Welcoming Jan Baynham as she shares an uplifting extract from her debut novel, Her Mother’s Secret.

Congratulations on the release of your novel, Jan. It is on my kindle and I am looking forward to reading it. Thank you, I hope you enjoy it.

How are you keeping in this strange new world? Do you have a top tip to promote wellbeing?

We are now three weeks into this ‘strange new world’ and it still seems surreal, doesn’t it? At first, I was obsessed with watching every news programme and revolving my afternoons around COVID-19 briefings, not being able to believe what was happening. That has settled down now and I realise that being out in the garden in the sunshine, for example, is more important than watching every update. They will be repeated later on in the evening. One thing I’ve noticed is that I’m not able to concentrate very well. I’m grateful to have had blog posts to write about my debut novel that was published by Ruby Fiction on 21^stApril. I attend a weekly Pilates class normally but during the lock down the instructor has provided a variety of online classes on most days.

My top tip is to get outside every day. I’m fortunate to have a garden where I can sit, read or take meals when it’s been warm enough. I’ve also taken advantage of the daily permitted walk with my husband. Being out in the fresh air, making ourselves go out every day and putting steps on our FitBits, has definitely improved our well-being.

Tell us a little about your debut novel:

‘Her Mother’s Secret’ is mainly set on Péfka, a fictional island in southern Greece. In 1969, Elin Morgan leaves Wales after finishing art college to spend the summer months studying at a painting school in Greece. She records everything in a diary but, while there, something happens that causes her to never paint again.  The secrets of that summer remain with her until she dies twenty-two years later. Elin leaves the diary to her daughter, Alexandra. Through reading it, Alexandra discovers she didn’t fully know her mother as well as she thought and is shocked as the secrets from her past are revealed. Following in her mother’s footsteps, in 1991 Alexandra travels to Greece to find out the truth and what really happened in that summer of ‘69. I wanted to explore the relationship between a mother and her daughter and why she couldn’t reveal her secret to her even on her deathbed. By leaving the diary for Alexandra to read with her blessing, perhaps Elin had wanted to clear her conscience.

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I love the cover and the premise. Could you share an uplifting extract?

Alexandra

1991, Péfka, a small island off the Peloponnese, Southern Greece

The journey from Piraeus on the Flying Dolphin passed quickly. In no time, I arrived at the island of Péfka and took in the view of the harbour and the town behind it. Lemon, pink and white-painted buildings with terracotta ridged tiled roofs glistened in the strong sun. They formed a guard around a pretty stone quayside, filled with every kind of sea-going vessel from luxury yachts to humble fishing boats. A large flag-pole dominated the jetty that jutted out into the water and sported the distinctive blue and white Greek flag. The view was not a complete surprise. I’d read my mam’s diary many times, and I knew exactly how Péfka harbour and its quayside would look.

June 21st 1969 

Péfka harbour is very picturesque. A mix of marshmallow coloured town houses with balconies and fishermen’s stone cottages. Gleaming white motor launches bob on the deep aquamarine water alongside schooners, exuding affluence. Yellow canvas parasols shading the diners at Xante’s taverna look like a field of sunflowers. I’ve arrived in paradise!

When I’d first read the diary entry about arriving on the island, I had been sceptical about the flowery language she’d used but as I stepped onto the quayside, I took a deep breath. Mam had not exaggerated. The parasols were now a bright blue but the taverna was still Xante’s. Flowers tumbling in abundant tresses from terracotta pots and urns adorned the fronts of houses and shops, balconies and steps. I spotted the Parthenis boutique where Mam had bought the dress she’d worn to the painting school party. It was as if time had stood still here and through the diary, I felt I was returning not visiting for the first time. One thing had changed though. The horse and carriage taxis were still lined up along the quayside as Mam had described but now there was a motor taxi rank on the other side of the marina. Taxi drivers, chatting and smoking, leaned on the blue-striped bonnets of their gleaming white vehicles waiting for their fares.

The sun beat down on my bare arms and legs. I pulled my straw hat further over my forehead. No wonder you loved it here, Mam. The colours alone make it an artist’s heaven. I stifled a sob and tried to swallow the lump that had formed in my throat. If only Mam had shared her love of painting with me instead of denying this part of her life had ever existed. I didn’t know what I was going to find out by coming to Greece, to this island, but I was sure my mother wanted me to come. 

Available in ebook, and coming soon in audio: Google Play | Kobo | Amazon UK | Amazon.com | iBooks | Nook

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What can we expect from you next?

My next novel is already with my publisher. It is another mother/daughter story involving secrets. It’s set in 1946 and 1965, in rural mid -Wales. In this novel, the daughter, Jen, is reeling from a secret that is exposed as she is on the brink of going to training college. Her quest for the truth takes her to Sicily. Her family has been fractured by things that happened before she was born and she is determined to bring the family back together.

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About the author:

After retiring from a career in teaching and advisory education, Jan Baynham joined a small writing group in a local library where she wrote her first piece of fiction.  From then on, she was hooked! She soon went on to take a writing class at the local university and began to submit short stories for publication to a wider audience. Her stories and flash fiction pieces have been longlisted and shortlisted in competitions and several appear in anthologies both online and in print. In October 2019, her first collection of stories was published. Her stories started getting longer and longer so that, following a novel writing course, she began to write her first full-length novel. She loves being able to explore her characters in further depth and delve into their stories.

Originally from mid-Wales, Jan lives in Cardiff with her husband. Having joined the Romantic Novelists Association in 2016, she values the friendship and support from other members and regularly attends conferences, workshops, talks and get togethers. She is co-organiser of her local RNA Chapter and a member of the Society of Authors.

Find out more about Jan Baynham and her novels here: Website/Blog | Twitter | Facebook |

 Thanks so much for stopping by Jan, and I wish you every success with the book. Don’t miss Jane Cable on May 1st, sharing an extract from her latest novel, Endless Skies. xx

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