Mad Joy

A heart-warming and passionate tale from the author of Tommy Glover''s Sketch of Heaven

At the age of five I ran into a wood, and nearly two years later I walked out of it and into the nearest house.

In 1927, Gracie returns to her house to find a young girl curled up on her armchair: a feral, rather grubby gift of fate. With no knowledge of the child''s origins and no children of her own, Gracie adopts her and names her ''Joy''.

Despite the endless speculation about Joy''s unusual ways, Gracie is happy to remain ignorant about her past in case anyone should come forward to reclaim her as their own. Time passes and Joy grows into a young woman at the advent of World War II. But when she becomes romantically involved with a fighter pilot the mystery of her past slowly unravels . . .

Praise for Jane Bailey

''A vivid and involving novel that reaches a truly page-turning climax'' Barbara Trepido

''Absorbing, compelling and intensely moving'' Lesley Glaister, author of As Far as You Can Go

''A gentle, poignant, achingly funny tale of displaced children, first love and the tragic secrets hidden behind so many respectable facades'' Serena Mackesy, author of The Temp