Aiden O'Hara is the oldest, loves his mum but knows she attracts the wrong sort of guys so he has to watch over his family. Eileen, Briony's older sister, is mentally unstable after leaving Henry Dumas. She marries, but is unhappy. A pregnant Eileen moves home to Briony and has twin boys. Eileen dies, leaving the babies with Briony. The boys grow up to be two of the most hated and feared men in the East End. Everything they ever wanted they've taken, despite never wanting for anything. Aiden O'Hara has always looked out for his family, ever since he was a wee laddie. His mother has something of a reputation and many children to different fathers. Aiden is fiercely protective and soon makes himself a name with the local face. Drugs, prostitution and murder are all things Aiden finds himself caught up in but it pays the bills and keeps his family safe. However as Aiden's reputation grows his arrogance and unpredictability grows with it turning Aiden from protector to a possible danger to his family and business. Be that as it may, within this broad, historical definition are multitudes of subgroups and cultures, each with their unique experiences and cultures. Shuggie Bain, although emblematic of many experiences of poverty and discrimination, is starkly contrasted to the lives of the Working Class in Nazi Germany. By Working Class, do we mean British people ‘on the dole’? Or do we mean those confined to work in sweatshops in Asia, or those who dig for diamonds for corrupt gangs and governments alike?

She married for the first time aged 16, but the marriage only lasted a year. She had her first child at the age of 18. [3] Her parents both died when she was in her early 20s. [1] Martina Cole’s debut is a great place to begin reading her books. It documents the exploits of a seventeen-year-old girl, Maura Ryan, taking on the men of the criminal underworld alongside her brother Michael, leaving a trail of notoriety behind them. Cole returned to the characters from her first novel a decade later with another installment following the brutal and ruthless character of Maura Ryan. I am going to admit this: I am in two minds over Betrayal. I enjoyed the story and kept listening to the audiobook, but at the same time, I can't help but think that I had read this story before... you can say that this is a good book–if mafia stories written on wattpad by 11-year-olds are your standard. stars. This is the first Martina Cole book I’ve read through a recommendation so not my usual style.

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If you like Martina Cole and have been waiting for this book you will love it but take a breath every once in a while as it is hard going in places with the realism The characters of the six children are very well drawn, and they are all very different. The dominant one is Aiden, the eldest, a highly intelligent teenager who adores his mother. Within the local community he is recognised as someone special, and his headmaster is very anxious that he should be put forward for a scholarship to a good senior school. But Aiden himself and the rest of his family are not interested. Aiden's only purpose in life is to make money, lots of it, to support the family. Martina has the skill of creating characters that drive you crazy. Love and hate are so close in emotion and I felt this a lot with Aidan. I loved the way he fought from a young age to provide for his family as essentially the man of the house, to make a name for himself and ensure that his family was taken care of. What I didn’t like were how the power slowly starts to corrupt him and with that comes unsavoury behaviour towards both his girlfriend and his family. Mám rada príbehy z mafiánskeho prostredia. Ten svet ma niečím fascinuje. A Martina Cole mi jeden taký priniesla, i keď nebolo to celkom to, čo som očakávala. Príbeh bol totiž viac zameraný na rodinné vzťahy ako tie mafiánske, našťastie v ňom ale nechýbali rôzne mafiánske praktiky.

In March 2011 The Runaway, was shown on Sky1 and Sky1 HD. It is based on Cole's 1997 novel of the same name. [8] After a life changing event when thirteen, Briony joins forces with Tommy Lane. Together they become successful business people in the East End, which allows Briony to continue to help her four sisters and mother, Molly.The story centers around Briony Cavanagh, sold to a rich man when she is thirteen by her family. When the pedophile that bought her impregnates her, his wife and himself take on the child giving Briony money which she then uses to become a madam and eventually one of the most feared women in the East End. That story alone and the years that follow would be enough for one book, but Martina doesn't do things by halves (pre-2008) and the story continues on and on until we meet 'The Twins', two brothers who become the two most feared people in the East End, sound familiar? Along with TV executive producer, Barry Ryan, Cole co-owns the film and television production company "2 Queens". [9] Theatre [ edit ]

The concept of a ‘Working Class’ is commonly attributed to its historical origins in the ideology of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. However, as Myers alludes to, the world has changed since Marx’s perceived two class system featured in The Communist Manifesto .It’s unflinching in its portrayal of the characters we meet, and we meet some disgusting, evil, perverted ones who literally have below zero morals and then some These two novels represent very different but very captivating Working Class main characters, who manage and suffer through the unbearable. However, although very important to read and write about, these more extreme experiences cannot represent all Working Class experiences.