Tildy Series by Sara Fraser

The 1820s, England.From the moment she meets handsome and violent Tom Crawford, Tildy Seymour knows her life will never be the same.Heavily pregnant, Tildy finds herself with no recourse but to marry the father of her baby — only to find themselves in the same day homeless, jobless, and penniless.With nothing left to them, the newlyweds must return to Tom’s birthplace of the Sidemoor in the Midlands, a savage and oppressed community of nail-makers... moreThe 1820s, England.From the moment she meets handsome and violent Tom Crawford, Tildy Seymour knows her life will never be the same.Heavily pregnant, Tildy finds herself with no recourse but to marry the father of her baby — only to find themselves in the same day homeless, jobless, and penniless.With nothing left to them, the newlyweds must return to Tom’s birthplace of the Sidemoor in the Midlands, a savage and oppressed community of nail-makers.Surrounded by misery, saddled with a husband she despises, and desperate to build a future more positive than her own for her unborn child, Tildy holds her head high, refusing to be daunted, and faces all that her new life throws at her.Tildy is the first of an eight book series following the eponymous heroine’s struggles against a harsh world.Sara Fraser is the pen-name of marine commando and foreign legionnaire Roy Clews. Fraser is the author of The Surgeon’s Apprentice, Til Death Do us Part and The Healing Nightfall , among many others. Fraser has written a number of mysteries as well as a number of novels influenced by a life of travel and work all over the world. less

The Midlands, 1821. When a newly appointed vestry deems that Tildy Crawford is not rightfully a part of their parish, she is devastated.Matilda Crawford’s husband ran away, leaving her to fend for herself and her young baby. With the vestry’s decision, she is forced back to the poorhouse she left behind shortly after young Davy’s birth.Returning to the poorhouse instantly labels her as a pauper. With her beauty, there is no shortage of leering men... moreThe Midlands, 1821. When a newly appointed vestry deems that Tildy Crawford is not rightfully a part of their parish, she is devastated.Matilda Crawford’s husband ran away, leaving her to fend for herself and her young baby. With the vestry’s decision, she is forced back to the poorhouse she left behind shortly after young Davy’s birth.Returning to the poorhouse instantly labels her as a pauper. With her beauty, there is no shortage of leering men. But Matilda, Tildy, wants more from life … she knows she is capable and intelligent enough … so why shouldn’t she?Soon it becomes apparent that Davy is quite ill. Fearful for her baby, Tildy is at a loss for how she can help him.Meanwhile, on the death of his mother, Lucas Royston, comes to live with his uncle. Having led a life of leisure and failing to obtain his medical degree, Lucas knows that he has no other choice but to accept the contract his uncle offers him. Lucrative it is not … but can he make something of this opportunity?Davy is diagnosed with smallpox. A surely feared disease in the parish. Dr Royston uses this as an opportunity to make a name for himself in the parish. But to what lengths will he go to achieve this? What dangers will he forego to gain the fame he seeks?Tildy’s beauty brings her to the attention of local higgler, Caleb Hawkes. Known as a good man generally, the residents of the poorhouse think Tildy is lucky to have his attention, despite the many women he has at his disposable.But Tildy, having been told she is illiterate and ignorant, is more than determined to learn from Dr Royston … for the sake of her son. She will not let the attentions of a good man detract her from her plans … or will she?Faced with an ill child, the threat of smallpox, the shame of being labelled a pauper, Tildy embarks on a journey that sets her apart from the other poorhouse women … where will this determination take her though? less

Autumn, 1821. Freed from the Poorhouse at last, Tildy must earn a living as best she can. Her experience of caring for the sick will now, she hopes, stand her in good stead. As her story continues amid poverty and violence in the Midlands, she learns that cruelty can exist among the rich too. Her dream of becoming a successful nursing woman is far more complicated than she had imagined... moreAutumn, 1821. Freed from the Poorhouse at last, Tildy must earn a living as best she can. Her experience of caring for the sick will now, she hopes, stand her in good stead. As her story continues amid poverty and violence in the Midlands, she learns that cruelty can exist among the rich too. Her dream of becoming a successful nursing woman is far more complicated than she had imagined. What could an abandoned and penniless young mother possibly know? Tildy is at the bottom of the social hierarchy and there are plenty of people who refuse to let her forget it. The job she lands as nurse to the invalid Mrs Dugdale means Tildy is reluctantly forced to leave her beloved son in the dubious care of a baby-farm. Hoping that her luck will soon change, Tildy sets out for Bordesley Hall. When she arrives she is shocked to see that Mrs Dugdale is deeply traumatised, she is a strange, veiled woman who struggles to communicate. The predatory gamekeeper, Master White, adds to Tildy’s uneasiness. When she suspects her master, Henry Dugdale, of ill-treating her helpless patient, Tildy needs all her considerable courage to defy him, his sinister cronies and the dark doings she secretly witnesses. Further horrors await her and the ill-fated Mrs Dugdale, a victim of circumstance who has already suffered enough, when they are placed under the care of Doctor Brown. Can Tildy save Mrs Dugdale from the implications of Doctor Brown’s diagnosis? And how deeply is Tildy’s admirer, Harry, involved in the ghoulish undertakings that have been occurring? Love, lies and conflicting loyalties soon mean that Tildy is out of her depth. Tildy – Nursing Woman is a vivid portrayal of madness, oppression and one woman’s courage in the early nineteenth-century. Sara Fraser is the pen-name of marine commando and foreign legionnaire Roy Clews. Fraser is the author of The Surgeon’s Apprentice, Til Death Do us Part and The Healing Nightfall , among many others. Fraser has written a number of mysteries as well as a number of novels influenced by a life of travel and work all over the world. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now. less

Autumn, 1822.Tildy has found employment as nurse to the aged mother of Charles Burke Bromley.Safe and sheltered with baby Davy, she nevertheless feels compelled to leave her haven after she turns down Bromley’s offer of marriage.Charles is financially secure, kind and decent but physically repulsive.To Tildy, he is merely another man who anticipates affection in return for kindness towards her... moreAutumn, 1822.Tildy has found employment as nurse to the aged mother of Charles Burke Bromley.Safe and sheltered with baby Davy, she nevertheless feels compelled to leave her haven after she turns down Bromley’s offer of marriage.Charles is financially secure, kind and decent but physically repulsive.To Tildy, he is merely another man who anticipates affection in return for kindness towards her.Marrying him would be an arrangement of convenience and this is not the life that Tildy has planned for herself. All that matters to her is Davy and her independence.Back in the outside world, Tildy finds herself returning to the house of Mother Readman, the only safe place she has ever really known despite its rough reputation.Mother Readman is a fierce but fair woman who holds Tildy in high regard and makes it her business to look out for the young woman. Despite their differences, the pair are firm friends.Tildy soon finds work in the needle trade — her job is arduous and ill-paid but is sufficient to buy her some time and pay for her lodgings.Then her absent husband Tom Crawford erupts back into her life.Horrified, Tildy refuses to live with him again. The vicious treatment he inflicted upon her is impossible to forget.But Crawford is a desperate man and will stop at nothing to force her hand — not even child-snatching …Searching for Davy and in desperate need of money to plead her case, Tildy takes well-paid work as a ‘pointer’, grinding needles, but the male pointers will not let go of their supremacy without struggle.At home, she takes a stand to reclaim her child, despite law and order being seemingly united against her.Tildy must fight for her right to be heard as a young mother battling against her savage husband... Pointing Woman is a vivid portrayal of a woman’s struggle for independence in nineteenth century England. It is the latest instalment in Sara Fraser’s historical fiction saga.Sara Fraser is the pen-name of marine commando and foreign legionnaire Roy Clews. Fraser is the author of The Surgeon’s Apprentice, Til Death Do us Part and The Healing Nightfall , among many others. Fraser has written a number of mysteries as well as a number of novels influenced by a life of travel and work all over the world. less

