The Housemaid

Amma Darko's new novel is a dramatic story of exploitation in modern Ghana.

Barbara Mutch's stunning first novel tells a story of love and duty colliding on the arid plains of Apartheid-era South Africa When Cathleen Harrington leaves her home in Ireland in 1919 to travel to South Africa, she knows that she does not love the man she is to marry there —her fiance Edward, whom she has not seen for five years. Isolated and estranged in a small town in the harsh Karoo desert, her only real companions are her diary and her housemaid, and later the housemaid's daughter, Ada. When Ada is born, Cathleen recognizes in her someone she can love and respond to in a way that she cannot with her own family. Under Cathleen's tutelage, Ada grows into an accomplished pianist and a reader who cannot resist turning the pages of the diary, discovering the secrets Cathleen sought to hide. As they grow closer, Ada sees new possibilities in front of her—a new horizon. But in one night, everything changes, and Cathleen comes home from a trip to find that Ada has disappeared, scorned by her own community. Cathleen must make a choice: should she conform to society, or search for the girl who has become closer to her than her own daughter? Set against the backdrop of a beautiful, yet divided land, The Housemaid's Daughter is a startling and thought-provoking novel that intricately portrays the drama and heartbreak of two women who rise above cruelty to find love, hope, and redemption.

A South African THE HELP, Barbara Mutch's THE HOUSEMAID'S DAUGHTER is a startling and thought-provoking debut novel which intricately portrays the drama, dynamics and heartbreak of two women against the backdrop of a beautiful yet divided land. For readers of Gillian Slovo or Doris Lessing. Cathleen Harrington leaves her home in Ireland in 1919 to travel to South Africa and marry the fiance she has not seen for five years. Isolated and estranged in a harsh landscape, she finds solace in her diary and the friendship of her housemaid's daughter, Ada. Cathleen recognises in her someone she can love and respond to in a way that she cannot with her own husband and daughter. Under Cathleen's tutelage, Ada grows into an accomplished pianist, and a reader who cannot resist turning the pages of the diary, discovering the secrets Cathleen sought to hide.

It’s utterly improper—but can a passion like theirs be kept hidden for long? “Your discretion and good behavior would be most appreciated . . . ” Returning from India to Castonbury Park is just another job for Colonel Ross Montague. With his family in disarray, he promises his uncle, the duke, to do his utmost to see order and decorum restored once more. That is until he’s sidetracked by the beguiling eyes of Castonbury’s newest maid—Lisette. An affair would be most improper . . . but when neither can deny their blazing desire, all society’s rules are discarded. Now, in a house where gossip is rife, Lisette must try her best to keep her salacious liaison a secret . . . Praise for Helen Dickson’s romances “A fun, entertaining read.” —RT Book Reviews

Inside the quiet village of Ashton, nestled amidst rolling hills, stood St. Andrews Manor—an area of intrigue and whispered secrets. In "Unveiling the Housemaid's mystery," Sarah Abbott, a more youthful and decided housemaid, reveals herself entangled in a web of deceit and long-hidden truths. A psychological mystery, this novel takes readers on a suspenseful adventure with breathtaking twists and a shocking revelation. As Sarah arrives at St. Andrews Manor, she consists of with her the hope of beginning anew. However, the load of the manor's ominous past soon becomes apparent. Assigned obligations via the pinnacle housekeeper, Mrs. Jenkins, Sarah senses the unstated recollections that permeate the grand halls. Unbeknownst to her, her arrival will set in motion a chain of occasions with a purpose to get to the lowest of the mysteries hid within the manor's partitions. Pushed by using the use of her insatiable interest, Sarah embarks on a quest to find out the enigma surrounding the manor. Atypical occurrences and whispered reminiscences of ghostly apparitions handiest gasoline her dedication to discover the reality. Guided by means of an old diary found within the depths of the library, Sarah embarks on a clandestine exploration, venturing into forgotten rooms and hidden passageways that preserve the key to the housemaid's interesting mystery. Delving into the manor's records, Sarah reveals a forbidden love affair between the preceding owner, Sir William Whitaker, and a lady named Beatrice. Their ill-fated romance, entangled with family rivalries and betrayals, left an indelible mark at the manor and its populace. Sarah soon realizes that the Whitaker circle of relatives has lengthy long past to great lengths to cover their beyond, but she will become determined to deliver the reality to light, although it way confronting the very foundations of the manor's legacy. During this captivating story, Sarah's journey intertwines with the lives of the modern-day-day Whitaker circle of relatives members. As she uncovers the dark secrets and techniques that have haunted them for generations, she starts of evolved to recognize the weight they bring approximately and the energy of redemption that lies inside their draw close. With the assist of Mrs. Jenkins, a effective best pal along with her personal secrets and techniques to guard, Sarah seeks to reconcile the past and present, weaving collectively the threads of love, forgiveness, and the enduring human spirit. "Unveiling the Housemaid's thriller" famous a legacy of truth and healing, as Sarah's tenacity brings slight to the dark corners of St. Andrews Manor and lets in the Whitaker own family to discover peace in embracing their past. With dropping twists and a breathtaking revelation, this psychological mystery will hold readers on the threshold of their seats until the very last page. Because the sun units at the manor, whispers of an extended-forgotten history echo through its walls, for all time transformed through the housemaid's exquisite journey of discovery.

