The Liar’s Daughter

From a “delightfully smart” historical novelist, a woman raised to believe she is the daughter of a British war hero searches for her true parentage (The Sunday Times). Nan Prunty’s mother is the rare woman to have served aboard navy vessels, an eyewitness to British sea battles aboard the HMS Victory. Now a notorious drunk, Nan’s mother shares outlandish anecdotes of bygone adventures, most of which Nan believes to be tall tales. The only story her mother tells the same way twice is that of Nan’s father, with whom she had an affair just before his tragic death during the Battle of Trafalgar. Is it possible the story is actually true—and that Nan is the daughter of naval hero Lord Horatio Nelson? The search for answers is a mystery that will carry Nan through her life, her marriage, and the birth of her own daughter, Pru. Growing up, Pru listens with skepticism to her mother’s narrative of her legendary genealogy. But when Pru marches off to her own intrepid life as a nurse during the Crimean War, she wonders how much of her mother’s legacy lives within her. With her characteristic warmth and wit, author Laurie Graham explores what our families stories truly tell us about ourselves.Praise for Laurie Graham “Laurie Graham has a wonderfully light, deft touch.” —Richard Russo, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Empire Falls “Why is Laurie Graham not carried on people’s shoulders through cheering crowds? Her books are brilliant!” —Marian Keyes, international bestselling author of Again, Rachel and Grown Ups