The Runaway

Secrets are at the heart of The Runaway: the three main characters all have something to hide. The background threat of Napoleonic invasion heightens the atmosphere as McAllister gradually unreels the traumas that beset her characters. In the opening pages Megan is lost in the English countryside, fleeing from her parents whom she feels hold her responsible for an appalling disaster. She stumbles into a village where she finds the old house occupied by Marguerite and two owls, who uncannily seem to be everywhere, acting as Margeurite’s eyes and ears. Then Tom, a young lad, evasive about his home and family, suddenly appears and befriends Megan. But can she trust him? Why does Marguerite seem so frightened of him? And there are more secrets: where are all the men of the village and is their absence connected to past events at the manor?

These questions engage the reader as the weeks leading to All Souls’ Day pass and a terrifying dénouement draws close. McAllister’s intriguing historical mystery story will keep readers gripped as the secrets are gradually revealed and resolution is eventually achieved.