Having messed up my Five on Friday scheduling last week, I sort of deprived Judith of the shout-out she was supposed to have to tie in with the publication of her new book The Memory. So, in what has undoubtedly been a hellish week for us all, here’s an extra bit of sparkle for Judith to say “Happy Publication Day!!”

The Memory by Judith Barrow

Mother and daughter tied together by shame and secrecy, love and hate.

I wait by the bed. I move into her line of vision and it’s as though we’re watching one another, my mother and me; two women – trapped.

Today has been a long time coming. Irene sits at her mother’s side waiting for the right moment, for the point at which she will know she is doing the right thing by Rose.

Rose was Irene’s little sister, an unwanted embarrassment to their mother Lilian but a treasure to Irene. Rose died thirty years ago, when she was eight, and nobody has talked about the circumstances of her death since. But Irene knows what she saw. Over the course of 24 hours their moving and tragic story is revealed – a story of love and duty, betrayal and loss – as Irene rediscovers the past and finds hope for the future.