Twenty-Six Letters

Wilhelmina Mann can never seem to get anything right: her work, relationships and family are all on the rocks. But when she suddenly receives a stack of letters from her long-dead mother, everything she's ever known begins to change. On the eve of her thirtieth birthday, Wilhelmina Mann is already dealing with more than enough problems, so a birthday misadventure landing her in the lock-up is hardly even a surprise. But that mistake leads to Wil receiving a packet of old letters; letters to Wil from her mother that were written just before she died, back when Wil was a small child. Suddenly, Wil's life is thrown into a new kind of turmoil as she discovers the mother she lost. And while the letters begin as tales of growing up, they soon become a great love story, almost as great as the bond between mother and daughter. Caught in old, unexpected emotions and unresolved hurts, Wil risks everything to journey back to the tiny English village in which her mother grew up, searching for answers in another set of letters she is meant to find there. But secrets are kept for a reason. Will she find the last letters? And will she want to know what they contain? Twenty-Six Letters is a captivating novel entwining family, place and identity, the shame of keeping secrets and the liberation of finding them out. "An insightful and entertaining glimpse into what really made the John Key government one of the most successful conservative governments New Zealand has ever seen. Christopher Finlayson is a lawyer and was a senior minister in the John Key-led National government, serving as Attorney-General, Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, and Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage, as well as the Minister responsible for the Government Communications Security Bureau and Minister in Charge of the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service, New Zealand's two main intelligence agencies. From Chris's early years and time as a lawyer before entering politics - where he spent years fighting for Ngai Tahu, pursuing its treaty claims through a series of high-profile court battles - to entering politics and becoming one of the most senior members of the Key National government, Yes, Minister reveals the inner workings of what it was like to be at the centre of power in New Zealand, and shines a light on the real John Key. Chris reveals what Key was really like as prime minster: utterly effective and utterly ruthless when needed. Told with Chris's trademark good humour and wit, this is a thoroughly entertaining and perceptive book, as well as a substantial record of one of the most successful conservative governments in New Zealand."--OverDrive