JOHN BURKE R.I.P.

John Burke, who has written many novels, and been published by Robert Hale died on the 20th September 2011 after a long illness.

A Father For Daisy was published by Hale at the end of June 2011. It is set in Horwich in 1898.

After the death of her elderly father, Bea Rossall is left without a home and has to find a means of support for herself and a four-month-old orphanded baby left in her care. When she turns down the proposition from a local mill owner that she become his housekeeper/mistress, he makes sure no-one else in the area will offer her employment. Bea decides that the only way forward is to seek Daisy's father in the hope that he will help to provide for his daughter ... but when the man named by Daisy's mother denies any knowledge of the matter, Bea wonders where to turn next - until an unexpected opportunity presents itself. Bea has to face scorn and overcome much prejudice against the role of women in society and the work-place, as well as danger to her life and the lives of those she loves before she can achieve her goal.