At first this marriage of convenience works well enough, thanks to Moira's ever-cheerful disposition. But as their growing family compounds their financial difficulties, Hector becomes colder, more resentful, and more brutish...until a horrifying act of violence provokes an even more shocking act of retribution by one of his young sons. Vintage Catherine Cookson, this deeply felt novel of a family rent by acrimony and hardship -- and restored by love -- will earn a special place in readers' hearts. It is one of the most moving books this bestselling author has written in a career spanning more than four decades.