The Family Tree

Second-Hand

Excellent condition

Everybody has a book in them, or so the saying goes

For Kate Painter - wife, mother, freelance editor and aspiring writer - it's just a matter of finding a spare five minutes, a little peace and quiet...and something to write about. When her cousin Angie announces she has a room to let, Kate's spur-of-the-moment decision to move temporarily out of the family home and in with Angie takes everyone, not least her husband and teenage children, by complete surprise.

Yet Kate is sure that in this room of her own, she'll finally be able to write the novel she's always wanted to. But it doesn't happen so easily. Writer's block, dirty laundry and emergency babysitting duties all conspire against her.

Amid the endless distractions, Kate is drawn into exploring the story of her family: her less-than-normal childhood with Angie on the family farm, her father's recent death, and the mystery behind Angie's enigmatic, absent mother.