Books like 'The Secret Years: An emotional drama of love and survival'
Readers who enjoyed The Secret Years: An emotional drama of love and survival by Judith Lennox also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical historical-fiction family literary-fiction female-mc
-
Roaring Liberty by Jean Grainger
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsNew York City, 1922Harp Devereaux is torn. Part of her desperately wants to return to Ireland to finish what she and her family and friends started, and to witness the departure of the British forces from Ireland after eight hundred long years. But the other part finds life in America during the Roaring Twenties too exciting to trade for the sleepy streets of County Cork... -
![Silva Rerum II by Kristina Sabaliauskaitė]()
Silva Rerum II by Kristina Sabaliauskaitė
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsRomāna darbība notiek no 1707. līdz 1710.gadam. Karš, mēris, bads, nesamērīga greznība un nāvīgs izsalkums, zviedru un krievu karavīri, jūdu ārsti, holandiešu kāršu spēlmaņi, turku konkubīnes, franču dāmas, spītīgi žemaiši un ironiski viļņieši, bezvārda mūks, kurš apglabājis vairāk nekā divdesmit tūkstošus mēra upuru, un, protams, vēl viena bajāru Norvaišu dzimtas paaudze... -
![Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall]()
Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA debut about three women whose lives are bound together by a long-lost letter, a mother’s love, and a secret network of women fighting for the right to choose—inspired by true stories.2017: When Angela Creighton discovers a mysterious letter containing a life-shattering confession, she is determined to find the intended recipient... -
![The Lost Song of Paris by Sarah Steele]()
The Lost Song of Paris by Sarah Steele
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratings'For a moment she closed her eyes and imagined she was perched on the diving board at the Piscine Molitor, the sun beating down on her bare shoulders and the sound of Parisians at play beneath her. All she had to do was jump.'1941. Darkness descends over London as the sirens begin to howl and the bombs rain down. Devastation seeps from every crack of the city... -
-
![Sarah and Solomon: Only A Stone Should Be Alone by Roberta Kagan]()
Sarah and Solomon: Only A Stone Should Be Alone by Roberta Kagan
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratings“…Fathers and Give me your children!” – Chaim RumkowskiIt is September 1942, and the already battered occupants of the Lodz Ghetto have just been dealt another horrendous blow from Hitler’s iron fist. They must surrender their sick, elderly, and children for ‘deportation... -
![Lancashire Legacy by Anna Jacobs]()
Lancashire Legacy by Anna Jacobs
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAt eighteen Cathie longs for more than life as a settler in the Australian bush. She accepts her uncle's offer to send her to England and runs away from her family, not realising he is using her to get revenge on his sister Liza. Attacked at the docks in Liverpool, Cathie takes refuge with the man who saved her, a man who has his own troubles... -
![Beyond the Crushing Waves: A gripping, emotional page-turner by Lilly Mirren]()
Beyond the Crushing Waves: A gripping, emotional page-turner by Lilly Mirren
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTwo generations face heartbreak and injustice in this poignant and emotional novel inspired by true events.Mary Roberts is a poor gutter child living in a council flat in 1950’s London. When she and her sister are left at an orphanage by their mother, they don't think their lives can get any worse... -
![Belle of the Back Streets by Glenda Young]()
Belle of the Back Streets by Glenda Young
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA dramatically powerful and romantic saga of tragedy and triumph, perfect for fans of Dilly Court and Rosie Goodwin... -
![The Letter by Michelle Vernal]()
The Letter by Michelle Vernal
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWORDS HAVE THE POWER TO HEAL, REUNITE AND TO HURT... Isabel opened her bag and pulled the letter out, glancing at the address one last time before she slid it through the slot, hearing it land with a plunk. It was gone. She’d done it, and now she’d have to wait to see what happened next... -
![The Tuppenny Child by Glenda Young]()
The Tuppenny Child by Glenda Young
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratings'Real sagas with female characters right at the heart' Woman's HourIf you love Dilly Court and Rosie Goodwin, you'll LOVE Glenda Young's 'amazing novels!' (ITV's This Morning presenter Sharon Marshall)'In the world of historical saga writers, there's a brand new voice' My WeeklyWhat readers are saying about Glenda's dramatically powerful saga of secrets, friendship, motherhood, love and... -
![The Bookbinder by Pip Williams]()
The Bookbinder by Pip Williams
