Daisy Wood Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Daisy Wood
Daisy Wood never believed that she could become an author, she didn’t feel she had all that much to say. She had been a children’s book editor for a number of years when a colleague suggested she write a spooky story for some in-house series, and then one thing led to another and she eventually had more than twenty children’s books published under another name (writing as Jennie Walters, which includes the “Swallowcliffe Hall” series of historical teen novels).

“The Clockmaker’s Wife” is Daisy’s first published novel for adults and she still feels like something of an imposter. However she loves writing historical fiction because history is so full of events which inspire her when she’s stuck.

Like, for example, the horrible night of December 29, 1940 when more than 100,000 bombs were dropped on the City of London and fire leapt between unguarded and empty warehouses and offices. St. Paul’s Cathedral was surrounded by a blazing inferno and just escaped from destruction by a miracle. And Daisy’s heroine, Nell Spelman, was there!

The book was inspired by Big Ben being in the news, due to the extensive program of renovation work which was undertaken to restore the clock tower to former glory. She ended up learning about Big Ben’s role in WWII, when people were encouraged to pray for their loved ones in danger as they listened to the great bell toll before the nine o’clock news on the wireless each evening. Ben came to represent the sound of democracy, and the voice of a nation that wouldn’t be silenced.

However what if Britain’s foes came up with a plot to destroy this beacon of hope? St. Paul’s Cathedral barely escaped destruction. From there, an idea was born.

She finds World War Two to be such a fascinating time in history. Her mom grew up during the war and can remember American troops lining up at the bottom of her road in Dorset before they got sent off to France in order to liberate the country from German occupation.

If she wasn’t an author, she would probably still be an editor in a publishing house. Editing other writers’ work has taught her a ton while writing her own. A good editor is invaluable, because it’s amazing just how a writer can overlook flaws which seem obvious when somebody with a fresh eye points them out.

While writing, she does all of her working out and plotting in longhand before writing her first and all subsequent drafts on her computer. Somehow the freedom of using a pen and paper seems to be the proper method for initial thoughts, as she is able to add notes in the margin or cross things out to her heart’s content.

In order to gain inspiration in her writing, she is always re-reading Anne Tyler for the elegance and the wit of her sentences and the complexity and vividness of her characters. Her writing is so evocative and thoughtful. She is especially brilliant finishing a novel, subtly drawing the threads of a story together in order to leave the reader with a sense of completion. Daisy looked at several of her closing scenes before she tackled the ending of “The Clockmaker’s Wife”, and it helped her out immensely.

Daisy is happiest rooting about the London Library under the pretext of research, she divides her time between Dorset and London, and often can be found chasing a rescue pointer through various city parks with a Basset hound in tow.

“The Clockmaker’s Wife” is the first stand alone novel and was released in 2021. The world’s at war. And time is running out.

London in 1940. Britain is gripped by the horror of the Blitz, which forces Nell Spelman to flee from the capital with her young daughter, leaving behind Arthur (her husband), the clockmaker keeping Big Ben chiming. Arthur vanishes, Nell’s desperate to find him. However her search is going to lead her into much darker places than she ever imagined.

New York, present day. Ellie finds a beautiful watch which once belonged to a grandma that she never knew, she gets determined to learn what happened to her. However while piecing together the fragments of her grandma’s life, she starts wondering if the past might just be better left forgotten.

An unforgettable and powerful story of impossible choices, fierce love, and a moment which changes the world forever.

Readers found this novel to be a ticking time bomb of intrigue that is wrapped around the rich yet stark descriptions of the Blitz. It’s an unforgettable wartime debut that brilliantly captures the essence of 1940s England. Daisy skillfully navigates between two different timelines, WWII England and the America of today.

“The Forgotten Bookshop in Paris” is the second stand alone novel and was released in 2022. A story of loss, love, and betrayal that echoes through generations from an exciting new voice in WWII historical fiction.

Paris in 1940. War closes in on the city of love. With his wife being forced into hiding, Jacques has to stand by and watch while the Nazis take away everything that he holds dear. Everything except his last beacon of hope: La Page Cachee, his beloved bookshop. However when a young woman and her kid knock upon his door this one night and beg for some refuge, he knows his single option is to risk everything in order to save a life.

Modern day. Juliette and her husband have finally arrived in France on their romantic getaway of her dreams, however while the days pass, all that she finds is just how much they’ve grown apart. She is craving some new adventure, so when she finds this tiny, abandoned shop with a for sale sign in the window, it seems fated to her.

And she is about to learn that this forgotten bookstore hides so much more than meets the eye. A heartbreaking story of loss and love in war.

Daisy tells one hell of a good story that is filled with hope yet is heartbreaking as well. It is a truly riveting read, and both of the timelines are woven together seamlessly.