Who can predict how long retribution will hang over Billy's life when he first meets his cousin, aged five? An innocent, well-meaning boy who so wanted another to play with grows up with the menace of manipulative Kenneth as well as with Hitler's war. His good nature and resilience, and frail Kenneth's artistic talent must be played out in the context of wartime London, evacuation and post-war austerity.
 But the tensions between them fester and eventually explode. “This well-executed emotional drama” (Historical Novel Society) explores the fateful relationship between Billy and devious Kenneth. An early draft of A Relative Invasion was runner-up in the Yeovil Prize (novel) and gained a full critique from Harper Collins writers’ site: “—a powerful and compelling narrative with strong and relatable characters… The author is deft in capturing that sense of tightly controlled emotions in the parents’ characters…it foreshadows the violence about to erupt in Europe..."