Lancashire Legacy

Anna Jacobs

Average Rating 8/10 (1 Review)

At eighteen Cathie longs for more than life as a settler in the Australian bush. She accepts her uncle's offer to send her to England and runs away from her family, not realising he is using her to get revenge on her mother, Liza.

Attacked at the docks in Liverpool, Cathie takes refuge with the man who saved her, a man who has his own troubles. But as she slowly regains her memory and meets her Lancashire relatives, she must confront the legacy of Liza's past. And even in 1876, the same wealthy families who forced her mother to leave Lancashire are still powerful enough to threaten Cathie's happiness and safety, as well as that of anyone close to her.

Anna Jacobs is the author of a series of novels set in Lancashire about the Gibson family - Salem Street, High Street, Ridge Hill, Hallam Square and Spinners Lake - as well as the novels Jessie, Our Lizzie, Our Polly, Like no Other and Lancashire Lass. All are available as Coronet paperbacks.

Review by Chrissi (010602) Rating (8/10)

Review by Chrissi
Rating 8/10
Do you remember Liza's daughter, Cathie? Well, we're a few years down the line now, and she is bored of living in the Australian outback, her mother is happy with Benedict and she wants to meet more people than currently pass by their home. She accepts an offer to visit some friends of her mother but becomes acquainted with her uncle, who unbeknown to her still bears a grudge against her mother. She tells him of how unhappy she is and how she would like to meet her fathers family, and he offers to pay for a trip back to England for her. She takes this journey without telling her mother and the note that she gives to her uncle is not passed on, leaving Liza absolutely distraught.

On arriving in England, she and a friend are met by her friend's brother, who attacks Cathie in an alleyway, stealing money from her before turning his attentions on her unconscious form. She is rescued by Magnus, and taken home where she comes to, only with no memory of where or who she is.

This is the latter half of the story that started with Liza and sees Cathie meeting the man who raped her mother and who is her true father. Liza has never told Cathie of her true father, so Cathie cannot understand why his family have never been in touch with her. Cathie also stumbles across the son that Liza had had to leave behind, Francis. Francis has hated his mother for leaving him with his guardian, but through his relationship with Cathie, comes to understand what happened all those years ago.

I suppose that it would be difficult to know where to end a long story, so that it may be finished neatly, but Anna Jacobs has done that. You know at the end of Lancashire Lass that the story is not finished, but it in itself is a satisfactory ending. This, however, ties everything off, reuniting the family that has been kept apart by the wealthy, powerful families of the Lancashire where Liza grew up. Once again, the story spans the two countries, with the contrast becoming more marked. Cathie leads an easier life than Liza, and makes friends with her true family, even so far as them coming to help when Francis is mistreated by his Guardian.

I know that this is not my usual fare, but I really enjoyed these stories. I am not saying that I will start to read more of this genre, but I will not be quite so negative about them in the future. I have to admit to never having read a Catherine Cookson, nor have I ever watched any of the adaptations on the telly, but I will keep an eye out for Anna Jacobs in the future.
Chrissi (1st June 2002)