Lovers and Dancers
By Heather Ingman
Ireland, 1916
The First World War rages on and rumours fly about nationalists planning an uprising against the British for Independence.
Sheltered from the outside terrors, Louisa lives at High Park, as upper-class estate in the Irish countryside where she feels she never quite belonged.
Caught between a cold, unhappy marriage and mundane wifely duties, Louisa’s dream of being a painter never felt so distant.
With her only son enlisted in the army, and her husband’s niece Muriel unsettling her with bizarre behaviour and pro-war values, she finds herself powerless in a war-torn world where being a woman finds no freedom.
But then she meets wild, strong-minded Viola Luttrell and Louisa’s world is turned upside down.
Struck by Viola’s charm, the two become friends – but before long their friendship in danger.
Not only does Louisa’s husband hold a grudge against the Luttrell family, but Viola has a secret that could put both their lives at risk: she knows James Connolly, the nationalist rebel leader, and she plans to join the imminent uprising against the British.
As Viola and Louisa grow closer and their friendship blossoms into something more, the fight for freedom becomes more than a fight for a nation, but a fight for themselves.
As the terrors of the war infiltrate High Park and loyalties are tested, the women are forced to make painful decisions that could change the course of their lives forever…
Lovers and Dancers is a heart-wrenching tale of love lost and love found in unexpected places.
Heather Ingman is the best-selling author of seven novels. Two, including STEALING HEAVEN, have been translated into German. She has lived in Scotland, France and Ireland and is currently Adjunct Professor in the School of English, Trinity College, Dublin. Her teaching and academic interests focus on women’s fiction. Her academic publications include WOMEN’S INTER-WAR FICTION (Edinburgh University Press, 1998), A HISTORY OF THE IRISH SHORT STORY (Cambridge University Press) and IRISH WOMEN’S FICTION: FROM EDGEWORTH TO ENRIGHT (Irish Academic Press, 2013).
