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‘You should see the snow,’ the landlord said, leaning across the great polished depth of the brass bar counter. ‘We could all be stuck here for days.’

‘Days?’

‘You may as well have another tot of rum. You won’t be going anywhere in a hurry tonight.’

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the following:

Andrew Janes (the National Archives in Kew)

Dr Juliet Gardiner

Lt Col M Keech BEM R Signals

Dr Pertti Ahonen (Department of History, Edinburgh University)

Frederike Arnold

Annette Weber

And also my agent, Peter Straus, and Larry Finlay, Marianne Velmans, Alison Barrow and everyone at Transworld Publishers, as well as Camilla Ferrier and everyone at the Marsh Agency.

To know more about the writing of this book (including a bibliography), please visit my website, www.kateatkinson.co.uk.

About the Author

Kate Atkinson won the Whitbread (now Costa) Book of the Year prize with her first novel, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, and has been a critically acclaimed international author ever since. Her four most recent bestsellers featured the former private detective Jackson Brodie: Case Histories, One Good Turn, When Will There Be Good News? and Started Early, Took My Dog. She was appointed MBE in the 2011 Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

Also by Kate Atkinson

Behind the Scenes at the Museum

Human Croquet

Emotionally Weird

Not the End of the World

Case Histories

One Good Turn

When Will There Be Good News?

Started Early, Took My Dog

For more information on Kate Atkinson and her books, see her website at www.kateatkinson.co.uk

TRANSWORLD PUBLISHERS

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A Random House Group Company

www.transworldbooks.co.uk

LIFE AFTER LIFE

A DOUBLEDAY BOOK: 9780385618670

Version 1.0 Epub ISBN 9781409043799

First published in Great Britain

in 2013 by Doubleday

an imprint of Transworld Publishers

Copyright © Kate Costello Ltd, 2013

Kate Atkinson has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

Addresses for Random House Group Ltd companies outside the UK can be found at:

www.randomhouse.co.uk

The Random House Group Ltd Reg. No. 954009

Table of Contents

Cover

About the Book

Title Page

Dedication

Epigraph

Be Ye Men of Valour

Snow

Snow

Four Seasons Fill the Measure of the Year

Snow

War

Snow

War

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Peace

Snow

Like a Fox in a Hole

A Lovely Day Tomorrow

A Lovely Day Tomorrow

A Lovely Day Tomorrow

The Land of Begin Again

A Long Hard War

The End of the Beginning

Be Ye Men of Valour

Snow

The Broad Sunlit Uplands

Snow

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Also by Kate Atkinson

Copyright

Table of Contents

Cover

About the Book

Title Page

Dedication

Epigraph

Be Ye Men of Valour

Snow

Snow

Four Seasons Fill the Measure of the Year

Snow

War

Snow

War

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Snow

Armistice

Peace

Snow

Like a Fox in a Hole

A Lovely Day Tomorrow

A Lovely Day Tomorrow

A Lovely Day Tomorrow

The Land of Begin Again

A Long Hard War

The End of the Beginning

Be Ye Men of Valour

Snow

The Broad Sunlit Uplands

Snow

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Also by Kate Atkinson

Copyright