Ivy Rose Series

Ivy Rose Murphy dreams of a better future. For years she has set out daily from the tenements known as The Lane to beg for discards from the homes of the wealthy. Her fortune takes a turn for the better, but there are eyes on Ivy, and she is vulnerable as she carries her earnings through the dark winter streets. Jem Ryan, who owns the local livery, longs to make Ivy his wife, but she is reluctant to give up her fierce independence. Then a sudden astonishing event turns Ivy's world upside down.

Through hard work and determination, Ivy Rose Murphy has come up in the world. She still begs for discards from the homes of the wealthy which lie only a stone’s throw from The Lane, the poverty-ridden tenements where she lives. She repairs and sells these discards in Dublin market. With her talent for needlework and a team of neighbourhood helpers, she has also begun to supply an upmarket shop in Grafton Street with beautifully dressed dolls. Then Ivy’s wealthy friend Ann Marie Gannon, with her beloved camera, spends a day at the airport photographing planes.

In 1920s inner city Dublin Tenements, Ivy Rose Murphy struggles to survive in the harsh poverty-stricken environment she was born into. She is trying to adapt to her new role as a married woman. There are those jealous of the improvements she has managed to make in her life. To Ivy it seems everyone wants a piece of her. Ivy's friends gather around to offer support, but somehow Ivy is the one who gives hope to them.