The Scarlet Sisters: My Nanna's Story of Secrets and Heartache on the Banks of the River Thames

By Helen Batten

'Oh my goodness - another girl Mrs Swain '
Clara's normal iron composure broke and she screamed, 'No That's not the bloody deal '
And that is how my nanna, Bertha Swain, entered the world.

When Helen Batten's marriage breaks down, she starts on a journey of discovery into her family's past and the mysteries surrounding her enigmatic nanna's early life.

What she unearths is a tale of five feisty red heads struggling to climb out of poverty and find love through two world wars. It's a story full of surprises and scandal - a death in a workhouse, a son kept in a box, a shameful war record, a clandestine marriage and children taken far too soon. It's as if there is a family curse.

But Helen also finds love, resilience and hope - crazy wagers, late night Charlestons and stolen kisses. As she unravels the story of Nanna and her scarlet sisters, Helen starts to break the spell of the past, and sees a way she might herself find love again.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0091959691
• ISBN13: 9780091959692
• Release Date: July 2015
• Publisher: Ebury Press
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.63 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.9" x 7.7"