The Leaving of Liverpool

by Maureen Lee

On a cold February night in 1925, two teenage sisters, Mollie and Annemarie Kenny, escape from their home in a tiny Irish village. Their beloved mother has died and the girls have suffered shocking abuse at the hands of their doctor father. With sensitive, creative Annemarie so traumatized she can barely remember her name, Mollie decides they should make a new life for themselves and she takes her younger sister to Liverpool where they will board a ship to New York in search of safety. But the smallest, cruelest twist of fate conspires to separate the girls just as the boat is about to sail, leaving Mollie stranded in Liverpool and Annemarie at the mercy of strangers in America. The subsequent paths of their lives could not be more different. Annemarie discovers her future, her fortune, and her raison d'etre on Broadway, while Mollie, devastated by guilt and grief at the loss of her sister, eventually carves out a life of family and hearth and home in Liverpool, a city of warmth and humor that she grows to love. As the 1920s make way for the Depression and the edgy 1930s, the coming of another war looms. The Second World War will separate many more people from their loved ones, but, as Mollie sees in the cheerful, stoical camaraderie of blitzed Liverpool, it can also bring people together.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, British Literature, Historical

384 pages, Hardcover

First published September 28, 2007

About the author

Maureen Lee was born in Bootle, England, UK, near Liverpool during the World War II. She attended Commercial College and became a shorthand typist. She married Richard, and they had three sons, now adults. The last years the marriage lives in Colchester, Essex.

During years, she published over one hundred and fifty short-stories, before published her first novel Lila in 1983. She continued published dramatic historical sagas mainly setting in Liverpool since 1994. In 2000, her novel Dancing in the Dark won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award by the Romantic Novelists' Association.

Reviews

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the story of sisters, Mollie and Annmarie. They left Ireland and boarded a ferry for Liverpool where they were booked on a ship heading to New York. The terrible things that their father had done to them caused them to flee, leaving behind one older and two younger brothers and everything they knew. Annemarie was ill on the ferry and when they boarded the big ship, Mollie realising that she hadn't packed her sisters medication left the ship to look for a chemist......
The Sisters are separated and from then on the book hops between Mollie' s life in Liverpool and Annemarie's in New York. At times the story became confusing as there were so many characters in both locations plus others who were still in Ireland. I did enjoy this book but not as much as others by the same author.

[Shirley Revill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book a few times since I bought it. If you stumble across a copy it's well worth a read. highly recommended.

[Amina Hujdur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Opsežna saga o jednoj porodici.

[Cody · Rating 3 out of 5]

The leaving of Liverpool | Maureen Lee ⭐️⭐️⭐️
>Imagine, running away from what you believe to be your worst nightmare.. for it to be only the beginning. Escaping during the middle of the night to get away from their father, Mollie and Annemarie have come up with a plan to leave Ireland for good and set sail to New York to find their Aunt and hopefully start a new life. Yet one small cruel twist of fate leaves them separated before they have even left the shore. Mollie not only feels responsible but is utterly devastated at this. Meanwhile Annemarie is in such a state one would question whether she even noticed at all. This sets the tone for the rest of the book, the story of two sisters, one heartbreaking mistake and a whole lifetime now apart. Both girls get their fresh start, just not the one they initially set out to have. I loved the places mentioned in this.. Ireland, Liverpool, New York.. having been there myself it helped place the scenes in my mind. I did not however, enjoy the painfully long chapters.. I found they dragged on and needed wrapping up a touch. This isn’t for the faint hearted, it covers many a topic, including incesteous childhood abuse, kidnapping, identity theft.. making it quite the heavy read. Although it was awfully sad and moving, and I did enjoy reading, it did fall a bit short for me. Spoiler alert.. loved that they are beautifully reunited at the end!!

[Bec Begg]

A sweet little book that I listened to on audio. This revolves about 2 young sisters that fled Ireland after a horrible experience, and then were separated on the boat to New York with one staying behind in Liverpool. Although there was a lot of superfluous detail added to the story, I really enjoyed listening to this and loved that the outcome was not what I had expected (despite feeling inevitable)

[Jasleen Kaur · Rating 4 out of 5]

At times I felt Molly's story was better. But whatever be the case, the book keeps you on your edge. It feels like a family saga executed beautifully.

