Everyone liked Bella. Quick-witted, beautiful, shrewd, with eyes that could transfix you and a tongue as cutting as a lash, she brought a touch of glamour and a hint of scandal to the lives of all who knew her. And heaven knows, even the smallest glimmer of excitement was welcome in the terraced streets of that small, ordinary town, in the cheerless days of 1943. Perhaps Bella was not the perfect mother to her children, Rita and Ronnie, perhaps she did walk out with a GI from the camp while her husband was fighting in North Africa, but who else would give away black market American cigarettes on impulse, or act as a second mother to her friend June's illegitimate daughter?

But Bella's ambition was greater than to set the neighbors' tongues talking and to spend Friday night dancing at the American camp. She wanted an escape - freedom from the grime and impoverishment of her existence, from her failed marriage, from the meanness of her past. And Chuch, her GI, was to be her ticket to a new life - as a war bride, in the warmth and wealth of California.

Bella's dreams for the future become her mainstay, as Chuck is billeted further away and life becomes even darker. And Rita too - the image of her mother, that same sleek black hair, those magical eyes - is infected by a similar idealism and strength for purpose. As the days and months pass, Bella and Rita begin to live parallel existences - until Rita comes to learn what she must sacrifice to make her own dreams come true.

This hardback book is in great condition and weighs 1 lb and 1.5 oz.