Pathways

Lady Constance was born into great privilege; her family home was the vast estate of Knebworth, and her father was Viceroy of India. So how did this woman travel from her cosseted upbringing to a punishment cell in a Liverpool gaol, where she was known only by her nom de guerre of 'Jane Warton'? In an epic feat of the imagination, Katie Ward recreates Constance's journey, as towards the end of her life she confides her secrets, her triumphs, her hopes, dreams and disappointments to her psychiatrist, Homer Lane. The portrait that emerges is of a lively, intelligent, vivacious and energetic woman who was prepared to fight to the death for what she believed in - not only against the forces of reaction, but also against those she held most dear.

Katie Ward is the author of Girl Reading, which was a Cactus TV Bookclub selection, and was the recipient of the Clarissa Luard Award in 2013, for which she was nominated by Hilary Mantel. She has worked in the public and voluntary sectors and lives in Suffolk.