SHORTLISTED for the Scotiabank Giller Prize 2021 • WINNER of the Nigeria Prize for Literature 2021 • SHORTLISTED for the Chinua Achebe Prize for Nigerian Writing 2021 • WINNER of the SprinNG Women Authors Prize 2020 • WINNER of the Best International Fiction Book Award, Sharjah International Book Fair 2019 “The Son of the House is a compelling novel about two women caught in a constricting web of tradition, class, gender, and motherhood.” — FOREWORD REVIEWS, starred review The lives of two Nigerian women divided by class and social inequality intersect when they're kidnapped, held captive, and forced to await their fate together. In the Nigerian city of Enugu, young Nwabulu, a housemaid since the age of ten, dreams of becoming a typist as she endures her employers’ endless chores. She is tall and beautiful and in love with a rich man’s son. Educated and privileged, Julie is a modern woman. Living on her own, she is happy to collect the gold jewellery lovestruck Eugene brings her, but has no intention of becoming his second wife. When a kidnapping forces Nwabulu and Julie into a dank room years later, the two women relate the stories of their lives as they await their fate. Pulsing with vitality and intense human drama, Cheluchi Onyemelukwe-Onuobia’s debut is set against four decades of vibrant Nigeria, celebrating the resilience of women as they navigate and transform what remains a man’s world.

A story behind the suffering of a Sri Lankan Migrant worker in Saudi Arabia. Kamala a mother of four children facing poverty to manage her family with a drunken worthless husband that sleeps all day getting drunk on moonshine and coconut arrack, he spends all her hard earn money, Kamala works in a local factory paid a low salary and not enough to solve her financial problems. She thinks migrating to a foreign land would be the only hope. The only qualification she has to migrate to a foreign country is to be a housemaid. That salary would be way better than in Sri Lanka, flying to Saudi Arabia as a housemaid would be a dream come true. Yet day after day, Kamala comprehends her mistake and regrets her stupid actions of leaving her beloveds. She is trapped by the secured walls of the Arabian house and by the rules, regulations and her negligence on working. She gets punished by horrific physical and mental abuse by the hands of her employer. Finally trapped her in a room as a punishment with nonpayment of her salary. When she tries to escape she is being physically tortured by the employer with nailing her body feet beating her with chains and sticks. Finally, when she escapes and returns to her mother land, everything what she worked have gone on a waste by her husband and leaving it all for nothing. Why I wrote this book. Labor migration to the Middle East has become a main feature of Sri Lankan economy strategies making it the second biggest foreign exchange earnings. Migration is likely to continue in the future. Foreign embassies continued to receive many reports that employers abused foreign women working as domestic servants. Some embassies of countries with large domestic servant populations maintained safe houses to which their citizens may flee to escape work situations that included forced confinement, withholding of food, nonpayment of salaries, beating and other physical abuse, and rape. These are few stories... "One particular day I dropped a saucer which broke into pieces. My employer was angry and he heated up five nails and drove them into my hand. When I shouted out in pain my employer's wife held a knife to my neck," she said. Why you should read this book? When you Google Sri Lanka all you see is a beautiful island with beautiful sceneries and nature surrounded by lovely sandy beaches, diverse landscapes ranging from plains to highlands, rainforests, wildlife and exotic food. But not many know how the Sri Lankan lower middle class suffer. How everyday is a challenge for them to make their ends meet. How much they suffer to keep their families alive, insufficient money to feed their children and to spend for their education. I was inspired by so many stories about how these migrant workers suffer. I have been fortunate enough to help these people and listen to their stories. This shows us how cruel the world is. Another side of life which many has not seen, or even think about, simply a nightmare. Why cannot the governments take any action about this? Non-government organizations? Is there anyone at all? When they send their hard earn money with high hopes, most of the time husbands waste money on alcohol and gambling, children go astray and get abused. These women and families fall of from the frying pan into fire. Time, money, pain all gets wasted. Everything end up in tears. This story will give you the inner aspect in depth about the middle class migrant workers and their lives, how hard they work, how much they sacrifice, how hard they hide their feelings and pain, suffer and struggle to survive every day. This book is a story about a family that went through this horrific abuse and torture. Hope you enjoy this book. Scroll up and grab your copy now.