THE Marble Clock by Una Horne is an excellent historical saga. When Molly Mason's father dies in a pit accident, she is forced out of their cottage and left with nothing but an old marble clock.

She manages to get a job in a factory and lodgings in a comfortless house.

Unfortunately, when she rebuffs her cantankerous landlord's clumsy advances, his revenge is swift.

Molly finds herself thrown in prison on a false charge.

The only source of light in her world comes in the form of her brother's best friend, Jackson.

Molly feels the first stirrings of attraction for the young soldier who is home on leave.

But even though she has been released from prison, Molly cannot escape the shame of her past. And the threat of war on the horizon makes the future far from certain.

Una Horne lives in Saltburn-by-the-Sea in Cleveland. She gave up her career as a nurse to raise a family, but began writing when her two children were grown up.

Her regional sagas set in the North-East have won her a faithful following, and Lorinda Leigh, Bright Is The Dawn, Come The Day, Under The Rowan Tree, A Time To Heal and A Blackbird Singing have lead to Una being hailed as the new Catherine Cookson.

Piatkus £5.99