The Long Echo

by Allan Neil

Edinburgh. On a dreary day in January 1953, a young boy from a secure working class home in the Old City meets a young girl from a notorious slum. Soon it becomes apparent to him that her background and upbringing are vastly different to his own, being marked by abuse and neglect from her own mother and a middle-aged petty criminal who is encouraged by the mother to use the girl for his own ends and her profit. The youngsters become very close and when the girl's abuser dies suddenly, they see a possible way out of her situation. However, their young lives have many twists waiting for them, beginning when the girl's mother is arrested for a serious crime. 0 This is a first novel by Allan Neil, who was born in a small town ten miles from the city of Edinburgh. He moved south to join the Sussex Police in 1966, retiring in 1993 and has remained on the south coast since. He is currently writing a parallel novel to this one, to be called 'Anna's Tale'.

142 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: two Edinburgh youngsters meet in 1953. They become friends and try to find a way out of the abuse she is suffering.