David Hermelin

A Well Kept Secret David Hermelin

It is 1979 and journalist Kate, fleeing The Troubles in her native Ireland, has just started a job with a campaigning magazine in Bath, Somerset. She takes one of two flats in Hawkswell House, a crumbling manor a few miles south of the city. From the moment she meets the cantankerous owner, Penelope Townshend, and her aged gardener, Tom, she feels as if she is uncovering a different mystery almost every day. An almost derelict boatshed on the river holds many secrets from the First World War and her Irish heritage, which she would love to untangle, except no-one seems to want to talk about - especially Penelope. So Kate embarks on her own investigations. And when Daniel, a young and surprisingly attractive university lecturer from Bristol, takes the second flat in Hawkswell House, the mystery deepens. Why did a pile of ammunition boxes suddenly appear and quickly disappear from the hallway? Why is Daniel living so far away from work and in such an old place as Hawkswell? What happened to the young Irish boat builder who was sent to the trenches in France? And why are Kate and Daniel suddenly in so much danger as they begin to unravel this fascinating enigma?