the walking stick, the engagement ring and the story of my life (You will have no difficulty with the password to decipher the encryption, if you think about the stories that bind us.) is what I bequeath to you, with my love.

What is most important to me, is that you will know my story: You will know who I am – who I was and how I became that person. You will know what to do next.

Now, Lizzie, do not get distracted, dear. You need to hide away the stick and microchip (you can wear the ring). Deny their existence. Should a stranger ask you about either, deny all knowledge – this is important Lizzie – let no-one know I have given them to you. If after having read my story you decide to follow me into my business then the walking stick will let everyone know you are my granddaughter and to listen to you. Xx

Love Nana Clara

Let the story begin!

Paperback

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A little more about Clara

In the beginning it is October 1985 and Clara is in the first term of her second year at university in Worcester. She grew up in rural isolation, in a tiny village nestled within the Quantock Hills, Somerset. Her mother is not keen for her to go university, and undermines Clara’s own confidence in her ability to cope, even in a relatively small and friendly university.

However, she makes a few friends, immerses herself in her studies and starts to unfurl. Her timidity makes her observant and her quietness allows her to slide through university unnoticed – usually. Shy and unsure of herself she hides in her books and dreams: And then she meets Luke and daydreams and reality collide. Life changes and so Clara has to. It spins her down a path she could not have imagined, even in her wildest dreams.

This story, set in the early 1980s against the historical and political backdrop of the final years of the Cold War. IRA terrorist activity was constantly in the news. Margaret Thatcher was the Prime Minister and the famine in Ethiopia finally made world news. Sade, Madonna and Live Aid to name a few were on the radio. Back to the Future III and Greystoke were in the cinema.

Reviews:

K Joels

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this book, you will love it!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on 8 June 2023

Wow! This book is an excellent read and well written. Gripping, exciting, thought provoking and a page turner. I was drawn into the life of the young student Clara Day who seems to have her life mapped out for her by someone else, but whom? The book takes you on her journey, delving into secrets, espionage and lies (or are they?). It is set in the 1980’s when the Cold War was happening and cleverly intertwines this in the story. I loved all the characters, some who might not be quite what they seem when you first meet them. They all come together well bringing a great storyline throughout. I can’t wait for the next one. Buy this book as you will be hooked. 😍📚

Alison

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on 30 May 2023

I loved this book from the first moment I started it. It’s a great adventure story of a young idealistic woman just finding her feet in the world, but for Clara Day, life takes some unexpected turns which challenge who she thought she was, who she wants to be & more fundamentally, who she can really trust in a world where the Cold War rages & a women’s place is definitely not expected to be in espionage!
Each chapter heading is a history stamp, either a headline or a song, securing the reader in the 1980’s era which is a great scene setter.
All in all a great read with an underlying message that we women are a great deal stronger & more capable than the world gives us credit for, then & now!!

One person found this helpful

Lisa K

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read whether you like spy novels or not

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on 1 June 2023

I never thought I’d enjoy a spy novel but I’m now an official fan of Clara Day…and of Annemarie Munro. Looking forward to the next one.

Alison

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on 30 May 2023