The Angel in the Corner

Being brought up by an overbearing mother intent on competing with her in every way has left Virginia with an altered view of men and relationships. Perhaps rushing in to marriage with Joe, even if he offers an escape from her mother, is not the wisest of choices. Joe is difficult and unpredictable, but Virginia is determined to make their relationship work. But soon he reveals a darker side that twists married life into something damaging. As he draws her into one humiliating situation after another, Virginia is forced to admit that her romantic dream has turned into a nightmare.

First published in 1956, The Angel in the Corner is a book about suffering, endurance, and ultimately, strength.

Great grand daughter to Charles Dickens, Monica (1915-1992) was born into an upper middle class family. Disillusioned with the world she was brought up in - she was expelled from St Paul’s Girls’ School in London for throwing her school uniform over Hammersmith Bridge - Dickens then decided to go into service, despite coming from the privileged class; her experiences as a cook and general servant would form the nucleus of her first book, One Pair Of Hands in 1939.

Dickens married an American Navy officer, Roy O. Stratton, and spent much of her adult life in Massachusetts and Washington D.C., but the majority of writing continued to be set in Britain. Her book of 1953, No More Meadows, reflected her work with the NSPCC and she later helped to found the American Samaritans in Massachusetts. Between 1970 and 1971 she wrote a series of children’s books known as The Worlds End Series which dealt with rescuing animals, and to some extent children. After the death of her husband in 1985, Dickens returned to England where she continued to write until her death aged 77.