Just eighteen, beautiful and intelligent, Yola Beauharnais lives a blessed Fairy tale life at her magnificent family castle on the Loire. Then her grandmother announces that she has been promised in marriage by her late beloved father to the Marquis de Montereau. Yola is appalled. She has heard of the Marquis, who, although handsome and sophisticated, has a reputation in Paris as a rake, socialite and 'ladykiller'. How could she possibly marry such a man, one who wants her only for her castle and the extensive estate? Determined to marry only for true love, wherever she may find it, Yola is helped by her father's mistress and travels 'undercover' to Paris in the guise of a woman of questionable morals to meet the notorious Marquis and find out for herself whether he might fall in love with her as herself and for herself only. Or whether she must betray her father's dying wish and refuse her unwanted suitor. On meeting the Marquis in her disguise, Yola finds that there is much more to him than his reputation suggests and, as love blossoms between them, she comes to bitterly regret her deception. Will she really find her true love or will she be condemned to live a life of disappointment and delusion as the Sleeping Beauty of her enchanted castle?

Amidst the exciting preparations for the grand opening of Prince Albert's prized Crystal Palace, a young orphan, Sorilda, is being forced into marriage by her recently cuckolded uncle, the Duke of Nuneaton. Having sheltered lovely Sorilda since the tragic death of her parents, the usually fair-minded Duke has been driven to jealous retaliation by his deceitful new Duchess. Suspecting his close neighbour, the Earl of Winsford, of ungentlemanly conduct with his beautiful wife, the Duke issues an ultimatum. The Earl must renounce the Duchess and marry the Duke's flame-haired niece or face the public embarrassment of a scandal. Handsome, intelligent and fabulously wealthy, the Earl makes his choice and reluctantly marries Sorilda, his helpless bride. Angry at being pressured into such a union and aghast that he does not know, let alone love, his wife, the Earl remains distant and determined not to let Sorilda into his life. Enjoying the freedom from the miserable prison of her uncle's home, Sorilda's natural charm and positive nature soon force their way to the surface, despite the coldness of her bridegroom. Delighted by everything around her, it is not long before she has made her way into the hearts of everyone she meets. But, as London Society eagerly awaits the Great Exhibition, a spurned Duchess is busy plotting. Furious at being caught in a compromising situation, and filled with hatred for Sorilda, who has married the man she desires, she will not rest until she has her revenge.

Beautiful Lady Lucilla Welton is all alone in the world, having lost both her parents in a tragic accident. She has nowhere to go and so she stays with her cruel and distant Aunt Maud, who wants to marry her off as soon as possible. An ardent suitor is at hand - the rich Texan, Harkness Jackson - but his proposal is not one Lucilla could ever contemplate. She has already met the only man who will ever find the key to her heart - but the handsome Marquis of Castlebury is enthralled by another and for him, Lucilla seems to be no more than a casual friend. She accepts the Marquis's invitation to visit Paris with him and her old Nanny comes as chaperone. She is enchanted to be with him, but dark clouds are gathering. And, once Harkness Jackson has found out where she is, the odds against Lucilla ever finding happiness grow longer and longer. She flees the persistent American and the Marquis believes that she has run away with him. She is taken in by her maid from her hotel and her artist brother, who paints her and the portrait catches the eye of the Parisian art world - and the Marquis. Will Lucilla ever find true love with the man she adores? Will the Marquis finally come to his senses and follow his heart? All is revealed in this exciting, heart-stopping romance by BARBARA CARTLAND

After the death of the kindly old Earl of Yardecombe, Oscar the brash and pleasure-seeking new Earl seems to care little for the people of the Parish - let alone for the plight of young Dorina Stanfield, her widowed father and their impoverished family at the rundown Vicarage. Dorina's opinion of this raffish gentleman is lower still when she hears of lewd goings-on with his flamboyant friends at the 'Big House'. Confronting his Lordship, Dorina is stunned to find him chastened by her accusations. Nevertheless, she is unconvinced. Everything changes, though, when Dorina overhears the Earl's wicked heir presumptive's Satanic incantations, summoning the Devil to murder his Lordship. Suddenly what she thought was hatred for Oscar turns into a Divine and eternal love that swiftly conquers the perpetrator of this devilry - but will the elusive Earl ever feel the same about her?

The beautiful Lady Eleta Renton returns from France where she has stayed long over her time at the Convent School in Paris. Because her mother had married again after becoming widowed and then she died too, Eleta was in no hurry to come home. When she arrives back in London, rather sad at leaving the Convent School, she is horrified when her stepfather, whom she had never liked, tells her that she is to marry the Duke of Hazelware, because he is important to him in his business of shipbuilding and the Duke requires a wife with money. As she had never even seen the Duke, Eleta protested violently, especially when she learns her intended husband is over fifty, but her stepfather informs her that he is her Guardian by law until she is twenty-one and that will not be until the end of the year. As she is terrified at being forced into this marriage, she decides that the only course open to her is to run away . She learns from her mother's maid, Betty, of whom she is very fond, that there is an Agency nearby where she might be able to find a position as a secretary or a Governess. At the Agency the only place available is with the Marquis of Teringford, who has a very tiresome, badly behaved child of nine years of age, with whom no Governess will stay and has apparently run through a large number of them. One of them actually said when she left that she was a child of the Devil. Because she is desperate and despite Betty's misgivings at the Marquis's apparently doubtful reputation, Eleta takes the position and goes to his magnificent house in Hertfordshire. Here she finds that the small child has never been loved, which is the reason why she is so difficult. Also the Marquis is seldom there and, when he is, he scolds and lectures his daughter to distraction. How Eleta eventually tames and finds love for her pupil and for herself is all told in this romantic and moving tale by BARBARA CARTLAND.

On a hot summer's day in 1880 the beautiful Lady Rosella is cutting a basket of blooms in her beloved Rose Garden at her aunt's house in Hampshire. It is her seventeenth birthday and no one remembers it except for Thomas, the gardener's boy. Later she is driven to Winchester and has an unpleasant encounter with two raucous gentlemen in the local tavern before going on to fit her first ball gown that her aunt has given her the money for just before she died. But who is the lovely masked woman she glimpses in the mirror at the dress-makers, a glorious vision clad in rose-pink silk? And who is the dark figure approaching through the shadows of a dim and ghostly ballroom? Before she will discover the answers to these questions and to escape marriage to a most unpleasant companion of her uncle's, Rosella must travel many miles to the glorious City of Venice accompanied by Pickle an extremely talkative and colourful parrot. She has left behind everything dear to her and when a mysterious stranger appears in Venice, Rosella believes that he may be the love she has so often dreamed about. This love will bring her pain and passion beyond anything she could ever have imagined. But her hopes are in ruins when she discovers the mysterious stranger to be the son of her arch enemy and once again she must flee. Will Rosella and her true love ever be reconciled - or will the Fates conspire to keep them apart forever? Find out in this thrilling new romance by Barbara Cartland, the one hundredth title in the Barbara Cartland Pink Collection.

When two dashing gentlemen ride up to Rensham Hall, the ancestral Norfolk home of the beautiful Lady Chiara Fairfax, her world is turned upside down, as she and her mother are just recovering from the unexpected death of her father, Lord Fairfax. One of them, the handsome Mervyn Hunter, is soon in ardent pursuit of the lovely Chiara. But can she trust his declarations of love or does the mysterious, dark-haired stranger she encounters by chance on the seashore hold the key to her future happiness? Mervyn Hunter proposes marriage to Chiara and she turns him down, as she does not love him and she senses that he is cold and calculating and has an ulterior motive in asking her to be his wife. As she watches spellbound, a group of wild swans fly North over the sea towards Russia, Chiara feels a magical world of passion and beauty calling to her. Soon she too will be travelling North to the enchanting City of St. Petersburg, although in the company of Mervyn Hunter's pushy sister and her two tiresome daughters. But will she ever break free from the clutches of Mervyn Hunter and his family and be reunited with her true soulmate, the elusive and mysterious Count Dimitrov? Find out, in this scintillating and thrilling romance by Barbara Cartland.

Valda lives a life of luxury with her mother and stepfather in a beautiful chateau in France. Educated in Paris and enjoying all that French society can offer, Valda's English roots seem a very distant memory. That is until the day her stepfather declares that in true French style he is planning an arranged marriage for her. Horrified at the thought of marrying a complete stranger, Valda knows that it is impossible for her to go along with her stepfather's wishes, no matter how angry he will be by her disobedience. Much as she loves him, she has inherited her late father's lively intelligent mind and spirit of adventure, as well as his wealth. She also possesses a soul that cries out for true love. Declaring that she intends to marry only for love and will choose her own husband, Valda struggles against a tradition that challenges all of her hopes and dreams. Determined to prove to her stepfather that she can make wise, independent choices for herself, she bravely decides to embark on the journey of a lifetime to become a photographer. Stealing away at daybreak with her friends, the Gypsies, she knows that a Romani caravan is the very last place that anyone will look for an English heiress, leaving her safe to pursue her plan. Reaching the Camargue in the South of France, Valda is captivated by its wild beauty and the stunning birds, bulls and horses. But before very long a handsome stranger catches her attention in an unexpected way. Still in disguise, she begins to realise that the romance she is seeking might be within her grasp - if only she can make him see that love is worth much more than money.

After the Battle of Waterloo and the subsequent Army of Occupation in France, the Earl of Monthurst returns to his ancestral home in England to find it in a very bad condition. Because labour had not been available during the war, The Hall, which goes back to Tudor times, was badly in need of repair, while the farms on his extensive estate were untenanted and the fields unploughed. Not only had all the local men been taken by the Army, but a large number had not returned. The villagers had faced near starvation and many older people had died from want of attention. The Earl had unwisely brought back with him a French Comtesse, who was very beautiful and possessive and was obviously determined that he should marry her. He had thought that he and the Comtesse could arrive quietly and remain unnoticed in his home. However, he finds the Vicar's daughter, the lovely Raina Locke, is determined to make him realise his responsibility towards his people who have suffered so acutely during the war and he finds to his surprise they are confident that he will rescue them as well as his own estate from ruin. How Raina, through sheer persistence convinces the Earl to fulfil his responsibilities to his people and accept his ancestral duty. How Raina with the aid of her redoubtable Nanny saves the Earl on the first night of his arrival home from the disapproval of the local Lord Lieutenant and an inveterate gossip. And how she saves the Earl from a despicable plot by the evil French Comtesse and how she completely and absolutely falls in love is all told in this romantic and inspiring tale by BARBARA CARTLAND.

The Duke of Ravenstock is the most attractive and elusive bachelor in London - and the most notorious.His exploits and romantic escapades keep the salons of the Social world buzzing - but never more so than when he announces that he will marry. His friends soon realise that what has captured the Duke's heart is the purity and innocence of his intended bride.The wedding date has been fixed when the Duke discovers by accident that his fiancee has taken a lover, a close friend of his.Shattered and disillusioned, the Duke plots a cruel revenge. When he reveals to his sister, the Mother Superior of a Convent in Paris, that he seeks the most innocent girl he can find for his bride, she introduces him to Anoushka, a novice in her care at the Convent.Anoushka has a mysterious background, having been brought secretly and anonymously to the Convent as a child.n Somewhat reluctantly Anoushka agrees to marry the Duke, but, to his amazement, her beauty and innocence prove more of a challenge than he could possibly have imagined.

