Winners and Losers by Catrin Collier

Authors Synopsis:

Megan Williams is eighteen and in love with the boy next door, Victor Evans. It is 1910 and, in the Rhondda Valley, poverty and hardship are taking their toll as troops are brought in to control the striking miners. The only work Megan can find is in a house where the police and soldiers lodge, but she is shunned by friends and neighbours, who believe she has betrayed her class by working for the enemy. Megan's father would rather see his daughter dead than married to a Catholic, particularly one whose father and brother are marked as strike ringleaders. Caught in the middle, Victor and Megan find themselves fighting for the right to love one another, remain together and build a future they can share.

Skyes Review

This is the first of Catrin's books I have read, and I will be keeping my eye out for more of her work, Catrin manages to makes it possible to imagine the living conditions of the people at that time and the class divide between the wealthy and the poor. At times I felt like I was walking the streets of TonyPandy and right by Megan’s sides during her "battles". Tonypandy in 1910 is a town of poverty, hardship, and strife, garrisoned by troops brought in to control the striking miners whose anger all too frequently erupts into bouts of violence and picketing.

Catrin cleverly weaves her fictional tale around real events and historical figures, and it makes for a great read, I found myself immersed in this novel as it progressed, wanting to know what would happen to Megan and all concerned, and also interested in the general historical background. Several issues were covered in a realistic way, giving me quite an insight into the society of the time. I found myself, reading this book at every spare moment. It wasn't that the various plotlines were overly exciting, but I was caught up in the everyday lives of these people, wanting to know what would happen next.

In conclusion, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys books based lightly on historical events with a little bit of romance thrown in to keep things spicy.