by Beezy Marsh
First published 2017
Eva, Peggy, and Kathleen grow up in a cramped terraced house on a London street so dangerous that police patrol it in pairs. Their father's rage fills their small home in Waterloo, while their mother struggles to feed the family. Each sister chooses her own path to survive. Studious Peggy witnesses brutal factory conditions and joins the Communist Party. Beautiful Kathleen possesses a voice like silk but faces heartbreak after heartbreak following early tragedy. Feisty Eva turns to theft as a child, stealing to put food on their table, and never abandons her fierce need to protect her family. Through decades of social change and personal upheaval, the three women remain bound together. They share their struggles and victories, supporting each other when the world shifts around them. Their sisterhood becomes the single constant force in lives marked by hardship and resilience.
Genres: literary-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, resilience
Setting: London, Waterloo
Period: 20th-century
346 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Pan
Content warnings: abuse, domestic-violence