At the end of a long and eventful life, Cecily James looks back, writing of her experiences as a child in wartime Cornwall, the love affair that results in a stillborn child, a loveless marriage, and her bold decision to defy convention and return to Cornwall and the man she loves. Her memoir will not be completed-at least, not by her.
In 1960s Limerick, two teenage boys find themselves orphaned a second time when an automobile accident claims their adopted parents. Sent to one of Ireland's infamous and degrading industrial schools, the two are drawn into the sectarian troubles plaguing Northern Ireland, eventually planning a daring escape.
On the surface, Cecily's life and the fate of two Irish teens seem unconnected. It will be up to Cecily's granddaughter, Maddie, to weave together the two tales, creating a colorful tapestry of religious strife, violence, passion, mystery, and enduring love.
An elegant, ageless mystery romance, Angel, Sinner, Mermaid, Saint is a breathtaking, suspenseful tale that travels seamlessly between Cornwall, Ireland, England and America-and across three generations and three families bound together by love.
About the Author: Alice Lee Thornton was born in Ely, Cambridgeshire, in 1938. Her father was Precentor of the Cathedral, and she was raised in a clerical household that lived, at various times, in Devon, Cornwall, Shropshire, and Somerset.
Educated at Christ's Hospital Girls' School in Hertford and the College of St. Matthias, Bristol, Thornton pursued a teaching career, specializing in English and Music. After retiring from her last school post in 1985, she provided piano lessons to up to fifty students a week and ran a Bed and Breakfast from her home, Holly Lodge, in Bury St Edmunds with her second husband.
Married three times, she has three children with her first husband and four delightful grandchildren. She stays in touch with two sets of stepchildren.
Thornton began writing at age seventy-two, transcribing and editing her mother's handwritten memoir. A holiday in Cadgwith, Cornwall, inspired Angel, Sinner, Mermaid, Saint.
