Julie

by Beverley Hansford

Julie Marsden has learned to deal with life. She has already survived the early loss of her parents, a repressive upbringing by her aunt and a brief marriage and divorce. When her aunt dies suddenly, she moves to London and, encouraged by her best friend Penny, reinvents herself as a chic office girl.

The transformation leads to her meeting the men who will shape her life. David is a quiet, budding writer, and for a while life with him is idyllic. When David goes to America, Julie finds solace in an offer to work in Paris. There she meets the debonair film producer René and is introduced into his world of glamour and expensive living. René would like to make the relationship permanent, but Julie remains loyal to David. Only when she receives a letter from David announcing that he intends to marry someone else, does Julie agree to marry René.

Immersed in the role of being the wife of a minor celebrity, Julie tries to be all that René demands, but all too soon she realises that she has been the innocent victim of a plan by her new husband and his close friends to ensnare her into marrying him, having carefully concealed his darkest secrets from her.

As a result, Julie finds herself trapped in a loveless and unhappy marriage. But before she can extract herself from her predicament, tragedy plunges her into the biggest and most traumatic challenge of her life.

Book Reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The author went to great detail in building the story, making it all the more captivating. The twists and turns along the journey - some so unexpected - made it an an engaging read, to the point where I was so engrossed I pretty much ignored my husband for several afternoons: “haven’t you finished that book yet?!” - I had 10 pages to go! It was written with great care and I appreciated the effort put into every word. If you enjoy following a story where you cannot predict the ending, where you think it’s going in one direction but takes you in another; if you enjoy being led through a vast array of emotions - compelled to read chapter after chapter, hungry for the story to take its next enticing turn - then you’ll love this book as much as I did!

by Rachel Barlow