Clad in Armour of Radiant White

Friendship, religion, sexual awakening, love, loss and longing.An engaging – and often humorous – novel about the joys and sorrows of growing up.It is September 1959 and two significant things happen to eleven year old Ellen McCann; she goes to the Convent school in the neighbouring town of Turneley where she meets Erica Latimer, and, back at home, she falls in love with Michael Chadwell.During the months and years that follow, her school life and her home life continue along parallel tracks. Her friendship with Erica develops and intensifies, and she gets drawn into a series of Latimer family intrigues and revelations which – ultimately and unexpectedly – lead to tragedy. Meanwhile, her childhood love for Michael Chadwell appears to have run its course. Or has it?She leaves for university in September 1966, looking forward to the opportunities that lie ahead – but still grieving over the losses she has incurred along the way.‘A perceptive and well-expressed portrait of particular people . . . at a particular time.’ Rosaline Riley does ‘a superb job of presenting characters on the page’.