Irish Secrets and Lies by Debbie Wastling

Book by Debbie Wastling

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

March 18, 2026 (San Diego) - Irish Secrets and Lies by Southern California author Debbie Wastling is part of The Sutherland Scandals¾a historical series about a family that rises from poverty. In Irish Secrets and Lies, the main character, Martha Lowery, is the daughter of a nonworking alcoholic father and mother whose health is broken from having too many children too often.

Martha works two jobs. Her main one is as a cook and gifted baker. She tries to act as a mother figure to her younger siblings but, one day her father, in a drunken stupor, tries to rape Martha. The next day she finds another place to live. Being hard working and likable, a friend offers the nineteen-year-old girl a temporary place to stay.

At the same time, Martha is swept off her feet by John Benjamin (JB) Sutherland, by whom she becomes pregnant. When her condition becomes apparent, her employer wants to sack her. Fortunately, her friend allows Martha to stay on permanently, saving Martha from a much harder life. Also, a statement of her great character, BJ really cares about Martha; however, he drags his feet about getting married.

A character who overshadows another book in the Sutherland Scandals is Martha’s first born—a person who from a young age, lacked empathy and refused to conform to social and physical limits.

Despite Martha’s lack of education, she is able to read recipes and quick to learn new skills. Will JB marry her and help raise his children? Will he succeed at starting his dream job as a pub owner?

Below is an excerpt from the book:

“’Martha Lowrey, come here this instant,” Mrs. Hawker, snapped. She sat on a high stool in her pub, her pointy chin and hooked nose raised and brought her cook, cleaner, and dog’s body from the kitchen. From her imperious ‘perch,’ the land lady of the Crown public house and kitchen, with her painted lips held tightened in a narrow line, said, “Martha, did I hear you fraternizing and talking to our guests early this morning?” This nineteen-year-old cook could not lie due to her half Catholic upbringing. She remained silent, her eyes watered, and her fair Irish skin turned beetroot red.

“The dragon employer said, ‘You may leave immediately, instant dismissal if you cannot even answer me. But whoever he is — get the man to marry you!’

“Again, Martha did not want reprisals - she had plenty at home from her father. She returned to the kitchen, where she had spent over a year cooking for the Hawkers at the Crown Inn, Hexham in Northumberland. Martha pulled the pan of boiling potatoes off the flame, took the half-baked bread from the oven, hung up her apron, and left the hot, steamy kitchen carrying her coat and bag.

“She had the thought of taking her tips from the customer’s jar, near where Mrs. Hawker sat, but again did not want repercussions or humiliation. However, she raised her chin and smiled to herself; only a month had passed since she had first met John Benjamin Sutherland, and her life and heart fluttered.

“Later, Martha told her new friend Elizabeth about what had happened, and asked her if she could keep a secret, and cried, ‘This was such a horrible day! Mrs. Hawker guessed I was pregnant. But I need this job. I thought I was doing a good job hiding my bump and wearing baggy clothes.’

“‘You are also eating less, and going along that path will not help the baby. You are about to blossom, and everyone will find out.’

“Martha sighed deeply, knowing her friend was correct, and told me, ‘Today, as I was taking the potatoes out of the oven, their smell made me retch. I put the tray down and just made it to the sink in time. I wiped my mouth and found Mrs. Hawker standing behind me. She asked. ‘Martha, are you sick or, more likely, pregnant?’ The old witch flounced her ringlets around and, with a snobbish air, said, ‘I cannot have an unmarried pregnant girl working here.’

“Elizabeth smiled at Martha’s accurate mimicry of her boss.

“Martha continued, ‘I blurted out, ‘But, I am your best cook’. Elizabeth, I saw Mrs. Hawker falter, and then she nodded, agreeing with me, but her face soured as she said, ‘We will keep you until we find a suitable replacement, but no serving the customers, you can stay back here and cook.’”

Debbie Wastling is author of the historical novels: The Flying Scotsman Sings, The Soundtrack of Our Lives, The Sutherland Scandals, and now Irish Secrets and Lies. She hails from Yorkshire, UK, and writes British historical novels. A prolific writer of plays, musicals, and music since high school, and in Los Angeles, she won the Women-in-Theatre award for re-writing and editing “Hamlet” for an all-woman cast and a TV show, “Dicken’s Women.”