by James Martin-Woodcock (Author)
It is the end of the nineteenth century. The British Empire is at its peak, the industrial revolution has transformed society, and education is leading the way. When fifteen-year-old Charles Woodyson decides to join the army on the eve of the Boer War, he shocks his parents. Although his mother forbids him to go, his father signs the papers, sealing the destiny of the boy in a lower socioeconomic class who never achieved anything significant in grammar school. As Charles transforms into a medical orderly in the Royal Army Medical Corps, Sophia North is deciding her future. The daughter of a wealthy surgeon major, Sophia is not content to attend garden parties and climb social ladders like her twin sister. Instead, she is focused on becoming a nurse, and her romantic sights are set within that fraternity. But when fate leads Charles and Sophia to meet, everything is about to change in unexpected ways. In this intriguing tale, the paths of a young medical orderly and nurse cross during a tumultuous time in British history that has more control over their destiny than they initially realize.