Holidays at Home
6 primary works
Book 1
In 1939, with the war having been declared, evacuees arrive in the small Welsh seaside town of St David's Wells. When Eirlys Price convinces her parents to take in three young children, she never imagined it could lead to shocking family revelations which threaten all her future plans. Amidst homesickness, local gossip and the challenges of wartime, the community must pull together and wait until summer, when the town will come alive in all its seasonal glory...
Wait Till Summer is a classic wartime saga, filled with warmth, nostalgia and period detail, wonderful characters and finely-crafted plot. It is the first in the Holidays at Home series.
Grace Thompson is an acclaimed author of saga and romance novels, and a mainstay of libraries throughout the United Kingdom and beyond. Born and raised in South Wales, she is the author of numerous series, including the Valley series, the Pendragon Island series, and the Badgers Brook series. She published her 42nd novel shortly after celebrating her 80th birthday, and continues to live in Swansea.
Book 2
In 1940, foreign travel is no longer feasible due to the War, so “holidays at home” enjoy a new lease of life, meaning business is booming for Piper’s Café at St David's Wells. However, not everyone in the family-run business is as happy as they seem.
Beth Castle has known Freddy Clements her entire life, and they are certain to become engaged any day now. But war changes everything, and with Freddy and her brothers going off to fight, it appears their lives will turn in unexpected directions.
Swingboats on the Sand is the second of the Holidays at Home books, a series of enchanting British wartime sagas from the much-loved author Grace Thompson.
Grace Thompson is an acclaimed author of saga and romance novels, and a mainstay of libraries throughout the United Kingdom and beyond. Born and raised in South Wales, she is the author of numerous series, including the Valley series, the Pendragon Island series, and the Badgers Brook series. She published her 42nd novel shortly after celebrating her 80th birthday, and continues to live in Swansea.
Book 3
Shirley Downs has always known she was no ordinary girl. But when she enters and wins a singing contest, she begins to realise that her talent is really something special. However, it is 1941, and a career on the stage comes second place to rationing and bomb threats. Nevertheless, Shirley is determined to succeed, and no-one will get in her way...
Waiting for Yesterday is the third of the Holidays at Home books, a captivating series of wartime sagas from the much-loved author Grace Thompson.
Grace Thompson is an acclaimed author of saga and romance novels, and a mainstay of libraries throughout the United Kingdom and beyond. Born and raised in South Wales, she is the author of numerous series, including the Valley series, the Pendragon Island series, and the Badgers Brook series. She published her 42nd novel shortly after celebrating her 80th birthday, and continues to live in Swansea.
Book 4
St David’s Wells blossoms in the English tourist trade of the war years. The Castle family run the rides and stalls, struggling to manage without their absent sons, and amid tragedies and anxieties, there is time for what St David’s Wells does best – fun and laughter.
The fourth in Grace Thompson’s bestselling Holidays at Home series, Day Trippers is a wonderful journey into a seaside town in wartime Britain.
Grace Thompson is an acclaimed author of saga and romance novels, and a mainstay of libraries throughout the United Kingdom and beyond. Born and raised in South Wales, she is the author of numerous series, including the Valley series, the Pendragon Island series, and the Badgers Brook series. She published her 42nd novel shortly after celebrating her 80th birthday, and continues to live in Swansea.
Book 5
When Audrey Castle finally marries her sweetheart, Wilf Thomas, she begins to regret her promise to always help out at the Castle's family cafe. When her future dramatically changes, Audrey is even more determined to strike out on her own.
War evacuee sisters Maude and Myrtle also made a promise – to never abandon each other – but when Myrtle begins to gain independence, drama breaks out. Life in St. David's Wells carries on, despite the war, in all its colour.
Unwise Promises is the fifth in Grace Thompson’s much-loved classics, the Holidays at Home sagas, filled with warmth, heart and nostalgia for an unforgettable time in our history.
Grace Thompson is an acclaimed author of saga and romance novels, and a mainstay of libraries throughout the United Kingdom and beyond. Born and raised in South Wales, she is the author of numerous series, including the Valley series, the Pendragon Island series, and the Badgers Brook series. She published her 42nd novel shortly after celebrating her 80th birthday, and continues to live in Swansea.
Book 6
With the war drawing to a close, St David’s Wells prepares to welcome the soldiers home. Everyone is looking forward to a new dawn.
But Alice Castle is suspicious of a strange woman, Netta, who is taking an unhealthy interest in Alice’s husband’s return. Other well-loved characters from previous books in this series have their stories told as we take one last look at life in St David’s Wells.
Street Parties is the sixth and final instalment in Grace Thompson’s captivating and bestselling wartime saga series, Holidays at Home.