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA young British woman working in a book bindery gets a chance to pursue knowledge and love when World War I upends her life--an exquisite novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the Reese's Book Club pick The Dictionary of Lost Words It is 1914, and as the war draws the young men of Britain away to fight, women must keep the nation running... -
![The Champagne Queen by Petra Durst-Benning]()
The Champagne Queen by Petra Durst-Benning
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Isabelle took a chance and eloped with Leon Feininger, her true love, she hadn’t stopped to consider what would happen next. Winter on his family’s isolated vineyard proves tougher than she expected, and Isabelle finds herself daydreaming, envisioning the wines she and Leon will make when they have their own land...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult audiobook book -
![The Woodcutter's Wife by David Johnson]()
The Woodcutter's Wife by David Johnson
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSet against the backdrop of the Civil War comes a tale of love lost and found. Mary Thomson is no ordinary woman. She works alongside her husband William cutting firewood to sell in the city, earning the nickname “The Woodcutter’s Wife.” She kills a bear with her bare hands. And she prefers plowing a field to cooking a meal... -
![The Memory Tree by Linda Gillard]()
The Memory Tree by Linda Gillard
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsCan the power of love overcome life’s darkest memories and deepest losses? When her favourite beech tree is felled in a storm, Ann feels as if someone has died. But when long-hidden seed packets are found inside the trunk, Ann realises there are more memories than her own lurking within the ancient tree . . -
-
![Bitter Winds by Kay Bratt]()
Bitter Winds by Kay Bratt
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe third book of the Tales of the Scavenger’s Daughters series, Bitter Winds continues the saga of Chinese couple Benfu and Calli, and the abandoned young women in their care.Since the night her sister was almost burned alive in a fire and they were taken from their mother, Ivy has been the self-appointed guardian and guide to her blind twin, Lily... -
![A Daughter's Sorrow by Cathy Sharp]()
A Daughter's Sorrow by Cathy Sharp
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHeartache and hardship in London’s East End, from the bestselling author of The Orphans of Halfpenny StreetBridget has always been the one to take on the responsibility for looking after her family... -
![Erin's Child by Sheelagh Kelly]()
Erin's Child by Sheelagh Kelly
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFamily ties have united the Feeneys through famine and poverty, but can they withstand success? It is 1875 and the Feeneys have left the squalor of York’s slums behind them. Yet all is not well. Patrick remains a man of simple tastes, increasingly out of touch with Thomasin’s ambition to expand her business empire still further across Yorkshire... -
![Bright Day Dawning: Music Hall Series, Book 3 by Anna Jacobs]()
Bright Day Dawning: Music Hall Series, Book 3 by Anna Jacobs
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsGwynna had fallen from grace once, bearing a stillborn child out of wedlock. Determined to have a respectable future, she finds a position for herself as a nursemaid at Hungerton House. But just as she begins to find her feet, the secrets of her past are revealed. She is swiftly dismissed but not before she becomes the target of a lascivious groom... -
![The Secret Diary by Anna Stuart]()
The Secret Diary by Anna Stuart
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTwo women. One house. And a secret that spans decades…The past merges with the present in an unforgettable, poignant story of love, loss and courage in this beautifully written story set between World War Two and the present day.She steps into the room and it’s like going back in time.Catapulting her right into the heart of the 1940s.The spindle of the record player frozen and ready to play...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult book fiction -
![The Granny by Brendan O'Carroll]()
The Granny by Brendan O'Carroll
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe New York Times Book Review praised Brendan O'Carroll's first novel, The Mammy, as "Cheerful...as unpretentious and satisfying as a home-cooked meal...with a delicious dessert of an ending... -
![The French House by Helen Fripp]()
The French House by Helen Fripp
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe vineyards stretched away in every direction as he plucked a perfect red grape, sparkling with dew. “Marry me,” he’d said. “We’ll run these vineyards together.” But now he is gone. There is no one to share the taste of the first fruit of the harvest... -
![Refuge by Dot Jackson]()
Refuge by Dot Jackson
