Far Forest

Jenny Hadley’s early years were spent in Mawne Heath, a barren, blighted environment on the verge of the industrial Midlands. Her father, a hard man given to drink and womanizing, was a chain-maker with his own forge behind the hovel in which the family lived. When her mother suddenly left home, Jenny was sent to live with her grandfather and deeply devout Aunt Thirza in the depths of Werewood (Wyre Forest) in Worcestershire. Jenny was desperately lonely in the old cottage by the Gladden Brook but, as the seasons passed, she grew to love both her grandfather and the sprawling forest. Then in spring, when the cherry trees were thick with blossom, Uncle Jem came visiting with Cousin David. During the ensuing idyllic days Jenny’s heart was lost. A bond developed between the cousins but, apart from a second brief meeting, they were to experience many twists of fortune before their paths crossed again.