Henrietta Heald had a long and successful career in publishing before taking up the pen herself. Her first book William Armstrong, Magician of the North was shortlisted for both the Portico Prize and the H. W. Fisher Best First Biography Prize. She is a graudate of Durham University and has written for mane leading publications including The Spectator and The Times.Henrietta lives in Islington, North London.

• 1 Class act 102 'Bad reckoners' 123 112-year association 134 Happy home 155 Three grand houses 176 Second Farmer George 187 The Loiterer 208 Chosen as heir 229 Juvenile parody 2510 Jane and Cassandra 2711 Good friends 2912 Leading lady 3113 Death in the Caribbean 3414 The Tom Lefroy affair 3615 Novel beginnings 3716 Wishful thinking? 3917 Gold chains and topaz crosses 4118 Strange scandal 4319 'It's all settled!' 4420 Affairs of the heart 4721 Lure of Lyme 4822 Sudden death 5023 To the rescue 5123 Opulent magnificence 5324 Seaside interlude 5525 Centre of creativity 5726 Solitary sketch 5927 First publication 5928 'My own darling child' 6329 Authorship revealed 6530 Comic spirit 6631 Universal truths 6832 Mixed reactions 7033 Delightful pilgrimage 7234 'A rogue... but a civil one' 7335 Scott's adulatory review 7536 By royal permission 7737 The duties of aunts 7938 Cinderella revisited 8239 In her sister's arms 8440 Gothic parody 8641 Literary genius ignored 8842 Novel fragment 9043 Early critics 9144 'Highest esteem' 9345 Facts of life 9546 'Swell show' 9647 Editor's hand 9848 Cult status 10049 White gowns and bonnets 10150 Desert Island books 10351 Darcymania 10652 Zombie mash-up 10753 Gripping continuation 10854 Sparking a Twitterstorm 11055 Social implications 11256 Manly men 11457 Spotlight on Cincinnati 11658 Literary legacy 11859 Screen legacy 120