The Other Side of Paradise Page 25

  I loved it passionately and it’s gone. And the tuans and the memsahibs are gone, too. So is their way of life, crumbled to dust along with the mighty British Empire.

  The British deserved to lose Singapore to the Japanese – there’s not much dispute about that – and they paid a terrible price in suffering and lives. Where exactly the blame lies for the defeat isn’t so clear. There may be some truth in the theory that the Battle of Malaya was lost in the ballrooms and bars of Raffles and Tanglin. But the stories of arrogance, complacency and incompetence are more than matched by the tales of immense courage, heroism and self-sacrifice.

  Whatever her faults, there’ll always be an England. And she’s free.

  THE END

  About the Author

  Margaret Mayhew was born in London and her earliest childhood memories were of the London Blitz. She began writing in her mid-thirties and had her first novel published in 1976. She is married to American aviation author, Philip Kaplan, and lives in Gloucestershire. Her previous novels, Bluebirds, The Crew, The Little Ship, Our Yanks, The Pathfinder, Those in Peril, I’ll Be Seeing You and The Boat Girls are also published by Corgi.

  Also by Margaret Mayhew

  BLUEBIRDS

  THE CREW

  THE LITTLE SHIP

  OUR YANKS

  THE PATHFINDER

  THOSE IN PERIL

  I’LL BE SEEING YOU

  THE BOAT GIRLS

  and published by Corgi Books

  TRANSWORLD PUBLISHERS

  61–63 Uxbridge Road, London W5 5SA

  A Random House Group Company

  www.transworldbooks.co.uk

  THE OTHER SIDE OF PARADISE

  A CORGI BOOK: 9780552154925

  Version 1.0 Epub ISBN 9781407041087

  First publication in Great Britain

  Corgi edition published 2009

  Copyright © Margaret Mayhew 2009

  Margaret Mayhew has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

  ‘There’ll Always be an England’ Words and Music by Ross Parker and Hugh Charles © Copyright 1939 Dash Music Company Limited. All Rights Reserved. International Copyright secured. Reprinted by Permission.

  This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

  This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

  Addresses for Random House Group Ltd companies outside the UK can be found at:

  www.randomhouse.co.uk

  The Random House Group Ltd Reg. No. 954009