January, 1823.Freed at last from the threatening presence of her violent husband, Tildy continues her solitary struggle to earn a living for herself and little Davy.At the Fountain Needle Mill she gets work in the lye wash gruelling toil for pitiful wages, wages that she desperately needs, so to stay working it is only prudent to stay out of trouble.But the tragedy of twelve-year-old Meg Tullett, a simple-minded wench raped by one of the mill’s overlookers, spurs Tildy into action... moreJanuary, 1823.Freed at last from the threatening presence of her violent husband, Tildy continues her solitary struggle to earn a living for herself and little Davy.At the Fountain Needle Mill she gets work in the lye wash gruelling toil for pitiful wages, wages that she desperately needs, so to stay working it is only prudent to stay out of trouble.But the tragedy of twelve-year-old Meg Tullett, a simple-minded wench raped by one of the mill’s overlookers, spurs Tildy into action.Unable to control her temper when she discovers what has happened, Tildy is determined to get justice and attempts to have the man prosecuted and hung.With no evidence to back up her claims apart from the shaky testimonial of a terrified Meg, Tildy sees with new clarity the brutal injustice of a law which fails to hear the plight of those who need protection the most.When Josh Dyson, a skilled and handsome worker at the mill, secretly tells Tildy of his revolutionary aspirations against the ruling classes, she realises they have more in common than she thought.Josh plans to form a risky and forbidden ‘combination’, a union of organized workers. His knowledge and vision inspire Tildy, but powerful forces are at work against them.The smiling Nathanial Farrel, who like Tildy lodges at Mother Readman’s, for example.What is his real mission in the district?Tildy needs all her wits about her because if the activities of the combination are uncovered, there could be grave consequences. Radical Woman is a vivid portrayal of a woman’s struggle for independence in nineteenth century England. It is the latest instalment in Sara Fraser’s historical fiction saga.Sara Fraser is the pen-name of marine commando and foreign legionnaire Roy Clews. Fraser is the author of The Surgeon’s Apprentice, Til Death Do us Part and The Healing Nightfall , among many others. Fraser has written a number of mysteries as well as a number of novels influenced by a life of travel and work all over the world. less

Against overwhelming odds, her struggle to survive goes on…By the summer of 1823, Tildy has been laid off from her work at the needle mill and is relying on parish relief to keep herself and little Davy.But when the filthy conditions at Tildy’s lodgings start to threaten Davy’s health, she is desperate to take him somewhere more wholesome... moreAgainst overwhelming odds, her struggle to survive goes on…By the summer of 1823, Tildy has been laid off from her work at the needle mill and is relying on parish relief to keep herself and little Davy.But when the filthy conditions at Tildy’s lodgings start to threaten Davy’s health, she is desperate to take him somewhere more wholesome.Just when Tildy thought things couldn’t get any worse, the women and children in her lodgings are rented out to farmers, forced to slave outdoors under the pitiless eye of Jeremiah Borth.The backbreaking labour taxes even Tildy’s courage, pushing her right to her limit.However, her luck soon changes when she starts work in the farmhouse.The owner, Arthur Winterton, is a hard man, but his son Tobias is smitten with Tildy and seems determined to look after her.Life never stays settled for long and sinister events at the farm force Tildy to take refuge with Esther Smith – a wise woman or, as some claim, witch.Safe there, Tildy must nevertheless confront danger once more before she can free herself from its shadow.Gang Woman is the sixth book in Sara Fraser’s series following Tildy’s struggles against a harsh world in the early 1800s.Sara Fraser is the pen-name of marine commando and foreign legionnaire Roy Clews. Fraser is the author of The Surgeon’s Apprentice , Til Death Do Us Part and The Healing Nightfall , among many others. Fraser has written a number of mysteries as well as a number of novels influenced by a life of travel and work all over the world. less

