The other grocer's daughter - Jacqueline Smith

This is the intriguing and moving autobiography of Jacqueline Smith; the story of an extraordinary life. From the beginning in a family run like an army regiment, fate made sure that Jacqueline, despite her quite normal hopes and dreams, would undergo dramas and events to horrify and traumatise the strongest of characters.

Jacqueline leads the reader from the hacking to death in Kenya of her native best friend and her whole family to her tempestuous first marriage to a social psychopath who came with the package of 'the mother in law from hell' and his ultimate destruction of their family unit.

She hadn't ever wanted to run a pub, but we see that happen during her first marriage and not only get her acclaimed by Egon Ronay but would lead to settling her fate for the future. She spent years struggling to bring up her sons, one very like his father and then met the man who would indeed change her life forever. Ron and Jacqueline moved to Northern Cyprus where she became the first female Chef and owner of a French Restaurant famous and acclaimed to be excellent enough for the Michelin Guide.

The book takes you through the two devastating illnesses that threatened Jacqueline's life and on to her subsequent meeting with a Hotelier who would have an amazing impact on her already full life. The?Other Grocer's Daughter is well-written with a lively style that will appeal to female readers and a style comparable to Catherine Cookson. "Reliving all the old memories, good and bad, was one of the most moving experiences I have ever had. I realised that to other people, my life had never been 'normal', and it made sense to try to put it all into perspective - the book did that for me," says Jacqueline behind her motivation to tell her story.