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratings“An intensely readable novel of the complexity of family ties . . . Dot Jackson is a true Southern voice, a master storyteller and an Appalachian treasure” (Dori Sanders, author of Clover and Her Own Place )... -
![Carved in Stone by Margaret Manchester]()
Carved in Stone by Margaret Manchester
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFROM AMAZON INTERNATIONAL NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING AUTHOR Northern England 1881. Sent away during her brother’s trial, Phyllis Forster returns home as mistress of Burnside Hall only to find that the Weardale people have turned against the Forster family, and she desperately wants to win back their respect... -
![A Daughter’s Dream by Cathy Sharp]()
A Daughter’s Dream by Cathy Sharp
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsHeartache and hardship in London’s East End, from the bestselling author of The Orphans of Halfpenny StreetAmy Robinson and her fiance Matthew are struggling to resist the temptations faced by a soon-to-be-wed couple. To avoid these, Matthew throws himself into a new job and she goes to work in an exclusive new dress shop, where she meets Mary Maitland...Categorized as:
historical-fiction female-mc family literary-fiction psychological romance 20th-century holidays -
-
![Her Own Legacy by Debra Borchert]()
Her Own Legacy by Debra Borchert
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA Woman Fights for Her Legacy as the French Revolution Erupts Headstrong Countess Joliette de Verzat prefers secretly managing her family’s Loire Valley château and vineyards to the cut-throat politics of Versailles. For nearly three centuries, generations of families have toiled to produce Château de Verzat wines, and their homes and livelihoods depend upon Joliette...Categorized as:
historical-fiction female-mc literary-fiction family historical fiction feminism action-adventure -
![The Wartime Vet by Ellie Curzon]()
The Wartime Vet by Ellie Curzon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsEngland, 1941. Dedicated local vet Laura cares for the farm animals of the little village of Bramble Heath. But falling bombs aren’t the only danger as the war hits close to home…Despite everyone telling her it’s not a suitable career for a woman, Laura has worked hard to become a successful livestock vet...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction female-mc family ww2 fiction 20th-century romance -
![Speedwell by Alex Martin]()
Speedwell by Alex Martin
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSpeedwell Living in the fast lane tests everyone's limits Katy and Jem enter the 1920's with their future in the balance. How can they possibly make their new enterprise work? They must risk everything, including disaster, and trust their gamble will pay off... -
![The Last Card by Ruth Saberton]()
The Last Card by Ruth Saberton
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsEscape to Cornwall this Christmas ... From the bestselling author of The Letter, Ruth Saberton’s beautiful new novella is the perfect seasonal blend of nostalgia, secrets and long-lost love, set against a backdrop of the stunning Cornish landscape. A lifetime apart. A love never forgotten... -
![Mr Darcy's Persuasion by Cass Grafton, Cassandra Grafton]()
Mr Darcy's Persuasion by Cass Grafton, Cassandra Grafton
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsTwo of Jane Austen’s classics collide in this intriguing tale of pride, prejudice and persuasion, set in England’s beautiful West Country.In the aftermath of the Netherfield Ball, Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet are determined to find respite—Darcy from the allure of the lady and the feelings she evokes in him, and Elizabeth from the drama unfolding at Longbourn...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family female-mc literary-fiction industrial-era regency fiction historical -
![In a Kingdom by the Sea: An enchantingly beautiful and heartbreaking historical romance novel by Sara MacDonald]()
In a Kingdom by the Sea: An enchantingly beautiful and heartbreaking historical romance novel by Sara MacDonald
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA sweeping, evocative story of love, secrets and betrayal, set against the stunning backdrops of Karachi and Cornwall. Perfect for readers who love Santa Montefiore, Rosanna Ley and Dinah Jefferies.When Gabby’s husband accepts a transfer to Pakistan, she discovers a new world of heat and colour, of exotic bazaars and trips to the breath-taking Kashmiri mountains...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult audiobook book -
![The Traveller's Daughter by Michelle Vernal]()
The Traveller's Daughter by Michelle Vernal
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsROSA’S PAST IS HER PANDORA’S BOX, AND THE LID IS ABOUT TO BE LIFTED … ‘If you lie down with dogs you’ll rise with fleas’ – Irish Proverb Rosa Sorenson’s conversation was often peppered with sayings from her homeland. It was these conversational clangers that gave her daughter Kitty the only clue as to a childhood her mother refused to speak of...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult book fiction -
