The loner - Josephine Cox

The powerful new bestseller from Josephine Cox - the nation's favourite storyteller.

Home is where the heart is - but it's also where the pain lurks.

After a tragic accident involving his mother, and the disappearance of his father, young Davie flees his hometown of Blackburn, unsure of what the future holds. Devastated, he must escape the haunting memories of the worst night in his young life. With little more than the shirt on his back and a fierce determination to find his father, he sets off on a lonely, friendless road.

Back home, those Davie has left behind wait anxiously; Kathleen, his childhood friend who has held a secret close to her heart these past few years, and Joseph, his grandfather whose guilt at the events that dreadful night burns right to his soul. Will they ever see Davie again? And if he comes back, what then?

Eventually, after months of searching and with danger lurking at every turn, Davie finds a friend and a place to stay. Perhaps now his heart and mind will find peace. But his hopes are shortlived when Fate urges him to decide whether to keep running or go back and face his demons.