From India with Love: Sylvia Heavens Story

Born in England in 1927, Sylvia's family of four belongs to a much larger one - the family of the 13th Regiment of the Somerset Light Infantry. It is this close net community that feeds and houses them during the Great Depression that will also shape her future.

At the time India is still part of the British Empire with a standing army of 150,000 British troops and their families. With her father's new posting, eight year old Sylvia departs on an epic sea journey to India.

Spending those formative years in such a vibrant culture leaves a lasting impression on her as she vividly recounts her memories with the reader. However childhood innocence changes with the beginning of the Second World War, and the realisation of the inequalities in the country she has grown to love.

Amidst the blight of war Sylvia meets a young New Zealand pilot posted to the local Gunnery School. After flying Hurricanes in Britain and Ceylon he enjoys a few months break from operational flying. Love grows, but Ted on returning to his duties becomes a Prisoner-of-War.

In 1945 they marry and begin a new life in a country vastly different from the one she had known, New Zealand. As her life unfolds Sylvia raises a family of her own, grappling to deal with untimely tragedies and finding hope in new found joys.

"An engaging read from start to finish, with a true plot that seems as if it was ripped from the screens of Hollywood, Sylvia Heavens life story is dramatic and engaging from start to finish."