Annie Murray Books

A heartfelt post-war saga from the bestselling author of War Babies.

A gritty World War Two saga from Sunday Times Bestseller, Annie Murray, following the lives of the women and girls who worked at the Cadbury Factory in Birmingham.

It is 1942, and after a childhood of suffering in Birmingham, Maryann Bartholomew has built a life of happiness and safety with her husband Joel and their children, working the canals on his narrowboat, the Esther Jane. But the back-breaking work and constant childbearing take their toll on Maryann, and the tragic loss of her old friend Nancy, followed by a further pregnancy lead her to a desperate act which nearly costs her her life. The walls of her security are broken down when Joel suffers an accident, and to keep the boats working, Maryann is forced to allow Sylvia and Dot, two wartime volunteers, into the privacy of their life. And when she discovers that someone keeps calling for her at Birmingham`s Tyseley Wharf, the dark memories of her past begin to overwhelm her life. For that someone, who seems to be watching her every move, is becoming more dangerous that even she could imagine...

Birmingham Blitz tells the story of a young woman protecting her family from the hardships of war. With her family in crisis, and with bombing raids devastating the streets of Birmingham, Genie struggles to achieve happiness.

Pretty seventeen-year-old Greta has never known a stable family life. With no father, and loathing her mother Ruby's latest boyfriend, Greta finds life hard at home and is happiest at work with her friends at the Cadbury factory in Birmingham where she is popular with the boys. Life takes a turn for the worse when her missing vixen of a sister Marleen turns up during the freezing winter of 1962. Greta soon decides that her only way out is marriage, but all too soon she discovers that life with her old class mate Trevor is not a ticket to freedom and happiness. She finds herself on the streets, pregnant and homeless... She is taken in by her mother's old friends, Edie and Anatoli Gruschov. In Anatoli, Greta finds the father she has never had. Kindly Edie loves to mother people and is desperately missing her son David and his family who have settled in Israel. But the love and security of this haven is soon shattered by appalling tragedy, which affects all the chocolate girls and their children and changes life forever... Continuing the saga begun in Chocolate Girls, and set in 1960s Birmingham, this is a story of families whose lives are entwined, of belonging and loss... and of a young woman's search for transforming love.

When her beloved father dies, Maryann and her sister Sal are upset at their mother's plan to marry undertaker Norman Griffin, who is not at all what he seems. But a new life opens up for Maryanne on board Joel's narrowboat, until his feelings for her change, awakening old nightmares.

A powerful and moving story of two sisters, set in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter, by top ten bestseller Annie Murray

Love, friendship, tragedy and courage under Birmingham's war-torn skies from the Sunday Times top ten bestselling author.

Black Country Orphan is an inspirational story of a young girl's courage, by Annie Murray.

Growing up in Birmingham, Sylvia and Audrey Whitehouse have always been like chalk and cheese. When the Second World War breaks out, Sylvia is still dreaming of her forthcoming marriage to fiancé Ian, while Audrey jumps at the career opportunities the WAAF throws her way. Audrey joins the ranks at RAF Cardington but soon finds that her new freedom also brings temptation. When she goes too far, the consequences ripple through the Whitehouse family. Meanwhile, Sylvia is doing her bit as a railway porter, much to Ian's dismay. Ian thinks the job is unfeminine - unlike Sylvia's new friend Kitty, who is as sweet and pretty as can be. But Kitty's innocent nature hides a dark secret. As the pressures of rationing, bombing raids and sleepless nights grow, the two sisters must decide what they really want from life and if they're brave enough to fight for it.