Valerie Randle

The April Letters Valerie Randle

Loneliness. It can lead to out-of-character behaviour. The solitary figure who sits confined in a small room, hunched over a table and writing feverishly, knows this only too well. Young Susan Smith's world was shattered when a freak accident killed her mother and nothing was ever the same for her again. With this shocking event begins Susan's struggle with insecurity, crippling shyness and guilt. Then, unexpectedly, she is given a chance to escape from these troubles. Yet even now she feels there is something lacking. What more does Susan need? Years later another life-changing event resurrects ghosts from her past. Will she be able to untangle her past and confront her shadows? The outcome surprises Susan as much as it will the reader. Spanning the period from the 1960s to the present century, Susan's life and relationships are vividly depicted against the background of life in a South Wales village.