Annie's Promise

by Margaret Graham

A compelling and moving novel of life in war-torn 1950s Northumberland and London.In the mid-1950s, Britain looks forward to a prosperous future. And Annie Manon has come home to the North-east to keep a promise.Annie is eager to start a new life for her family, and with her fledgling fashion business, she looks forward to providing work for the women of Wassingham.But not everything is rosy. As well as her painful wartime memories, Annie must cope with an accident that cripples her husband and she must deal with the increasingly unreasonable behaviour of their daughter Sarah.When Sarah leaves home for London, Annie is torn between love for her only child and the need to keep her promise to her community...

Genres: Fiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1994

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Margaret Graham is a bestselling author and has been writing for 30 years. Margaret's novels have been published in the UK, Europe and the USA. Margaret has written two plays, co-researched a television documentary - which grew out of Canopy of Silence, and has written numerous short stories and features.

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a sequel to 'After the Storm' the book opens in the 1950s. Annie and Georgie Armstrong have just returned to the North East. They have a daughter called Sarah. Georgie Has retired from his army life in bomb disposal. They settle back in Wassingham. Tom and Gracie now have a son Davy. Don is now married to Maud and they have a daughter called Theresa.

Like the first book, the early scenes feature the lives of the youngsters, but very quickly we start to learn about what Annie's promise really is. Tom, Annie and Georgie start work on establishing their textile business, they try to include Don but he doesn't want anything to do with it.

There are always new hurdles for the trio to cope with as they try to get Wassingham Textiles of the ground. Are all these difficulties purely coincidental? Why is Mr Manners so difficult? Why is Mr Jones so concerned about a pigeon loft? Why does the lease on the factory suddenly increase in price?

The interplay between the lives of the adults and how this is perceived by the growing children is very well written. As Sarah, Davy and Theresa move into young adult-hood, the story changes focus to their lives away from Wassingham. There I need to stop to avoid spoiling the story. Suffice to say that many loose ends are eventually resolved, several going back to the previous book.

This book is worth reading on its own, but if you can read 'A time for Courage' first I think you will get more from it.

[Julie Tombs · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a family saga in the 1950s and 1960s in the North East this is readable but I found myself struggling with the characters. Maybe if I had read the prequel to this I could have more empathy for them but they all seemed either naive and gullible or downright nasty and vindictive. I don’t think this author is for me.

[Dianne · Rating 2 out of 5]

The storyline was good, so I'm not sure why this book didn't grab me more than it did.

[Tracey- Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second book went perfectly with Only The Wind is Free, as we discover what has happened to Annie and her family.