Annie Groves Books In Order
Book links take you to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn money from qualifying purchases.Publication Order of Pride family Books
Ellie Pride | (2003) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Connie's Courage | (2004) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Hettie of Hope Street | (2005) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Publication Order of World War II Books
Goodnight Sweetheart/A Mother's Blessing | (2006) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Some Sunny Day | (2006) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
The Grafton Girls | (2007) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
As Time Goes By | (2008) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Publication Order of Campion Family Books
Across the Mersey | (2008) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Daughters of Liverpool | (2008) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
The Heart of the Family | (2009) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Where the Heart Is | (2010) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
When the Lights Go On Again | (2010) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Publication Order of Article Row Books
London Belles | (2010) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Home for Christmas | (2011) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
My Sweet Valentine | (2012) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Only a Mother Knows | (2013) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
A Christmas Promise | (2013) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Publication Order of Empire Street Books
Child of the Mersey | (2014) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Christmas on the Mersey | (2014) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
The Mersey Daughter | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Winter On The Mersey | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Publication Order of The District Nurse Books
The District Nurses of Victory Walk | (2018) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
The District Nurse 2/Wartime for the District Nurses | (2019) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Christmas for the District Nurses | (2019) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
A Gift for the District Nurses | (2020) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
The District Nurses Make a Wish | (2021) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Annie Groves is a bestselling English author who wrote over two hundred novels before her death in 2011. Annie wrote historical romance novels. Her real name was Penny Halsall, though she was most commonly referred to as Penny Jordan.
+Biography
Annie Groves was born in Preston, Lancashire in 1946. Her parents were Anthony and Margaret. Annie was one of three children and her love for reading manifested fairly early on.
The author’s household had an affinity for books. Not only would her grandmother tell her stories but Annie’s mother was always taking her to the library. More often than not, she was there to get her husband books but she always left Annie in the children’s section.
There she was allowed to experiment with and explore the literary landscape. By the time she was a teenager, Annie Groves had become a storyteller in her own right who often regaled her younger sister with tales of her own creation.
She grew to love the classics; though, a time came when her love for Mills and Boon novels eventually outstripped her interest in the likes of Jane Austen and Charles Dickens.
It all began with a story that she read in a magazine. While the story itself was more or less average, Annie remembers being drawn to the hero. It did not occur to her then that she would go on to reproduce that same excitement in other readers by writing her own romance novels featuring dashing heroes like the one who stole her heart as a child.
The author eventually attended Todmorden Grammar School. She studied English, Literature, and Geography and eventually landed a job as a typist.
Annie Groves wrote for many years before her big break came. In fact, by the time she was twenty, the author had begun to write in earnest. However, in those early days, Annie primarily wrote for her personal consumption.
It wasn’t until she reached her thirties that Steve Halsall, her husband, and an accountant, encouraged her to take a serious crack at publishing. They used the little money the had to get her a typewriter that she used to produce a novel that she submitted to a competition.
Even though she did not win, the effort definitely paid off because it got Annie the attention of an agent. By the late 1970s, the author’s first novel had hit the bookshelves.
Most people are unlikely to connect ‘Duchess in Disguise’ to Annie Groves or even Penny Jordan. The author saw fit to publish it under the ‘Caroline Courtney’ pen name. Caroline became a mainstay of the romance genre for many years, generating more than two dozen novels.
She eventually faded into the background as pen names like ‘Lydia Hitchcock’ and ‘Melinda Wright’ took over.
The Annie Groves pen name did not come into the picture until 2003. Having written both romance, suspense, and thrillers, Penny Jordan used Annie Groves as the doorway through which she could experiment with historical fiction.
The author rarely deviated from the standard structure of the historical and contemporary romance genre and her stories always delivered happy endings. However, her fans commended her for adding a fresh spark to every single one of her novels.
The achievement is worth noting considering how many novels the author produced over such a short period of time. At the height of her career, Annie had the capacity to produce up to one novel a month.
She did this by sticking to a strict schedule that saw her write five thousand words every single day of the week. The author’s objective was always to rapidly throw out a rough draft of her story which she would then proceed to refine over a period of a few days or even weeks.
The breadth of the author’s bibliography is quite impressive, with Annie Groves having written about everything from marriages of convenience to stories about aging heroes and heroines struggling to find their way in life.
Annie lost her husband in 2002. The cause was cancer. Interestingly enough, it was shortly after that tragedy struck that Penny Jordan started writing as Annie Groves. Her first series of novels under the pseudonym was based on her mother’s WWII experiences.
The author was sixty-five years old when she died. The cause was also cancer. Annie and Steve had no children of their own.
+Across the Mersey
The horrors of the Second World War are fast approaching and neither Jean nor Vi can afford to fight. Vi has always been the more fortunate of the twins. Jean might love and respect all the work that her husband does but, at the end of the day, they never seem to have enough money to meet their needs.
Vi’s husband is the local councilor and they seem to enjoy every luxury that money can buy. When WWII descends, the twins and their younger sister must face the demons of their past and find a way to maintain their sanity in trying times.
Across the Mersey is the first novel in the Campion Family series. These books are what could be referred to as a family saga. The first installment follows the exploits of twin sisters.
One sister is a social climber who lives in the privileged sections of their community. The other is down to earth and struggles to survive the trying period of the Second World War.
+London Belles
London Belles is the story of four women from different walks of life who are brought together by conflict. Things kick off with Olive, a woman who, after facing strategy, attempts to find new lodgers.
Her search brings into her life three girls each of whom desperately desires shelter.
Sally was a bright, social girl. Then she went to London to become a nurse. She has since lost her spark and must contend with homesickness and betrayal.
Dulcie seems to have everything, what with her high life on her high-end streets. However, even though she always wears the most fashionable clothes, Dulcie can never measure up to the standard of her sister.
Agnes was abandoned at an orphanage. The people there raised her. When the war forces the orphanage to migrate, Agnes must carve out her own way in exciting but dangerous times.
Book Series In Order » Authors »
Just wondering who took over writing books under the pen name “Annie Groves” when apparently Penny Halsall died in 2011?