A family torn apart by their father’s infidelity are forced to confront the past thirty years later. As Natalie’s younger sister, Amanda, prepares for marriage and impending motherhood, her plea for the family to reunite uncovers pent-up tension and animosity. Can they forget the past and become a family again?

Natalie’s life begins to unravel as their father starts to creep back into their lives and family tensions resurface, affecting her relationship with her boyfriend, Rob. Will the couple find their way back to each other, and can a family that has been torn apart ever heal their wounds?

Can you ever walk away from someone you love, or do some fires never die out?

Ember has a 4.8 rating on Amazon and a 4.55 rating on Goodreads. Ember was picked for Jules Swain’s book club, The JAS Club. I am always eager to hear from book clubs and readers.

You can buy it here on Amazon, Waterstones, or Foyles.

‘Ember is a beautifully detailed study of sibling rivalry and how the traumas of family life as a child can impact the adult self. Reading it was an absolute joy and I found the book flowed so well that it was difficult to put down. Yardley’s almost forensic understanding of the psychology of her characters is quite an achievement and although the subject matter was serious, the delivery was so effortless and palatable, it felt incredibly uplifting as a read. No family is perfect. Everyone should read this book!’ Five star review from Mairi Chong, author of Death by Appointment.

‘Ember is a story about the intricate, fraught, and sometimes fragile bonds that hold us to the people we love. At the heart of this story is Natalie, who is struggling to come to terms with a difficult childhood and a deeply strained relationship with her estranged father. His attempts to reconcile with other family members create new tensions in those relationships, intensifying Natalie’s feelings of familial alienation. Yardley draws characters with such genuine emotional intensity and complexity that they feel very real to the reader, making the story hugely compelling. It unfolds with great tenderness and emotional astuteness. I thoroughly enjoyed it,’ Rosemary Hennigan, author of The Truth Will Out and The Favourites.

‘Yardley explores the complex relationships that exist within siblings and their parents in this emotionally driven drama. She does so with a real flair and understanding of how our memories are tinged with our own perspectives. Of how siblings can have completely different relationships with the same set of parents. There were scenes here that were heartbreaking and raw

– The chapter with the tiara at Christmas.
– The phone calls from her father after a 
shopping trip.
– The lack of proper care
– Their mother and her motives

But overall, this is an uplifting book. It speaks of sacrifice for those you love. Of healing. Of letting go of fear. The relationship between Natalie and Amanda is brilliantly portrayed. All those little nuances between sisters forensically explored. And while, Tim their father influences both sisters in very different ways. Yardley examines that construct in a very accomplished manner and lays it bare A truly gorgeous tale, poignant but centred around love. It will resonate with many readers. Just as it did with me,’ Caron Mckinlay, author of The Storytellers.

‘Natalie can’t forgive her father for destroying her family with his unfaithfulness when she was a child. Thirty years later, when he returns and tries to inveigle himself into her life, the hurt that she has suppressed comes crashing back only this time threatens to destroy her relationship with her boyfriend, Rob, and with her younger sister, Amanda. Natalie’s father’s return upends Natalie’s life, forcing her to question all that she holds dear.
The emotional core of Ember is Natalie’s relationship with her father, which I thought was beautifully handled by the author. It hooked me straight away. We understand and empathize with Natalie’s hurt which is compounded by her siblings’ acceptance of their father’s behaviour. I was fascinated by the idea that a childhood event brushed off as inconsequential by an adult can have consequences that reach far into adulthood and, given Natalie’s rejection of any notion of forgiveness of her father, I found myself needing to know how she reconciles the impact of this painful childhood memory with her present-day world. Ember is a wonderful page-turner of a novel,’ T. Orr. Munro author of Breakneck Point.

‘Ember is a raw and honest look at the complexities of family and the difficulties of navigating relationships between people related to you, people you cannot choose but are family nonetheless. It is a look into one deals with their pettiness, jealousy and trauma of family, and how they reconcile with one another after tragedy. Each of Ember’s characters are wonderfully flawed, with their own problems and outlooks on life. Watching them bump against each other, help, and hurt one another in their attempts to sort out their own problems was fascinating,’ Anne Sei Lin, author of Rebel Skies.