Moonlit Eyes

by Emma Blair

When Pee Wee Poston and his wife Beulah are offered the chance to swap New York for London, they jump at the chance. Pee Wee, a highly talented saxophonist, has been asked to help launch a new jazz club in Soho. By accepting, the couple can be close to their son Julius, a high-flying diplomat at the American embassy.
The Postons settle in Islington, only to find that some locals dislike having a black family in the area. But from their new neighbours - Albert and Jess Sykes, their daughter Ellie and son Paul - they receive the sort of warm welcome Londoners are known for. Before long, they are firm friends - a commodity which, with war looming, grows more precious by the day.
As Hitler launches his bombing campaign on London, Pee Wee and his band play on, resolute in their defiance of the air raids. And then, in the middle of the tragedy and suffering, a moment of rare beauty blossoms. Julius plays one of his father's records, Moonlit Eyes, and asks Ellie to dance...

Paperback

First published February 1, 2001

About the author

Iain Blair was born on 12 August 1942 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was an actor and writer, married with the also writer Jane Blanchard. Initially he wrote plays for theatre and television, but later began to write novels. He started out writing suspense novels as Iain Blair, but after being unsuccessful with this genre, switched to writing popular historical romance fiction sagas. But according to his Web site, Iain Blair's publishers decided he'd sell far more books simply by being published as a woman because is a women's fiction genre. "I was given absolutely no choice in the matter. They'd decided on a sex change and even the name. So that was that. Emma I became and Emma I've stayed." His true identity remained a secret until 1998 when his novel Flower of Scotland was nominated for the Romantic Novel of the Year Award by the Romantic Novelists' Association Awards, which required him to admit to being the author. He passed away on 3 July 2011 in Torquay, Devon, England.

Reviews

[Shirley Dawson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always enjoy novels by Emma Blair and this was no exception. As always, a well thought out story set just before and during WW2, an era which is always of interest to me. A word of warning - there are several racial issues in this book which could give cause for offence.

I'm not surprised at all how Iain Blair was undetected for so many years and continued to write as a woman, Emma Blair. I'm sure all his stories were targeted at women readers, he certainly had the style and flair to capture feminine interest.

He writes in a very simplistic style which seems to work but in my opinion, is sometimes a little unnecessarily over-descriptive.

[Susan Golding · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started on holidays. Easy reader about two families in London during Second World War. The first black family to move into Islington. Uses prevarication too much!!

[Susan Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice