Embers is a novel set in Brighton in 1996 and follows the life of sixteen-year-old, Danny and his football team, Brighton & Hove Albion. Each match at the Goldstone Ground bookmarks his life.
Danny has left school and doesn't know what's next, just wants to earn enough money to follow Brighton's football up and down the country, but finding a job and keeping a job are tough challenges.
His dad has left the family home and as Brighton's form nosedives, Danny vows never to speak to his father again until Brighton win a game. As well as losing his dad, it looks like Danny is going to lose his football team as well.
Their ground has been sold and relegation, bankruptcy and extinction look almost certain. Everything important to Danny feels like it's being ripped away. But change is on the horizon.
An opportunity comes up working for a magazine alongside teenagers released from juvenile detention centres. Brighton's new manager, Steve Gritt brings a turnaround in the team's form and Danny meets him for an interview.
The football season is headed for a dramatic conclusion in Hereford, the place Danny's dad moved to over a year ago. Against a backdrop of Britpop, New Labour and 90s television, this is a coming-of-age novel full of friendship, loss and hope.
