Witness — Mandasue Heller

Dark and gritty, Witness is a heart-pounding thriller set in Manchester by bestselling author Mandasue Heller.

Teenager Holly Evans and her over-protective mother, Josie, are living a hand-to-mouth existence, moving constantly from one squalid dump to the next. When they move into an illegally sub-let council flat in Manchester, Holly feels settled for the first time in her life â€" even if she is forbidden to go out, or even open the front door when her mum's at work. What exactly are they hiding from?

Then Holly has a falling out with her best friend, and suddenly finds herself becoming increasingly isolated and alone in the world. But she is about to make a new friend in Suzie â€" the glamorous woman who lives directly across the road, who Holly witnesses being beaten up by her violent boyfriend.

But whoever Holly and Josie have been running from is about to find them, and nothing will ever be the same again.

You can only run for so long. And some will kill for your silence . . .

'Heller doesn't mince words, her gritty plots create a Manchester underworld to rival Martina Cole's raw and rough East End' â€" Peterborough Evening Telegraph