![Peace Lily by Alex Martin]()
Peace Lily by Alex Martin
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsPeace Lily is the sequel to DAFFODILS and book two of the 'Katherine Wheel' series. After the appalling losses suffered during World War One, three of its survivors long for peace, unaware that its aftermath will bring different, but still daunting, challenges. Katy trained as a mechanic during the war and cannot bear to return to the life of drudgery she left behind... -
![Cinderella Sister by Dilly Court]()
Cinderella Sister by Dilly Court
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLily Larkin is the youngest of six and the least important member of her talented, argumentative, temperamental family. With their father dead and their mother a stranger to them, she must stay at home and keep house whilst her elder siblings go out to work. As she goes about her daily chores, and minds her ailing grandfather, her head is full of dreams... -
![The Fourth Daughter by Lyn Liao Butler]()
The Fourth Daughter by Lyn Liao Butler
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn Taiwan, the bond between grandmother and granddaughter opens up a healing world for them both in an inspiring family saga about the comfort of food, untold histories, and indomitable mother love.Chef Liv Kuo’s star is on the rise…until a traumatic incident leaves her emotionally unable to venture outside her Manhattan apartment...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family literary-fiction female-mc romance fiction mystery historical -
-
![The Bogside Boys by Eoin Dempsey]()
The Bogside Boys by Eoin Dempsey
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsFrom the Amazon Top Ten Overall Bestselling author of Finding RebeccaThe war will force him to choose between his community, his family, or the woman he loves. The city of Derry, Northern Ireland, 1972The Bogside is an area in open revolt, cordoned off from the rest of the city of Derry, patrolled by masked IRA men atop burnt out barricades...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction literary-fiction adult book fiction historical violent-conflict -
![Song of the Skylark by Erica James, Nathalie van Gent]()
Song of the Skylark by Erica James, Nathalie van Gent
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLizzie has an unfortunate knack for attracting bad luck, but this time she's hit the jackpot. Losing her heart to her boss at the radio station where she works leads directly to losing her job, and with no money in the bank she's forced to swallow her pride and return home to her parents...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction adult anthologies audiobook drama -
![Coming Apart by Karen Heenan]()
Coming Apart by Karen Heenan
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsNo one knows you like a sister.Ava has always been poor, so she doesn't think the Great Depression will change anything. But when her mother dies and her coal miner husband loses his job, Ava's certainty falters. The last thing she needs is a letter from her estranged sister, asking for the impossible.Claire has everything she could ever want, except the child she promised her husband... -
![Toward the Sea of Freedom by Sarah Lark]()
Toward the Sea of Freedom by Sarah Lark
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn mid-nineteenth-century Ireland, charming Kathleen and dashing Michael harbor secrets and dreams. Imagining a life beyond the kitchen and fields of the wealthy family they both work for, they plot to leave their homeland, marry, and raise the child Kathleen is secretly carrying. The luck of the Irish, however, is not on their side... -
![The Garment Maker's Daughter by Hillary Adrienne Stern]()
The Garment Maker's Daughter by Hillary Adrienne Stern
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe Garment Maker’s Daughter is a multigenerational saga of immigrant dreams and sweatshop realities, labor strikes and women’s rights... -
![Rhythms by Donna Hill]()
Rhythms by Donna Hill
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIt all began in 1927, in the small town of Rudell, Mississippi, after the sudden and tragic death of Cora Harvey's parents. She has nothing left except her burning desire to become a singer. But her dream will never come true in Rudell, especially if she marries the man she adores, Dr. David Mackey... -
![A Whisper To The Living by Ruth Hamilton]()
A Whisper To The Living by Ruth Hamilton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAnnie Byrne was born during one of the worst winters Lancashire ever remembered. When the doctor finally got through the nine-foot drifts of snow, mother and daughter were in a pretty bad way, but both the new-born Annie and her exhausted mother - a spinner in the cotton mill - were fighters, tough and determined not to let the world knock them down...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction adult audiobook book coming-of-age -
