The Welsh Marches Series

Mary Mitchell meets her neighbour Tim Spencer when, dressed only in a fluffy pink towel, he slides out of his shower and stops at her feet. It is the beginning of a fast paced adventure for them both. Mary has just moved into a new, but very old house, and discovers that it has a secret. Uncovering the secret, leads Mary into the history of her house, and she soon discovers that all is not what it seems. Murder and a centuries old feud take Mary from the past into the present where all has not yet been resolved. Tim has escaped from yet another relationship in which he had no investment, to a quiet house in the country. He is a gifted structural engineer who has taken on a new job that he has little clue how to do. Almost immediately he finds that his confidence is being undermined and his reputation slowly destroyed. Struggling to understand what is going on, he discovers a large scale fraud involving dangerous people very close to him. Together, he and Mary work to save his career and her sanity but find that they are being drawn into the past and into modern international crime. In so doing they must also face their relationship with each other. This is far from straightforward as a hostile daughter, a manipulating ex-husband, and an old girl friend appear at the worst of times to complicate whatever they may feel for each other. This is the first in the Welsh Marches series. The second Secrets Lies and Legacies continues the story of Tim and Mary. A third, Red Snow describes the life of a Morse Code operator sent to Moscow in 1942. The work soon draws him into situations which could affect the security of Britain. The fourth book, The Word Garden, takes place in the 1970s, a time of great social change. Gordon and Margaret's marriage is complicated indeed and becomes more so with outside influences.

Secrets, Lies and Legacies (formerly published in print as Things I Haven't Told You) Mary and Tim seem to have a perfect relationship. But everyone has secrets - haven't they? Mary, a former school teacher, decides to go back to work - as a builder. As the only woman on site, she has some challenges to meet but learns quickly. Tim, a structural engineer who would much prefer to be on a building site, is unemployed - a house husband. Then his mother finds out. She is a domineering person who takes an instant dislike to Mary and works to destroy the relationship - 'for Tim's sake'. A mystery from Tim's family threatens to destabilise their newly found love for each other and the wider family relations even further. Tensions escalate. Somehow Mary has to find out why there is such a powerful demand for her attention in the walled vegetable garden. She finds tiny glimpses into the past and knows she must widen the search. Then Tim tells her why his mother is so hostile. It runs deeper than it seems. Mary hasn't been entirely forthcoming about her family either and there are new pressures, financial this time. In order to meet these new challenges, she must first get Tim to admit that she must resolve the mystery and then they have to survive their controlling, dishonest and unstable parents, a sudden marriage, a new baby, a flood, a possible murder and a new professional venture for them both. But then there are the children, one grown up and the other not... This is the second in the Welsh Marches series. The first book Freeing My Sisters begins the tale and a third, Red Snow tells the true story.

Royston Thomas has two secrets. He has an excellent skill in Morse Code although he doesn’t think it is all that remarkable. And, he hates the idea of conflict so much that when World War II finally breaks out, he becomes a conscientious objector. These two things draw him to the attention of people he assumes to be British intelligence. They train him in Russian and in code breaking. Then they send him to Russia, to work on British Embassy radio traffic and secretly spy for the government. The Great Patriotic War soon overtakes him and his work. One after the other he loses the morals that make him who he is: his horror of human conflict is dulled by what he witnesses; out of necessity, he learns to accept the machinery of war, strong drink and bad language, even if it is in Russian. He retains his loathing for killing, but loses even that in desperate times; and then when he meets Yeva he loses his heart. When the war ends, he realises the treachery he has been subjected to and must find a way to save the things he values most. He must make a terrible choice. Author Wilma Hayes lives and works in the Welsh Marches and Red Snow is the third in a series from this beautiful area of the United Kingdom. The first two books: Freeing My Sisters and Secrets Lies Legacies begin the stories.

The Word Garden, Book 4, The Welsh Marches Series Maggie is the happiest of brides - her life is perfect. It is the 1970s and she is the perfect wife. Her perfect husband Gordon is handsome, charming and owns his own business. He also has a mistress and his business is in financial trouble; two things that draw him more and more deeply into dangerous and illegal activities. Two things he can never tell his wife. In time Maggie begins to grow up. She learns about women's liberation and feminism and begins to form her own opinions about her place in the world and in her marriage. The inevitable crash between her evolving views and Gordon's rigid orthodox and pedantic values, and the ultimate betrayal, force her to cope through prescription drugs and a dedication to her flower garden and its very, very special plants. They are two people living double lives. Who will survive this marriage?