Madly envious of her demure stepdaughter's loveliness, Isobel Fairburn, Lord Blackstone's new bride, banishes young Sandra to the wilds of Bedfordshire where she is to live a miserable, isolated existence with her aged great-aunt. Desperate to escape this 'living death', Sandra secretly flees her home and, securing the post of 'companion' to the age-withered and cantankerous Dowager Countess of Kyle, soon finds herself amidst the glamorous Beau Monde in Brighton. Here Sandra meets the handsome Earl of Kyle and initially despises him for his cynical and sarcastic manner - but before long she finds that there's more to him than meets the eye. But no sooner has love begun to grow timidly in her heart, than her hopes are dashed when she finds he is already married to a French woman. Worse still, she hears of a sinister plot to extort money from her 'Knight of Chivalry' but what can she do? And how will she ever find a match for this man beyond compare?

While staying at Lady Merrill's French Riviera villa, flame haired and beautiful American heiress Nevada van Arden passes her time by casually breaking the hearts of her many ardent suitors - particularly that of young David, Lord Merrill. When his uncle, intrepid explorer and diplomat Tyrone Strome, overhears her cruel humiliation of his lovelorn nephew, he resolves to teach this 'vixen' a lesson - and save David from his misery. Tyrone Strome abducts Nevada, spiriting her away in his luxury yacht to Morocco. There the reluctant voyager, swaddled in native clothing, is terrified by the perils of the Sahara and its nomadic tribesmen. But, as they flee from certain death or worse, they find sanctuary in a beautiful hidden valley, a second Garden of Eden, where to Nevada's surprise, love begins to blossom in the desert.

When her irresponsible brother rents the family home, Langston Manor, for the duration of the Royal Ascot races to Valient, Earl of Trevarnon and his wild gentleman friends, lonely and innocent young Demelza is afraid. Although married to a woman who has lost her mind and is in an asylum, Trevarnon is a well-known 'ladies' man' - and, for her own safety and modesty, Demelza agrees to hide among The Manor's maze of secret passages. As she watches, though, through the old house's ancient peepholes, she sees another, very different, side to the notorious Nobleman. Suddenly one moonlit night, under a honeysuckle arbour, Demelza realises that she has lost her heart utterly to this dashing stranger. But her love is wrong. Valient Trevarnon can never, ever be hers Then, when she secretly foils a sinister plot against her beloved, she triggers a chain of events and an overwhelming passion far beyond her control - and perhaps now she dares to hope for her heart's desire -

Bored with the Social world of London and the constant demands of the lovelorn Prince of Wales, the Marquis of Aldridge takes refuge at his remote country estate, Ridge Castle, deep in the 'Witch Country' of Essex. Riding through a village close to The Castle he comes upon a mob of villagers dragging the unconscious body of a young woman to the duck pond. Convinced she is a witch, they are bent on putting her to the ultimate test. If she drowns she is innocent. If she floats she is evil and must die Rescuing the young waif and installing her at his castle, the Marquis is convinced that this raven-haired, blue-eyed beauty, whose name is Idylla, is far too lovely - too innocent - to be a witch. Nevertheless, he falls helplessly under her spell - and as he uncovers the murderous plot that brought her to him, he also discovers a love beyond anything he imagined possible.

The young and handsome Duke of Barenlock is twenty-seven and is being constantly pestered by his mother and his family to get married. They are not only frightened he will not produce an heir to the Dukedom, but the Castle, one of the most famous in Scotland, is in desperate need of repair. The Duke's cousin Moira introduces him to an attractive American girl, Mary-Lee, who is an immensely rich heiress. Moira tries to pressure him into proposing to Mary-Lee, but he is idealistic enough to hope that one day he will fall in love with someone who will love him not for his title but for himself. To escape the pressure he goes for a walk by his river, which he shares with his Clans' arch-enemies, the MacFallins. He sees a poacher in the shape of a young girl fishing his water and he is just about to order her off when she hooks a salmon and he cannot resist netting it for her. It is her first salmon and she is so delighted that he finds it hard to tell her she has no right to it and he then discovers that she, Sheinna, is the daughter of the dreaded Chieftain of the MacFallins. They agree to meet the following morning at the same place and Sheinna tells him that her father is forcing her to marry Sir Ewen Kincard, who is over seventy with a terrible reputation. How the Duke and Sheinna find a way together to resolve their problems and bring their Clans together, and how after severe danger they find real love for themselves is told in this exciting and stirring story of Scotland by BARBARA CARTLAND.

"?Do you really think you could work as I had to work to keep your mother from starvation? My dear child, you have lived in the lap of luxury all your life. You could no more earn a penny piece than fly over the moon ? Kasia's father laughs scornfully. This is justification for his decision to marry her off to a man she does not love ? purely to save her from fortune hunters. So Kasia runs away to prove him wrong by working as Governess to the Duke of Dreghorne's unruly nephew. As Kasia gains the trust of the child, she earns first the respect and then the growing affection of the Lord. But when she and the boy are kidnapped the stakes are irrevocably raised and the Duke's reputation as a Dare-Devil will be tested one final time... Will Kasia's father forgive her? Will Fate finally unite the hearts of Kasia and the Dare-Devil Duke?"

Lost in a woodland daydream, cherubic eighteen-year-old Anita Lavenham is awoken from a reverie inspired by a sermon about the Devil by the sonorous voice of a handsome gentleman asking her to open the gate she's leaning on - a gentleman whose imperious, yet raffish air leads her to think that he is Lucifer personified Anita and her two sisters are impoverished after the loss of their father and their Mama's illness - and soon she is obliged to go to live in Harrogate with her severe Great-Aunt Matilda, who, to Anita's chagrin, is determined to marry her off as soon as possible to the ageing and boorish local Parson. It seems she is fated to a life of misery until, by chance, she meets the Dowager Duchess of Ollerton at the Harrogate Pump Room where, to her amazement she realises that the Duchess's son is none other than her very own handsome fallen angel Blessed by the kindness of the Duchess, who rescues Anita from the prospect of a loveless marriage and enlists her in the search for a bride for her discerning and disinterested son, Anita finds joy in her magnificent new surroundings and exalted company but still, surely, it is too much for her to hope that she herself might find a true love of her own?

Impoverished and lonely but contented enough to live with her much-loved Nanny in the now-empty family home, shy, unworldly Pandia sorely misses her recently deceased father - the handsome Hungarian scholar and writer. When Selene, the capricious twin sister, who abandoned them years before, appears out of the blue Pandia is amazed, then appalled when Selene announces she's told the Social world that Pandia is dead She then demands that Pandia impersonates her at a family funeral to cover for Selene's illicit tryst with her lover Pandia reluctantly agrees and at the Church meets the dashing Lord Silvester Stone, a famous explorer and writer who ignites the 'fire in the blood' she inherited from her father. The passion between them is instant and electric. Pandia knows now that she will love Silvester forever - but how can she tell him that she is not who he thinks she is? Or that they can never ever meet again?

Dalma Wickham, having been in Athens to learn Greek, arrives at a British Steamer to return to London to find that they will not allow her dog, Twi-Twi, on board. Because she is turned away from the British ship, she walks round the quay and sees a most magnificent yacht. While she is admiring it, a bomb goes off at the end of the quay and the seamen leave the yacht to see what has happened. On an impulse, because she realises it is her last chance of getting Twi-Twi to England, she slips aboard the yacht and hides in one of the empty cabins. The yacht goes to sea and she is just beginning to feel hungry when Twi-Twi starts barking. Dalma has made up her mind that the owner of the yacht must be very rich and old and, when the door opens, she sees a young man who is very handsome and he is the Earl of Ravenscraig. Because her father, Lord Wickham, is a trusted advisor to the Prime Minister and Queen Victoria, she recognises that there would be a great scandal if she travels alone with such a handsome man. Because she is herself so beautiful and interesting, the Earl says he will not turn her off his yacht, but he has a problem to resolve in Fez before he returns to London. It turns out that he is trying to rescue a young woman, the daughter of his secretary, who has been captured by evil white slave traders. How Dalma helps the Earl in freeing the girl when she is about to be sold. How they reach England in safety, but Dalma knows that she is already in love with the Earl. How she discovers that he is married to a Greek Princess and is faced with an appalling problem for which there is apparently no answer. And how they both wish on a star that one day they will be together for ever is told in this exciting romance by BARBARA CARTLAND.

Prince Nicolo of Vienz is irritated by his family and his Prime Minister continually begging him to be married for the sake of his country and to prevent it being taken over by a neighbour. He finally agrees to meet Princess Marziale, the daughter of the ruler of Bassanz. However when she arrives, the Prince learns by accident that she is very much in love with the Comte who had been sent to escort her to Vienz. Because the Prince has no wish to marry anyone, least of all someone who is in love with another man, he runs away to Venice without anyone, except his valet, Texxo, knowing that he is leaving the Palace. He orders Texxo to look after the horses at a hotel, while he hires a gondola to explore Venice. On his way down one of the canals the Prince is suddenly aware that a young girl is leaning out of the window of a grand house. Then he sees to his surprise that she is deliberately letting herself down by a rope into the canal. Thinking quickly he moves his gondola so that she falls into it and she begs him to take her away before anyone sees what has happened. How the Prince then finds that the girl he has rescued is incredibly beautiful and extremely intelligent. And how they set off on a thrilling adventure, knowing only each others' Christian names and how they eventually fall in love is all told in this unusal romantic story by BARBARA CARTLAND.

Princess Zelda of Brienz in Switzerland is being harassed by her father to marry a King or Prince of one of the small countries of Europe. Zelda is very beautiful and determined that when she does marry it will be for love and only love and she cannot possibly fall in love with any of her father's suitors. She runs away from her home to her cousin, Prince Johann II of Liechtenstein, who has always been very fond of her. She tells him that she is determined to find out the truth about a scandal that has been repeated ever since she was born. This was that her real father was the fourth Duke of Milverden from one of the foremost aristocratic families of England. She is also hoping to find the love of her life. To please her, the Prince sends her to stay in London with an old friend of his, Lady Craven, so that she can discover for herself if she is really one of the Milvers. Prince Johann also gives her an introduction to Queen Victoria who, he is well aware, knows more about Royalty in Europe than anyone else. How Zelda is advised to behave in a very strange way both by Queen Victoria and by her Prime Minister, Mr. Disraeli. How she manages to meet the present Duke, who succeeded her supposed father and finds that owing to a humiliating experience when he was a young man he has become a recluse and hides away in his magnificent house filed with treasures and will see no one. How in an assumed personality, but being intelligent and astute, she attracts and puzzles him. And how finally they both find happiness is all told in this unusual romance by BARBARA CARTLAND.

Bereaved of her beloved father at sixteen, and now her mother, Belinda Wyncombe's only comfort is that she still has the family's home. Until she finds her irresponsible stepfather, Captain D?Arcy Rowland, has squandered their money and fraudulently mortgaged the house. This means he faces jail while Belinda faces penury, unless she complies with her stepfather's shameful scheme to gain and ruthlessly exploit the trust of the famed adventurer ?Lucky? Logan, who has made a fortune with his legendary ability to find diamonds, gold and other precious metals wherever he travels. Every fibre of Belinda's being recoils from such deceit ? more so when she finds that Marcus ?Lucky? Logan is not the greedy fortune hunter of her imagining but a generous, handsome and heroic man. When murderous thugs come for Marcus in the dead of night, it is Belinda who raises the alarm and saves his life. And when he kisses her, Belinda is suddenly, utterly, in love ? but surely her love is doomed by her deceit?

The Honourable Richard Brooke, the younger son of the Earl of Grandbrooke becomes a close friend of Prince Ivan of Karlova. The Prince however does not use his title as he is incognito. He is therefore known as Ivan Sazon. As is usual in Aristocratic families, Richard, as the second son is ordained and is then appointed to a Parish in Oxford. Prince Ivan is often at his house and it was not long before he falls in love with Richard's sister Elizabeth, who is very beautiful. They marry and are very happy for six years and have one child, whom they christen Tarena. Unexpectedly Ivan is called back to Karlova because his father, the King, has died and he has to take his place. He also learns that he is expected to save Karlova and its adjacent country Dubnik from the Russians, who are determined to annex both countries. To do so he has to marry Princess Catrina of Dubnik. Shortly afterwards Elizabeth dies and Tarena goes to live with her Uncle Richard. Tarena is very happy with her uncle and takes her mother's place in tending the garden and helping in the Parish. Then King Ivan dies and it is a tremendous shock to Tarena to learn that she must go to Karlova, become Queen and marry Prince Igor of Dubnik. This will save Karlova from the Russians and she goes with Queen Victoria's blessing. Frightened but convinced that she must follow in her father's footsteps, Tarena travels to Karlova aboard a British Battleship accompanied by her uncle. How Tarena is taught the language of Karlova by the dashing Count Vladimir in charge of the Escort of Karlovan soldiers on board. And how she succeeds in astounding and defying the Russians, at the same time falling in love, is all told in this fast moving tale by BARBARA CARTLAND.

When the Duke of Barningforde was told by his second son, Alastair, that he had married an actress in Paris without his approval, he exiled Alastair from England with only a very small allowance. His wife, Grace, actually came from a good Scottish family and was not an actress, but had a very fine soprano voice and sang with a famous French orchestra. But the Duke would not listen and Alastair and Grace never again set foot in their homeland. They were blessed with one beautiful daughter, Kayla, who is well educated thanks to Grace's efforts after Alastair's untimely death. Then Grace dies and Kayla, now eighteen, is left all alone in the world. At her mother's suggestion, she returns to England and throws herself on the mercy of her grandfather, the Duke. Grudgingly the Duke takes her in to Forde Hall and is permanently hostile towards her, but at least she has somewhere to live. Then, to score off his neighbour, the Earl of Rothwoode, the Duke arranges for Kayla at a moment's notice to marry his son, Christopher, the Viscount Roth. They do not meet until their wedding day and they both hate the marriage forced on them and inevitably dislike each other. To distance himself from his father, Christopher then sets out for Nepal with his new bride. How in that beautiful country, called 'the roof of the world', Kayla and Christopher find the key to everything they are both seeking in life is told in this unusual romance by BARBARA CARTLAND.

Queen Victoria sends for the Duke of Sherbourne and asks him to undertake a very secret mission on her behalf. It is so secret that only his loyal valet, Jenkins, is told. The Duke agrees and it takes him to Greece where he had not been for some years. He visits King George who is the same age as he is and whom he has known in the past. He has been a great success as King, although he was only eighteen when he took over the throne and he is married to Princess Olga of Russia and they are extremely happy. The Duke envies them and, although he has been pursued by a great number of beautiful women in London, he has never yet fallen in love. He consistently refuses to marry although his family beg him to produce an heir to his ancient title. Before the Duke leaves Athens, he says that he must visit the Parthenon because he wants to see again the view from the top as it is the most inspiring in the world. When he reaches the top, the only other person there is a young and beautiful girl who he senses is about to commit suicide. How the Duke persuades Princess Thalia not to throw her life away in such a stupid fashion. How he learns that she is being forced by her uncle to marry a Russian Prince she detests. How he goes to Delos, the island where the God Apollo was born. How, when he is there, he experiences a strange and mystical feeling that cannot be expressed in words. Eventually the Duke finds all that he is seeking. All his and Thalia's problems and difficulties are solved not only by the brains of human beings but with the help and guidance of the Gods themselves. This is all told in this intriguing and surprising story by BARBARA CARTLAND.