Rebecca's Children: A saga of love & betrayal in 19th Century Wales

3.4/5 ( ratings)

A heart-wrenching saga of revolution, regret and family secrets... For fans of Nadine Dorries, Maeve Binchy, Freda Lightfoot and Dilly Court.

Lives are on the line as the workers fight back in the Welsh countryside…

1829, Wales

For centuries. generations of the Jenkins family have eked out a living from their Carmarthenshire hill farm. But when a fire destroys virtually all of their possessions the children witness their lives crumbling around them. Mary and William find they have barely enough land left to provide for their basic needs.

Their only option is to take on more work, but William longs for action, and Mary begins to suspect that he has become embroiled with the Rebecca-ites, a shadowy group of nationalists pitted against the English landowners whose tolls have bankrupted so many Welshman.

As tensions mount, Mary becomes ever more torn between her mistrust of the rebels’ violence and her growing attraction to Jac Tŷ Isha, one of their leaders. And when the British government decides to put a stop to the revolt, the danger to the men she loves increases a hundredfold…

REBECCA’S CHILDREN is a poignant, beautifully crafted saga of love and betrayal, set against the background of Wales in mid-1800s – a country aflame with political and social unrest.

"An accomplished first novel." -
The Times

"A well-handled tale of passion, social injustice and nationalist fervour in nineteenth century Wales." -
The Liverpool Post

“Kate Dunn is a fine storyteller.” - Ben Elton