Lace Curtain Irish

Newcastlewest Books is a partnership of three authors who wish to introduce works of quality fiction that bring to life the experiences of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. Specializing in historical fiction, Newcastlewest Books publishes novels with a Hibernian slant.

In "Lace Curtain Irish", the saga of the Hanlon clan plays out against the backdrop of Chicago's Union Stockyards, where fortunes could be made in cattle. It is here that Julia Hanlon returns after a thirteen-year-exile in Ireland, the reason for her abandonment known to her brother Daniel. The secrets between them will pull them apart, even as Julia struggles to reconnect with her siblings and re-create the family she was denied. Her determination will drive Daniel away, until he finds the courage to confront their mother and expose a reality as harsh as the slaughterhouse killing floor.

The penal colony in Western Australia is escape-proof---but that is about to change.

Sentenced to seven years transportation, Mary Claire O'Dwyer is determined to free the Fenian rebels. She will find allies in unexpected places, where a Royal Marine's scarlet coat can be another deception.

On the voyage to Western Australia, she is pressured by Simon Plowman to work for him as a covert spy, but the man who crushed the Fenian uprising in 1867 will inadvertently train her in the art of espionage and deception. She wastes no time in organizing a jail break.

In the U.K., Simon is seen to undermine every important Irish movement. Whether he is manipulating Charles Stuart Parnell or blackmailing Lord Salisbury, he appears to be an agent for the Crown, and when he casts his lot with Edward Carson's Ulster Volunteers, his loyalty goes unquestioned.

At the same time, his daughter develops into a radical revolutionary, sneaking around behind her father's back to support the workers during the Dublin Lockout of 1913 and expanding into gun-running for the Citizen Army. Aware that her mother left a record of her time in Fremantle, Eireann never stops searching, while her father never stops holding her at arm's length. What she perceives as political differences or lack of love is far removed from Simon's real motives. Only when she believes that she may soon face her father across battle lines will Simon introduce her to her parents, and demonstrate just how deceiving appearances can be.

Find "Lace Curtain Irish" as a trade paperback at Amazon or BN.com. Also available as an e-book.

"A Terrible Beauty"is available at Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble.com

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For information regarding Newcastlewest Books please contact us via e-mail at info@newcastlewestbooks.com

Partner: Cian O hAnnrachainn/ info@newcastlewestbooks.com
Partner: Peg O'Sullivan/ info@newcastlewestbooks.com
Partner: Katie Hanrahan/ katie@newcastlewestbooks.com