The Luncheon Club

About the Book

Five women from different walks of life are members of a Hampshire squash club. Over a period of time they become close friends and meet once a month for lunch. On the surface they seem to have perfect lives, but when tragedy and betrayal strike, their vulnerabilities are exposed. Will they rally round to support one another, or will their differences drive them apart? Belinda Musgrove, high flying divorce lawyer, is captain of the squash team. Her long search for love seems to be getting nowhere until someone special makes her think she still has a chance. But is she brave enough to make her feelings known? For Sophie London, mourning the sudden death of her parents, a chance encounter in a restaurant turns her life upside down. At last she finds the happiness she so desperately craves. When family responsibilities draw her back to Jamaica, will she be forced to choose between her family and Mr Perfect? For rich, spoilt Polly Gordon, boredom leads to a disastrous marriage. She wants out, and she gets her wish, but in the worst imaginable way. Though her marriage is over, her father-in-law is determined to make her life a living hell. Clarissa Duncan, owner of an organic smallholding, is content with her life. Then her artist partner, Ted, finds unexpected success, and everything changes. Life will never be the same again. When Emily Roper’s boyfriend, Jack, is tragically killed, a totally unexpected discovery threatens to rupture her fragile hold on her life. Throughout it all, the women are there to support one another; at the end of the season their lives have changed in ways they could never have predicted.

About the Author

Michael Pakenham is part of a prolific literary Irish family. Born in Belfast the family left their home in Ireland on the death of their father at Dunkirk and moved to America. On return to England after the war the family moved to Hampshire where Michael has lived ever since. On giving up farming in 1989 Michael took up writing and this is his fifth book.