Best Laid Plans — Mary Larkin

Belfast, the 1960s. When Tess Maguire and her best friend Agnes Quinn get free tickets to see the Rolling Stones, there is nothing that will stop them from going to the Ulster Hall, not even the disapproval of Tess's mother Alice. And though Alice's concerns about trouble are to prove right, for Tess and Agnes they have a silver lining. As the concert ends in panic and confusion, the girls are helped out by their very own pair of Jumping Jack Flashes - Jack Thompson and Tony Burke. To begin with, Tess is far keener on Jack than Agnes is on Tony. But after six, short, wonderful weeks, Jack suddenly stops contacting her. And when Tess pays his home a visit to find out the reason why, she soon discovers the shocking truth: Colette Burns, with her thick black hair and sultry looks, has captured his heart instead. Then Tess meets Dominic Sullivan, a Belfast boy who left Ireland for America many years earlier. Returning to his home city for a wedding, his good looks and sharp humour could be what Tess has been waiting for. But with Agnes interested in Dominic as well, their best laid plans might just become their worst-case scenario instead...