[Bronwyn Rykiert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a heartwarming family story and I enjoyed it very much that takes place in Liverpool, New York & Ireland from 1925 to about 1945

It is February 1925 and 16 year old Mollie and 13 year old Annemarie Kenny are running away from home in Donethly, Ireland where they have both suffered abuse by their father since the death of their mother. They have the help of their sister-in-law Hazel. Annemarie has been traumatized and has put herself in a sort of trance where she says not many words and does not seem to know what is going on around her. They are off to Liverpool then New York to live with their Aunt Maggie.

They board their ship and befriend their room mates, then with a cruel twist of fete Mollie is not on the ship when it sails to America so Annemarie goes there alone. When she arrives in America it is with the wrong name. Annemarie is put in a taxi driven by Levon Zarian and he is told to take her to the address where her aunt lives, but when he arrives, there is no-one home and as he is loathe to leave this lovely young girl who does not speak, on her own so he takes her home to his wife Tamara. Not long after, they find that she is pregnant and when the boy John is born Annemarie wants nothing to do with him, so Tamara makes him her own. When the Zarians move from Manhattan to Brooklyn, Annemarie goes to live with Ollie & Lizzie Blinker and their son Herbie and her story moves on from there.

Mollie ends up staying in Liverpool, at first she still plans to go to America when she has enough money but meets and marries a policeman Tom Ryan and they have 4 children, her story moves on but she always wonders about what happened to Annemarie.

This story goes from Mollie in Liverpool across to Annemarie in America and back again a few times. Mollie keeps in touch with her brother Finn in Ireland as well.

[Josephine (Jo) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not my usual choice of a book and maybe that is why I found it a little too light. It is a 'heart warming' story about two sisters Mollie and Annemarie who flee from their home in Ireland in 1925 to go to America. There are many complications leading to their initial separation and also influencing how their lives play out. There are some very interesting characters in their extended families and in-laws and they certainly do have their fair share of adventures. There are many sad events that span the decades up to 1945 and yes, all life is depicted here but I did find some of it a bit far fetched. There are some massive 'coincidences' that I found hard to imagine happening in real life and I did find a lot of the outcomes a little predictable. It was however an easy read and took very little real concentration which was good for me at the time.
A nice story, well written but just not my type of thing.

[CHRISTINE H FLAVELL · Rating 2 out of 5]

Certainly not one of her best.

The first quarter of the book was a page turner. What we have come to expect of this wonderful author. The second quarter I was not so much addicted. Perhaps I enjoy stories in and around Liverpool or the UK, rather than all over the USA and living the very high life with multi millionaires. At 68% and taking 6 days to read this far. (I usually take between 24-48 hours to read a Maureen Lee book, as unable to put the story down) I decided to, dare U say it....Not finish the rest of this book. An absolute first for me! 2 stars was given for the first quarter or so if this book. This is sad for me as I adore Maureen Lee's work. Just not this time.

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’d had this book on my to read pile for a while after been given it and I have to admit I’d put off reading it as the cover, title and blurb didn’t appeal. My current mission is to read all the books I own, hence I started this one. And I’m so glad I did, I couldn’t put it down. I loved all the stories and how they intertwined and the settings of New York and Liverpool, two of my favourite cities. There were lots of little twists along the way.
The chapters are quite long but there are convenient stopping points through out.

[Shirley Dawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely story of two sisters with a tragic childhood. In a desperate bid to escape their rough start in life, a cruel twist of fate separates them and the rest of the book follows both their lives in different parts of the world.

As the story continually switches from one place to the other, lots of characters are introduced which makes it very confusing at times. It's also full of ridiculous coincidences, especially at the end but on the whole I really enjoyed it.

[Rosemary Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with Maureen Lee’s other book I found myself following each character and at times living their life. I think the book for me is worth 5 stars as it has so much to offer, however the endings on both books I felt like crying... I feel I want to know about Mollie and if she remarried. So many questions. Maybe a book two?

