There was no escaping change at the beginning of the twentieth century, not even in Cornwall . . . Violet Dimond, the Holy Terror, has delivered many of Silkhampton's children - and often their children - in her capacity as handywoman. But Violet's calling is dying out as, with medicine's advances, the good old ways are no longer good enough. Grace, Violet's adopted daughter, is a symbol of change herself. In the place where she has grown up and everyone knows her, she is accepted, though most of the locals never before saw a girl with skin thatcolour. For Violet and Grace the coming war will bring more upheaval into their lives- can they endure it, or will they, like so many, be swept aside by history's tide? A moving tale of prejudice, struggle, love, tragedy, bravery and the changing lives of women in the twentieth century, The Midwife's Daughter grips the reader all the way to its heartstopping conclusion. Praise for Patricia Ferguson- 'Plotty, emollient, fluent, concerned with relationships and what fosters or thwarts them, and capable of making you root for the characters.'Guardian'Strong, affecting, vividly depicted . . . pure pleasure to read.' Lionel Shriver, Telegraph