The Linen Queen: A Novel

Patricia Falvey

May 2020 · Highbridge Audio · Narrated by Sarah-Jane Drummey

About this audiobook

Abandoned by her father and neglected by her self-centered, unstable mother, Sheila McGee cannot wait to escape the drudgery of her mill village life in Northern Ireland. Her classic Irish beauty helps her win the 1941 Linen Queen competition, and the prize money that goes with it finally gives her the opportunity she's been dreaming of. But Sheila does not count on the impact of the Belfast blitz which brings World War II to her doorstep. Now even her good looks are useless in the face of travel restrictions, and her earlier resolve is eroded by her ma's fear of being left alone. When American troops set up base in her village, some see them as occupiers but Sheila sees them as saviors-one of them may be her ticket out. Despite objections from her childhood friend, Gavin O'Rourke, she sets her sights on an attractive Jewish-American army officer named Joel Solomon, but her plans are interrupted by the arrival of a street-wise young evacuee from Belfast. Frustrated, Sheila fights to hold on to her dream but slowly her priorities change as the people of Northern Ireland put old divisions aside to fight the Germans. As the war moves steadily closer to those she has grown to love, Sheila confronts more abandonment and loss, and finds true strength, compassion, and a meaning for life outside of herself.

About the author

Patricia Falvey is the bestselling author of The Yellow House, The Linen Queen, The Girls of Ennismore, and The Titanic Sisters. Born in Northern Ireland, she immigrated alone to the United States at the age of twenty. She now lives in Dallas, Texas.

Sarah-Jane Drummey has earned AudioFile Earphones awards and appeared on Best of the Year lists for her narrations. A respected theater actor in her native Ireland and the UK, she has played pivotal roles on some of the world's main stages, including the Abbey Theatre, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center DC.