For Adults
From award-winning author, Liz Flanagan, comes her searing new historical fiction – expertly crafted and beautifully sensitive, this book with its themes of family and political conflict, and pure but forbidden love, will stay with readers long after they’ve turned the last page.
Divided by plague, divided by war, divided by love – what will reunite two sisters?
Yorkshire, 1643. Civil war divides the country. Jane mourns the departure of her last boy who goes off to fight for the king. She must find a new way to endure, facing family secrets and her own buried grief. Isabel is spurred into action, finding herself drawn into the rebel resistance – with unexpected consequences that might mean disaster for her sister Jane. Kit is left desperate and starving, taking on the identity of a murdered brother. Life in the king’s army brings friendship, new hope and even love at the most perilous moment of all. As these three lives intertwine, each of them will be altered forever.
If you fancy winning one of five sets of 10 copies of When We Were Divided for your Book Club, please email foxandink@lancashire.ac.uk with the subject header ‘Reading Agency – When We Were Divided’ and include the following:
- Name of your reading group
- Name of local library authority (if applicable)
- Name of your main group contact (your name)
- Email address of main group contact (this is so that we can contact you on whether your pitch is successful or not)
- Full address of library (best address to send the books if your group is successful)
- Tell us more about your group (how often you meet, the type of books you like to read etc.)
- Please tell us why your group would like to take part in this offer.
- If your group is selected, how will you promote excitement about this book with your group?
- Is your group happy to read, discuss and review the book?
- Will you be able to share some images with your group (these can be without faces), of your display or your reviews on social media?
The deadline is 12 December 2025.
The books will be delivered to you by the beginning of January and you will have six weeks after you receive the book to send back individual reviews. We anonymise your applications and share with the publisher to help select the clubs.
Please only apply if you will be able to send the club’s feedback six weeks after receiving books. If you do not send in feedback in return for the free books you will not be able to apply for other opportunities.
We also welcome photos and screengrabs of any social media posts.
