My new novel A Second Chance is out now
In 1997, three Polish immigrants come to London and find themselves sharing a house in Greenford: Maja, an overqualified assistant librarian; Adam, a hard working, hard drinking carpenter; and Kuba, a London cabbie who has shelved his promising physiotherapy career. They all have different reasons for leaving Poland. They experience the best and the worst of a society in which they are trying to find acceptance. As they struggle to find and keep work in London, they are forced to confront social prejudices and their own demons. This is a moving tale of young foreigners making their way in London and their personal journey of discovery. They come to realise they can change but stay true to themselves.
Available on TSL Publications website and Amazon
Paperback edition
E-book edition
Readers’ reviews:
Great book! Once you start reading you really can’t put it down! If you have ever experienced being an immigrant yourself it is like reliving the whole process again. The story has many twists and turns but it doesn’t lose its integrity and characters remain very credible. I really enjoyed reading ‘A Second Chance’
This book is addictive! Three chapters in and you’ve met the three main characters – and in my case decided that you actually care what happens to them. With the current global nervousness about migrants, the release of this book could not have come at a more apposite time. A cracking debut.
This book, in the context of Brexit, is a timely reminder of why Europeans – in this case mostly Polish – came to the UK to begin with and, in many ways, how they have become an integral part of the country. The beauty of it is that you really do get involved with the characters and want to know how it all turns out for them. Behind each established immigrant today there is a history of risk and struggle as they build a new life, often having to re-start their former qualifications to work in their own profession. To paint a fuller picture there is also romance and trauma, not overly dramatised but woven into the fabric of the story quite naturally.
This is a great ‘slice of life’ story of a subject that has not had much exposure and is well worth a read.