The Dissent of Annie Lang

Impulsive, brave and lovable, Annie Lang is a truly memorable heroine

Growing up between the wars, Annie Lang, the child narrator of this psychological thriller witnesses several events that she simply cannot explain. As Annie grows up she turns detective to unearth the secrets of her elders and tries, to atone for them.‘My story starts and ends at railway stations, though of course I can’t know this yet as I clamber off the boat-train at Victoria that warm May afternoon… ‘ Growing up in a strict religious family in the 1920s, Annie Lang is witness to disturbing events that no one will explain. Only the family dog may know the answers. Six years on, student Annie returns from France to find her beloved brother in a mental hospital and her ally, the Sunday school teacher, vanished without trace. With the help of her childhood diary, and sister Beatrice, Annie turns detective to unearth the truth. Her journey leads to a discovery so disturbing that she believes it will ruin all their lives, unless they can atone for the past. Ros Franey beautifully captures that point when a child can sense, and indeed dissent against, secrets that adults think they are too young to grasp. Impulsive, brave and lovable, Annie Lang is formidable when she takes matters into her own hands.