Never give up on your dreams…The year is 1828. Tildy and her seven-year-old son, Davy, are living a quiet, peaceful life in the home of Esther Smith – the local wise woman whom many believe is a black witch.Yet times are hard, and as Tildy desperately tries to scrape a living as a field hand, she sometimes wonders if her life will ever be something other than backbreaking work.But she has made it this far and knows that no matter the hardship, she and those she loves will survive... moreNever give up on your dreams…The year is 1828. Tildy and her seven-year-old son, Davy, are living a quiet, peaceful life in the home of Esther Smith – the local wise woman whom many believe is a black witch.Yet times are hard, and as Tildy desperately tries to scrape a living as a field hand, she sometimes wonders if her life will ever be something other than backbreaking work.But she has made it this far and knows that no matter the hardship, she and those she loves will survive.However, Tildy’s strength is soon threatened when a ruthless landowner evicts them and demolishes their home, leaving them with nothing more than a miserable pile of belongings.Both Esther’s and Tildy’s pride refuses to permit them to enter the poorhouse and they are left homeless.Esther’s nephew, Daniel Lambert, immediately takes them in when he hears of their predicament.An ex-convict, he is newly returned from penal servitude on Norfolk Island and brings the welcome news that Tildy’s violent husband has died.Relieved to be finally free, Tildy finds herself drawn to Daniel, and it isn’t long before their feelings for each other grow into something a lot stronger than friendship.Dreaming of a better future, Tildy is finally able to send little Davy to school, while she sets up with Daniel in the needle-making business.Although Tildy and Daniel start to prosper, others are desperate for work, seeking to reclaim their jobs from the machinery that has put them out on the streets and dependent on parish charity.Before they can build a new life together, Tildy and Daniel must face more than their share of problems. Only then will they be free from worry…Widow Woman is the seventh book in Sara Fraser’s Tildy series, which follows one woman’s struggles against the harsh world of the 1800s.Sara Fraser is the pen-name of marine commando and foreign legionnaire Roy Clews. Fraser is the author of The Surgeon’s Apprentice , Til Death Do Us Part and The Healing Nightfall , among many others. Fraser has written a number of mysteries as well as a number of novels influenced by a life of travel and work all over the world. less

Courage conquers all… Summer 1832 Tildy seems to have found happiness and contentment at long last. She is blissfully in love with Daniel Lambert, a well-respected needle master. Her forthcoming marriage to Daniel is all but a legal formality to seal their love. At home with her son Davy, Tildy works hard filing needles and for once in her life, her future seems bright. But a dreaded enemy has just reached England’s shores... moreCourage conquers all… Summer 1832 Tildy seems to have found happiness and contentment at long last. She is blissfully in love with Daniel Lambert, a well-respected needle master. Her forthcoming marriage to Daniel is all but a legal formality to seal their love. At home with her son Davy, Tildy works hard filing needles and for once in her life, her future seems bright. But a dreaded enemy has just reached England’s shores. A vicious cholera epidemic is advancing on the land, spreading misery and death to all. The cause of the virus remains a mystery, but when a drunken sailor drowns in a local drinking pond, the townsfolk of Redditch soon fall prey to the murderous disease. Ravaging the town like a murderous army, the disease spares none in its path. Tildy now faces the hardest challenge of her life and using her skills as a nurse, she sets out to help the local townspeople. Although ridiculed by doctors, her insistence that clean drinking water is essential may yet save her and the rest of the town. But will she be able to protect the people she loves the most? Or will her happy ending be taken away before it has even begun? Invincible Woman is the eighth book in Sara Fraser’s series following Tildy’s struggles against a harsh world in the early 1800s. Sara Fraser is the pen-name of marine commando and foreign legionnaire Roy Clews. Fraser is the author of The Surgeon’s Apprentice, Til Death Do Us Part and The Healing Nightfall, among many others. Fraser has written a number of mysteries as well as a number of novels influenced by a life of travel and work all over the world. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now. less