A magical book by debut novelist, Sally Tissington, where the lives of three generations of women are dominated by a menacing 13-metre carousel in their back garden. This is not just any carousel - the only horse is an injured, bloodied war horse; a model of a vulture rips up meat for its chicks under the shadow of the Gates of Death, and there is even a giant crocodile with a hook through its mouth.The monstrous carousel contains a message, a reminder that life comes with suffering. This is a lesson the three women have learnt through the pain of miscarriage, illegitimacy, bullying and betrayal. The carousel will never let them forget that life is not about being happy but understanding that happiness always ends painfully.Can Amanda Furnish change her fate and find love - or will someone have to suffer first? The ending will be worse than any of them ever imagined and it all started outside a country pub, with a candle gently floating down the river in a tin foil dish.