Publisher's Synopsis
When mill owner's daughter, Ellen Rastrick, dares to borrow her brother's bicycle to join the Clarion Cycling Club in secret, she discovers an exciting new world. It is 1896 in the industrial town of Halifax, West Yorkshire. Ellen's fellow Clarionettes are young men and women from all walks of life, liberated by the movement to mix socially for the first time. Naïve or worldly, rich or poor, they all seek freedom, happiness and love. But they soon discover that these can mean very different things to one another. Dynamic relationships and a single drastic act create an unstoppable momentum in the lives of those both inside and outside their group. They meet as rebels, workers and artists, full of their own hopes and dreams. They become conflicted allies, enjoying new times as friends and lovers while braving danger, risk, heartbreak and loss. Together, they find futures they could never have imagined.
