The Runaway - Tapa dura

When Cathy Connor and Eamonn Docherty are thrown together as children in the sleazy streets of London's east End their fate is sealed.

Cathy's miserable life as a prostitute's child leads to a terrifying ordeal that leaves her with no choice . . . Entering the world of Soho as a runaway, she is rescued and taught to survive in a criminal underworld by Desrae. Meanwhile, Eamonn, who fled to America with his father, has gained a reputation as one of the most ruthless villains in New York.

It's only a matter of time before their paths cross and, when they do, Cathy's an equal match for Eamonn. She's beautiful, clever and tough. And nothing's going to make her run away again . . .

Martina Cole is the acknowledged queen of crime drama with more than twenty novels to her name, of which over a dozen have been No.1 bestsellers.

Several of Martina's novels have been adapted for the screen, including The Take and The Runaway which were shown on Sky 1 to remarkable reviews. In addition, Two Women and The Graft have been adapted for the stage; both were highly acclaimed when performed at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, which also staged Dangerous Lady in 2012, celebrating twenty years since Martina's debut novel was published.

Martina Cole is a phenomenon. She continues to smash sales records with each of her books, which have sold thirteen million copies. In 2011 Martina surpassed the £50 million sales mark since records began and was the first British female novelist for adult audiences to achieve this - and she has spent more weeks in the No. 1 slot on the original fiction bestseller list than any other adult novelist. Her hard-hitting, uncompromising and haunting writing is in a genre all its own - no one writes like Martina.