The Hamilton Trilogy Series by Catherine Cookson

First published in 1984, this is the first of a Catherine Cookson trilogy. Maisie had probably first met Hamilton when she started talking to herself as an often lonely seven-year-old on Tyneside. Hamilton was an imaginary horse who acted as her guide, philosopher and confidant.

The second volume of a Catherine Cookson trilogy, following "Hamilton". Freed at last from a disastrous marriage, Maisie had also become a bestselling author with her first book - about Hamilton, the remarkable horse who existed only in her imagination, and was her guide, philosopher and friend.

The final part of a Catherine Cookson trilogy, following "Hamilton" and "Goodbye Hamilton". The imaginary horse has vanished from Maisie's life, and in the days after the death of her second husband she takes comfort from the company of a cheerful, bright-eyed little cockney boy named Harold.