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Two women, separated by years, tied by secrets untold and haunted by tragedies that could not be foreseen.

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In a quiet coastal village, Irina spends her days restoring furniture, passing the time in peace and hiding away from the world. A family secret, long held and never discussed, casts a dark shadow and Irina chooses to withdraw into her work. When an antique bureau is sent to her workshop, the owner anonymous, Irina senses a history to the object that makes her uneasy. As Irina begins to investigate the origins of the piece, she unearths the secrets it holds within...

Decades earlier in the 1950s, another young woman kept secrets. Her name was Abigail. Over the course of one summer, she fell in love, and dreamed of the future. But Abigail could not know that a catastrophe loomed, and this event would change the course of many lives for ever...

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A deftly-handled, slow-burning thriller across two distinct timelines... the author´s evocation of time and place is impeccable. Fans of Kate Mosse and Kate Atkinson will find a lot to like here. Joanne Harris, Goodreads

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Major, Cesca

Cesca read History at Bristol University. She went on to work in television as a researcher and presenter for four years before becoming a History teacher. Her first real writing success came in 2005 when she was Runner Up in the Daily Mail Writing Competition for the best opening paragraph to a novel. She has won, or been placed, in some short story competitions since then including the annual competitions for: Women and Home, Wells Festival of Literature, Grace Dieu and has also had a short story published in the Sentinel Literary Magazine. She reads widely and has written regular reviews and features for the popular women´s fiction website www.novelicious.com. She currently works as a Housemistress at a Secondary boarding School in Berkshire. She lives in Bradfield with her husband and their brood of ex-battery chickens.
The Silent Hours is her first novel.

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