![Saddle The Wind by Jess Foley]()
Saddle The Wind by Jess Foley
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsLet much loved author Jess Foley sweep you away with this beautifully breathtaking saga of one woman's search for love and fulfilment. Fans of Catherine Cookson, Dilly Court and Katie Flynn will absolutely love this... -
![When I First Held You by Anstey Harris]()
When I First Held You by Anstey Harris
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSilence tore them apart. Can the truth bring them back together?In 1960s Glasgow, anti-nuclear activists Judith and Jimmy fall in love. But their future hopes are dashed when their protestors’ squat is raided and many, including Jimmy, are sent to prison. Pregnant and with no word from Jimmy, Judith is forced to enter an unmarried mothers’ home, give up their baby and learn to live with her grief...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction family female-mc romance fiction historical lgbtq -
![Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor]()
Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsMary Kate takes a deep breath as she stands outside 24 Merrion Square with its red front door and pretty rose garden. Grieving from her recent heartbreak, will returning to the Irish boarding house be the second chance she so desperately needs?Dublin, 1956: When Mary Kate Ryan loses the love of her life, she’s not sure how she can keep going...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction family female-mc small-town historical fiction epic -
-
![Wildwood by Elinor Florence]()
Wildwood by Elinor Florence
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA single mother. An abandoned farmhouse. An epic battle with the northern wilderness.Broke and desperate, Molly Bannister accepts the ironclad condition laid down in her great-aunt’s will: to receive her inheritance, Molly must spend one year in an abandoned, off-the-grid farmhouse in the remote backwoods of northern Alberta...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction action-adventure adult book fiction -
![The Devil's Slave by Tracy Borman]()
The Devil's Slave by Tracy Borman
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAt the end of The King’s Witch, the first book in Tracy Borman’s Stuart-era trilogy, Frances Gorges was pregnant with the child of her dead lover, Thomas Wintour, executed for his role as a conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Now, in The Devil’s Slave, Frances is compelled to return to the dissolute and dangerous court where she has been suspected of witchcraft... -
![The Whaler by Ines Thorn]()
The Whaler by Ines Thorn
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn the opening epic novel of The Island of Sylt trilogy by bestselling author Ines Thorn, a young woman must choose between love and poverty, or thrilling adventure and tormented passion. Germany’s North Sea Coast: The Island of Sylt, 1764 Life in the windswept village of Rantum in the North Sea is fraught with peril and hardship. Most families must rely on arranged marriage just to survive... -
![The Distant Shores by Santa Montefiore]()
The Distant Shores by Santa Montefiore
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMargot Hart travels to Ireland to write a biography of the famous Deverill family. She knows she must speak to the current Lord Deverill - JP - if she is to uncover the secrets of the past. A notorious recluse, JP won't be an easy man to crack. But Margot is determined - and she is not a woman who is easily put off... -
![The Lost Sister of Fifth Avenue by Ella Carey]()
The Lost Sister of Fifth Avenue by Ella Carey
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsNew York, 1938: Martha pulled the door of her Fifth Avenue apartment closed, her heart thumping, re-reading the telegram she’d been dreading. Her beloved sister Charlotte needed her help. She was alone in Paris, and the threat of Nazi invasion grew ever stronger. The time had come for Martha to make the bravest decision of her life. She needed to bring Charlotte home...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family female-mc literary-fiction ww2 urban friendship historical -
![The Promise of Rain by Vasundra Tailor]()
The Promise of Rain by Vasundra Tailor
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA treasured necklace that could unlock a family mystery. But why has it been hidden away for sixty years?With her thirtieth birthday on the horizon, Anna Kotze has accepted that there are some family secrets she’ll never know. While her mother’s Zimbabwean roots are woven into her life, all her father will say is that he was adopted...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction fiction audiobook mystery coming-of-age
Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.
