Susan Kyd

Ruth Ellis lives with her ten-year old son Andy next to a night club. One night she meets David Blakely, and they start a love affair. However, for David with his upper-class background, it is impossible to uphold the relationship. He breaks up with her, something which makes Ellis, obsessed by him, very upset.

In a dark, rural comedy, four friends face macabre setbacks (hiding a corpse, outwitting a scheming daughter, and thwarting a son-in-law's plans) to protect their secret.

This is the story of the lovely Kate Swallow and the loves of her life. At the start she is with Alec Bolton, a noted author, who discourages her when she wants to write a novel. Later she is swept off her feet by Alecs publisher, Vanni Corso, and leaves Alec for Vanni. She writes another novel and Vanni tells her he doesn't think the book will sell. Both of their actions are an indication of their vanity and fear of losing her.

When three women go to stay with their long-time gal pal, they get more than they bargained for when they discover their friend's missing husband is still in the house even though he's been supposedly "missing" for 4 years.