The story moves along at a compelling pace, the historical background is lightly touched in, the characters are memorable. I particularly loved the way Lesley describes the landscape and its people. This warm, sensitive story celebrates the Welsh community at its heart, but also shows the complexities of living in a small mining town where everyone knows everyone else. The Valley of Lost Secrets vividly evokes the uncomfortable reality of being an evacuee in a new place very different from home, as experienced by 12- year-old Jimmy. ― Sophie Kirtley, author of The Wild Way Home and one that I'm sure will still continue to be read many years from now.

― GuardianĪn absolute triumph of warm, tender-hearted, timeless storytelling - Lesley Parr has created a story that feels like it has always been here. Atmospheric, direct and gripping, with a superbly assured narrative voice, this book is woven through with powerful themes: grief, belonging and making peace with the past. But when Jimmy finds a hidden skull, he unearths a secret that has haunted the community for years. Lesley Parr's The Valley of Lost Secrets (Bloomsbury), follows Jimmy in wartime, evacuated with his brother to a Welsh mining village, as he slowly acclimatises to his new surroundings. ― Ross Montgomery, author of The Midnight Guardians A brilliant debut - warm and tender, simple in the best way, historical fiction with a light touch. ― Nizrana Farook, author of The Girl Who Stole an ElephantĪ gripping mystery, overflowing with heart - The Valley of Lost Secrets is one of the very best books I've read this year. There's a cracking mystery at the centre of it, but it was the Welsh backdrop and Jimmy's journey to acceptance that stayed in my heart long after I'd closed the book. ― Anna Fargher, author of The Umbrella MouseĪ story of friendship, love, loss and belonging of looking at people deep past their exterior, and of the love and pain in a human heart. I loved it with all my heart ― Liz Hyder, author of BearmouthĪn evacuee story with all the makings of a classic. A celebration of kindness and friendship at a time of upheaval, it's gripping, heart-breaking and yet full of hope. ― Emma Carroll, author of Letters from the LighthouseĮvocative and heartfelt, The Valley of Lost Secrets already reads like a classic. This story is quietly brutal and brilliantly heartfelt. With echoes of Carrie's War, and Goodnight Mister Tom, Parr brings her own fresh voice to what already feels like a wartime classic.

The valley of the lost secrets