Random Three

by Sarah Connell

Life is hard for a teenage mother living in isolation, on benefits and with little education. Brought up in care herself, Mary dreads the possibility of her little boy ending up in the same place. Social services are already keeping an eye on her and she's desperately trying to keep her head above water. A chance meeting with two other women in the city - Sheila, a middle-aged retired professional, and Eileen, an elderly widow - opens Mary's eyes to a myriad of possibilities and a new outlook on life. The trials and tribulations of these three women bring them together in the small northern town of Warmfield. But will this unite them for the better?

140 pages, Paperback

Published July 28, 2020

About the author

An allotment. A bench. A grieving man. An asylum seeker on the run. An intimate, sharply relevant story that unfolds in the stillness between two people who should never have met, and yet desperately need each other.
Walter and Osama aren’t just characters, they’re reflections of two worlds colliding in quiet resistance. There’s heartbreak here, but also defiant kindness. The emotional stillness, the subtle tensions, the questions of belonging, grief, and trust, readers say this is the kind of novel that lingers in the soul long after the final page.


My first novel 'Whenever' was published in 2017 on my 70th birthday when I won the Novel Prize with Cinnamon Press. My second 'Random Three' came out with the Book Guild in summer 2020. 'Where Are You Now?' is my third and is the story of an unlikely friendship between an old man and an asylum seeker.

My work is social fiction, about our contemporary lives, with a focus on characters and I write mostly but not only about the northern city where I live.
The next one is set in Ghana.

Reviews

[Karen Perkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

One not to be missed

Powerful and brutally honest writing coupled with compassion and a rare sensuality. This is a short novel, but Sarah Connell makes every single word count as she delivers an expertly woven exposition of motherhood, loneliness, and the search for new meaning in life.

The story revolves around the struggles Mary faces as a young mum, alone and fresh out of care, desperate to do right by her son, but unsure what that is. Sheila and Eileen are both older, their families grown and fled the nest, and they both try to help, in their different ways. But not all help is wanted, welcome, or – well – helpful.

Connell’s acute eye cuts open and exposes the care system – its progress and its faults – as well as the potential and dangers of ‘help’, however well-intentioned it may be. At the same time, she examines how much society has changed within only a couple of generations, and weaves the perspectives of three strong characters into absorbing snapshots of the women’s lives as they intersect. This makes for a disquieting yet profound read, and one not to be missed.

[Guy Craw · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written tale that revolves around the life of a young mother and two older women, which unfolds in a fictional urban setting in Northern England. Engaging, with solid characterization - strongly recommend this little novel.