1956, Liverpool. With the shadow of the war looming over them and bomb craters littering the surrounding streets, hope feels far away for the residents of Victory Street. When they learn that the Queen has chosen to visit them on a tour of Liverpool, the delighted neighbours bring back the wartime spirit. Can they possibly get the street ready in time?

Even a royal visit cannot take away Bella Harrison’s worries. Her son, fourteen-year-old Levi, has just told her he wants to move to America to join the rest of his father’s family. The news has so shocked Bella that she’s not sure she’ll be able to sing for the Queen, jeopardising all their plans for the big day.

Life has been hard for Levi, growing up as a mixed-race boy in Liverpool, but he’s the light of Bella’s life. The thought of losing him brings back the terrible memories of her father and sister dying during the war. If everyone pulls together to make the Queen’s visit an unforgettable celebration, perhaps she can persuade Levi that Victory Street is where he belongs.

But when Levi receives heartbreaking news from America and his move becomes uncertain, Bella starts to wonder if all her efforts to keep him in Liverpool have been for the right reasons. Can Bella find it in herself to sing for the big celebration, and make the right choice for her beloved son?

A totally unputdownable, heart-wrenching historical novel, packed with family secrets, perfect for fans of Dilly Court, Diney Costeloe and Nancy Revell.

What readers are saying about Pam Howes:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ‘Heart-wrenching… You will need tissues… I just loved it all… Brought tears to my eyes as I read… Just perfect… 10/10.’ NetGalley reviewer

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ‘WOW… Brilliant… Keeps you turning the pages for more emotional rollercoasters.’ Goodreads reviewer

‘So perfect and beautiful… I was so ecstatic at how good a read this was, and it completely blew me away.’ Goodreads reviewer

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ‘Heart-warming… I couldn’t put this down… Read the whole book in one sitting.’ Goodreads reviewer

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ‘I loved this… I couldn’t put this down… Kept me hooked.’ Goodreads reviewer

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ‘You won’t be able to put it down. I certainly couldn’t… Pulls you in from the first page until the last.’ Goodreads reviewer

‘All the feelings and emotions… Heart-warming, emotional and uplifting… Definitely recommend!!’ Stardust Book Reviews

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‘This is first class’ The Times

‘A stunning debut’ Maxim Jakubowski, Crime Time

‘A marvellously confident debut, sharply observed and exceptionally well written’ Charles Cumming, author of Box 88

Everyone knows about the Cambridge Spies from the Fifties, identified and broken up after passing national secrets to the Soviets for years. But no spy ring was ever unearthed at Oxford. Because one never existed? Or because it was never found…?

2022: Former spy Simon Sharman is eking out a living in the private sector. When a commission to delve into the financial dealings of a mysterious Russian oligarch comes across his desk, he jumps at the chance.

But as Simon investigates, worrying patterns begin to emerge. His subject made regular trips to Oxford, but for no apparent reason. There are payments from offshore accounts that suddenly just… stop.

Has he found what none of his former colleagues believed possible, a Russian spy ring now nestled at the heart of the British Establishment? Or is he just another paranoid ex-spook left out in the cold, obsessed with redemption?

From Oxford’s hallowed quadrangles to brush contacts on Hampstead Heath, agent-running in Vienna and mysterious meetings in Prague, A Spy Alone is a gripping international thriller and a searing portrait of modern Britain in the age of cynical populism. Perfect for readers of Charles Cumming, Mick Herron and John le Carré.

Praise for A Spy Alone

‘Beaumont … catches the zeitgeist of (le Carré) …. He conveys all the world of espionage with relish, in its murky motives and surveillance techniques and the book races along and makes for a stunning debut’ Maxim Jakubowski, Crime Time

‘A clever, thrilling spy story that brings the feel of Eric Ambler’s shadowy political intrigues right into today’s world’ Jeremy Duns, author of Free Agent

‘A Spy Alone is as intricate as it is absorbing, as fantastically entertaining as it is disturbingly plausible, and is delivered with the confidence of a writer who knows how to handle the highest stakes’ Tim Glister, author of Red Corona

‘Beaumont’s debut novel has such a ring of authenticity about it that it reads like an inside job… The story is gripping and the characters are all well drawn. Highly recommended’ Alex Gerlis, author of the Wolf Pack series

‘Propulsive, authentic and eye-opening, A Spy Alone is clearly written by someone with first-hand experience of the secret world’ James Wolff, author of How to Betray Your Country

‘Tense, compelling and remarkably timely… Shades of some of the greats of spy fiction – it might even be better than Charles Cumming’ Dominick Donald, author of Breathe

‘Beaumont takes the intrigue, atmosphere and subterfuge of the Cambridge Spies and brings it bang up to date with a what-if tale of an Oxford spy ring at the service of modern-day populist politicians and malevolent regimes. A chilling story that feels all too plausible today, written with extraordinary insight’ Chris Lloyd, author of The Unwanted Dead

‘Authentic and compelling – Beaumont captures the intertwined worlds of Oxford and espionage with the keen eye of the insider’ Tom Fletcher, author of The Ambassador

‘This book is timely. It’s a well-written and atmospheric tale of espionage. But it hits hard at some of the real issues facing Britain and the world today’ Dan Kaszeta, author of Toxic: A History of Nerve Agents

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