[Alixa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cling to your sisters tightly! Now I would be so cautious with time and the ways it's read. Over all, I'm satisfied how Mollie's and Anne Marie's lives turn out. There may really be that turning point in our lives where we can never go back to how we used to be. And this book detailed-ly showed that out.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two sisters escape their home life in the middle of the night, intent on going to their aunt in New York. But circumstances separated the two and the younger sister is onboard the cruiseliner. What happens keeps the reader riveted.

[wendy john · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book..... but I was a tad downtrodden by the, ending? I felt it could have continued on ....and almost willed it to? .........
Maybe there is a follow on? Don't let this put you off reading it though!
It's a great read

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My absolute favourite Maureen Lee book to date. Endearing characters and lots of history. The story covers Liverpool, Ireland and New York. No spoilers from me, but if you like ML, then give this one a go.

[Alesuiza · Rating 5 out of 5]

A real page-turner, I could barely put the book down once I started reading. Loved the book, lovely characters, who immediately captivated me.
Although at some parts for my taste, there was a little bit too much drama, deaths and tragedy going on, the books 5 stars are well deserved.

[Megan Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book kept me interested the whole time! So many surprises along the way that I wasn’t expecting. I now know what it’s like to read a “heartwarming” story that isn’t cheesy.

[Tea Drmac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ovo je knjiga o obitelji, prijateljstvu, ljubavi i odanosti, ali i o lazima, gubitku, dubokim ranama koje samo zivot moze nanijeti.

[Mrs Susan McDermid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant read

Lovely family saga, sad, happy, enthralling interwoven lives before and during WW2. Great author living up to her name most definitely

[Ravinder Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story but cliché ending.

[Cecile Paddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another amazing story by this author. I could not put it down.

[Novelle Novels · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is spread over decades and centres on family but one that has loads of tragedy.

[Brown Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok.

[Marina Horner · Rating 4 out of 5]

It wouldn't set the literary world alight, but it's an easy, predictable read that feels like pulling on an old pair of comfy slippers, and sometimes that's just what you need!

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely read, great characters who you fell in love wit. Would of given 5 stars but thought the ending fell flat.

[Daniela]

Prevod: “Oprosti mi”

[Happy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am not really sure about this book, but my faint memory tells me that I liked it!

[Dzenana Brkic · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am at the end of yet another beautiful journey. This is not a life-changing novel, but it will warm your heart, make you smile, and teach you about true, unconditional love.

The novel is about two sisters, Mollie and Annemarie, whose lives start to change once they separate on the ship that was supposed to take them from Liverpool to New York, into a better future. They both experienced something terrible, and Mollie wants to take her sister somewhere where they will feel safe. Annemarie hasn't spoken a word since "that night". Once Mollie stays in Liverpool, and quiet and beautiful Annemarie comes to New York, things start to change for both of them. Annemarie is taken by a stranger into his home, and Mollie, overcome with saddness for having no way to find her sister, tries to build herself a new life in another city. They both come from a small village in Ireland, where their brothers still live.

Even though these two main characters are the ones most mentioned, there are many other characters which you get to love, even though they may not be perfect. Levon Zarian is one of them. When remembering him, my eyes fill with tears because of his true love towards Annemarie. I loved the mention of so many children and their cute behavior, I loved the mention of cats and their care for them, I just enjoyed reading this so much. The only thing I didn't like was epilogue, because it was spoken of the character I did not like at all.

The book starts in the year 1925 and lasts all the way to the end of the Second World War. People celebrate on the streets because the war ended, but there may be some other reasons for celebration in one family. Even though you feel that the book will end happily, you want to move on and read these beautiful passages. I came across this book by chance, but I recommend it to everyone.

[Beata Dobrogoszcz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second book by Maureen Lee and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a good life story with many twists.
Year 1925 when two teenage sisters who abused by their father; escape their home in Ireland to run away to America. By cruel fate they are separated in Liverpool: younger of the sisters remains on the ship and sails to New York, the other one has to stay in Liverpool.
Both build new lives but none of them is easy. The whole story is beautifully written with many twists and very well presented main characters. Kept me turning pages as I wanted to know what the next happened. However the end was disappointing. Like the writer did have time to write this book anymore. While there were many questions which both sisters should answer and reveal between them both what happened in their lives.