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Performers #2
The Haymarket
Abel Lackland has risen from squalid beginnings to become one of the wealthiest surgeons in town. He wants his eldest son, Jonah, to follow in his footsteps, but Jonah decides that the future lies in the world of the arts. Jonah steals away one night to visit the forbidden Haymarket theatre and manages to meet the famous Lilith Lucas. He falls under her spell - a fatal spell that, unknown to him, has haunted Abel for many years. Lilith is aware of Jonah's identity and sees a chance to repay Abel Lackland for the indignity and heartbreak of the past...
376 pages, Paperback
First published September 26, 1974
About the author
Claire Rayner
174 books10 followersClaire Berenice Rayner OBE (née Berk; born 22 January 1931) is an English journalist best known for her role for many years as an agony aunt.
Rayner is Vice-President (and former President) of the British Humanist Association, a Distinguished Supporter of the Humanist Society of Scotland and an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society. She is also a prominent supporter of the British republican movement.
She was awarded an OBE in 1996 for services to women's issues and to health issues.
In 1999 Rayner was appointed to a committee responsible for reviewing the medical conditions at Holloway Prison, London, at the direction of Paul Boateng who was then the Minister for Prisons. The recommendations of this committee led to far reaching changes in the provision of medical care within Holloway.[3:]
She is president of the Patients Association and is the author of a chapter in The Future of the NHS (2006) (ISBN 1-85811-369-5) edited by Dr. Michelle Tempest.
On 4 January 2007, she hosted an episode of the BBC Radio 4 quiz, The Personality Test.
Rayner expressed delight to be an Ambassador for Hearing Concern in the charity’s Diamond Jubilee year:
"I feel that this charity represents people like me who have been part of the hearing world for most of their lives and have suddenly found themselves having to cope with a hearing loss. It changes your perspective on things which is why I am so pleased to be able to help Hearing Concern raise awareness of this hidden disability and get rid of the taboo that surrounds the deaf and the hard of hearing once and for all."
Rayner also has a very personal reason for supporting Sense's Older Person campaign. she wears hearing aids in both ears and also has Age Related Dry Macular Degeneration, a sight loss common in older people. Rayner helped Sense to promote "The Good Life" campaign booklet, tips on how to cope with sight and hearing loss in older age.
Rayner is Vice-President (and former President) of the British Humanist Association, a Distinguished Supporter of the Humanist Society of Scotland and an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society. She is also a prominent supporter of the British republican movement.
She was awarded an OBE in 1996 for services to women's issues and to health issues.
In 1999 Rayner was appointed to a committee responsible for reviewing the medical conditions at Holloway Prison, London, at the direction of Paul Boateng who was then the Minister for Prisons. The recommendations of this committee led to far reaching changes in the provision of medical care within Holloway.[3:]
She is president of the Patients Association and is the author of a chapter in The Future of the NHS (2006) (ISBN 1-85811-369-5) edited by Dr. Michelle Tempest.
On 4 January 2007, she hosted an episode of the BBC Radio 4 quiz, The Personality Test.
Rayner expressed delight to be an Ambassador for Hearing Concern in the charity’s Diamond Jubilee year:
"I feel that this charity represents people like me who have been part of the hearing world for most of their lives and have suddenly found themselves having to cope with a hearing loss. It changes your perspective on things which is why I am so pleased to be able to help Hearing Concern raise awareness of this hidden disability and get rid of the taboo that surrounds the deaf and the hard of hearing once and for all."
Rayner also has a very personal reason for supporting Sense's Older Person campaign. she wears hearing aids in both ears and also has Age Related Dry Macular Degeneration, a sight loss common in older people. Rayner helped Sense to promote "The Good Life" campaign booklet, tips on how to cope with sight and hearing loss in older age.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 24, 2021
The story continues, with the second book as good as the first, perhaps even better. "The Haymarket" continues the "Gower Street" story of Abel Lackland and Lilith Lucas, who have gone their separate ways, but their lives are still entwined, thanks to Abel's son Jonah and Lilith's daughter Celia. Once again, Dorothea (now Abel's wife) plays a part in the story, as does their daughter Abby.
With the first book, I was entertained by the story and characters, with this one, I got more involved and could feel empathy for the characters: Abel, who couldn't let go of his feelings for Lilith, Dorothea, who gave all her affection to her son to make up for her husband's rejection, Jonah, who got too little love from his father and too much from his mother, Celia, who suffered so much emotional abuse from her callous mother.... and then there was Abby, a teenage girl in love with a man more than twice her age.
Two scenes that stuck in my mind (and I won't go into detail and be a spoiler) were the confrontation between Lilith and Dorothea over Jonah, where the differences in their personalities was so profound and, towards the end of the novel, where Lilith wants to make her aware of the hold she still has over Abel, and now Jonah as well, leading to a dramatic conclusion.
The same goes for another scene, this time between Lilith and her daughter, where Celia finds the courage to stand up to her heartless mother and assert her independence.
This book, along with the first, needs to become a movie. Why that hasn't all ready happened, I can't figure out, especially with the British love for historical series and romances.
I just want to end by saying that, while I read a few of the later books in the series, they didn't capture my interest like the first two,. which explains why I can't remember much about them. What I do remember is that they lost something special that the first two had.
With the first book, I was entertained by the story and characters, with this one, I got more involved and could feel empathy for the characters: Abel, who couldn't let go of his feelings for Lilith, Dorothea, who gave all her affection to her son to make up for her husband's rejection, Jonah, who got too little love from his father and too much from his mother, Celia, who suffered so much emotional abuse from her callous mother.... and then there was Abby, a teenage girl in love with a man more than twice her age.
Two scenes that stuck in my mind (and I won't go into detail and be a spoiler) were the confrontation between Lilith and Dorothea over Jonah, where the differences in their personalities was so profound and, towards the end of the novel, where Lilith wants to make her aware of the hold she still has over Abel, and now Jonah as well, leading to a dramatic conclusion.
The same goes for another scene, this time between Lilith and her daughter, where Celia finds the courage to stand up to her heartless mother and assert her independence.
This book, along with the first, needs to become a movie. Why that hasn't all ready happened, I can't figure out, especially with the British love for historical series and romances.
I just want to end by saying that, while I read a few of the later books in the series, they didn't capture my interest like the first two,. which explains why I can't remember much about them. What I do remember is that they lost something special that the first two had.
April 14, 2013
I read this book when I was twelve and can still quote verbatim from the um...love scene... which took place on the couch. I think this was possibly one of the books that caused me to start writing romance. Still worth a look even forty years after it was first written.
June 9, 2011
i loved this book, can't believe i waited sooo many years to read it, so worth every minute of reading time, devoured it, can't wait to read the next one!!!
June 24, 2013
Love Claire Rayner's take on the historical Medical and Theatre worlds and how they fit/fight with each other.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews