Paddy Crewe

‘Empathetic, honest, compelling. I’ll read anything Paddy Crewe writes.’ Bonnie Garmus, author of Lessons in Chemistry‘True Love had me from its gorgeous, lyrical opening to its transcendent final pages. Paddy Crewe is an exceptionally gifted writer.’ Louise Kennedy, author of Trespasses--------What does it mean to love and be loved?It is the 1980s and Finn and Keely are growing up in the North East of England.Keely is a fighter. Even in the face of loss she strives to seek connection, but finds that she’s not always searching in the right places.Finn is quiet, sensitive, distant. He spends much of his time alone, yet deep down he wants to discover the thrill of relating to others.When the two finally meet, everything is changed. Love – with all of its attendant joys and costs – is thrust upon them, and each must decide if they will bend or break under its pressure. True Love is a story of the trials of youth, the bonds of family and friendship, and of how much we are willing to risk to have ourselves be seen.

It is 1815 in the small town of Heron's Creek, Georgia, when Yip Tolroy - mute, medical anomaly & social outcast - is born. His father has disappeared in mysterious circumstances, so he is raised by his mother: a powerful, troubled, independent woman who owns and runs a general store. She struggles to manage his needs, leaving Yip to find the means of asserting himself in an unforgiving, hostile environment. With the help of a retired doctor, he begins to transform his life by learning to read and write, his portal into the community a piece of slate and a supply of chalk. And then at the age of 15, Yip's life is altered irrevocably. In the space of a few days he witnesses the discovery of gold, meets his faithful friend and comrade Dud Carter, and commits a grievous crime. Thrust unwittingly into a world of violence and sin, Yip and Dud are forced to leave town and embark on an odyssey that will introduce them to the wonder and horror of the American frontier until the revelation of a secret means they must return to Heron's Creek and the fate that awaits them.