Ann Bridge – författare

When Julia Probyn’s cousin and childhood friend Colin cuts off all contact with his family, it is down to Julia to find him. Setting sail for Morocco – the last place he was seen – and using her occupation as a journalist as a cover, Julia is ready for a fairly lighthearted quest. But Julia wasn’t counting on the level of secrecy surrounding her cousin’s disappearance.With the British consulate offering little help, Julia must use her charm and tenacity to follow the clues and unravel the mystery left in Colin’s wake.Book one of The Julia Probyn Mysteries, The Lighthearted Quest has Ann Bridge’s trademark blend of humour and adventure which transports us to exotic places, but also throws a good deal of light on the explosive political issues that French Morocco encountered in the 50s.

First published in 1953, A Place To Stand is set in Budapest in the spring of 1941, Hope - a spoilt but attractive society girl and daughter of a leading American business man - finds herself playing the lead in a dangerous and most unexpected affair of underground intrigue, through the machinations of her journalist fiancé. During the course of her activities she falls in love with a Polish refugee, and at the moment when Germany invades Hungary, she is already deeply involved - both emotionally and politically.Bridge, herself an eye witness of these events, tells in moving and graphic terms the terrible story of Germany's 'protective' invasion; although it is presented in the form of an imaginative episode, the historical significance and accuracy are all too tragically evident.This admirable novel is at once a charming love story in the shadow of fear and disruption, a subtle and intimate portrayal of human beings in a time of crisis, and a most exciting narrative, set against the enchanting background of Budapest.

When Julia Probyn''s cousin and childhood friend Colin cuts off all contact with his family, it is down to Julia to find him. Setting sail for Morocco – the last place he was seen – and using her occupation as a journalist as a cover, Julia is ready for a fairly lighthearted quest. But Julia wasn''t counting on the level of secrecy surrounding her cousin''s disappearance.With the British consulate offering little help, Julia must use her charm and tenacity to follow the clues and unravel the mystery left in Colin''s wake.Book one of The Julia Probyn Mysteries, The Lighthearted Quest has Ann Bridge''s trademark blend of humour and adventure which transports us to exotic places, but also throws a good deal of light on the explosive political issues that French Morocco encountered in the 50s.''Here''s an answer for the multitude of readers demanding a good story, adventure, mystery [and] romance'' -Kirkus

First published in 1953, A Place To Stand is set in Budapest in the spring of 1941, Hope - a spoilt but attractive society girl and daughter of a leading American business man - finds herself playing the lead in a dangerous and most unexpected affair of underground intrigue, through the machinations of her journalist fiancé. During the course of her activities she falls in love with a Polish refugee, and at the moment when Germany invades Hungary, she is already deeply involved - both emotionally and politically.Bridge, herself an eye witness of these events, tells in moving and graphic terms the terrible story of Germany's 'protective' invasion; although it is presented in the form of an imaginative episode, the historical significance and accuracy are all too tragically evident.This admirable novel is at once a charming love story in the shadow of fear and disruption, a subtle and intimate portrayal of human beings in a time of crisis, and a most exciting narrative, set against the enchanting background of Budapest.

Julia Probyn – journalist, amateur sleuth and occasional spy – is sailing off the west coast of Scotland with her cousin Colin when they stumble upon a suspicious sky-blue pole, rising from the ground on the desolate island of Erinish Beg. Colin, who works for the British Secret Service, immediately suspects Russian surveillance.Military Intelligence sends Colonel Jamieson to investigate this find, and together he and Julia must unravel the mystery. But as the Cold War rages, the pair are soon to find out that the antenna-like pole is only the beginning. As the conspiracy grows, so too does their affection for each other, which seems rather likely to complicate matters.The Dangerous Islands, book four of The Julia Probyn Mysteries, is a tale of love, adventure, and espionage.

After the perilous circumstances in which the newly married Julia and Philip met, it is no wonder that the Colonel wants his pregnant wife safe and away from too much excitement. Unfortunately, the remote French mountain village he chooses is not only impractical, isolated, and far from medical assistance, but is unfortunately also in the path of smugglers and saboteurs.Collin Munro – Julia''s cousin and agent for the British Secret Service – arrives on the scene to investigate a threat to the local gasworks, but it is soon clear that once again, it will be down to Julia to solve the mystery, even if she is heavily pregnant.Emergency in the Pyrenees, book five of the Julia Probyn Mysteries, is rich with intrigue, peril, and humour.

The last thing recently widowed Julia Probyn expects to find on the lush and charming island of Madeira is a clue to her husband''s mysterious death, for Colonel Jamieson perished somewhere in the wilds of Central Asia while on a top-secret mission for British Intelligence. No sooner does Julia arrive at Madeira with her infant son and his devoted Nanny, however, than a series of strange, sinister, but apparently unconnected events begin to occur.Suspecting a Cold War plot, Julia summons her cousin, Colin Munro, and together they might just be able to blow the entire Russian scheme wide open. The Malady in Madeira, book seven in the Julia Probyn Mysteries, is a high adventure interwoven with all the sights, sounds and scenes of fecund Madeira.

Julia Probyn – journalist, amateur sleuth and occasional spy – is sailing off the west coast of Scotland with her cousin Colin when they stumble upon a suspicious sky-blue pole, rising from the ground on the desolate island of Erinish Beg. Colin, who works for the British Secret Service, immediately suspects Russian surveillance.Military Intelligence sends Colonel Jamieson to investigate this find, and together he and Julia must unravel the mystery. But as the Cold War rages, the pair are soon to find out that the antenna-like pole is only the beginning. As the conspiracy grows, so too does their affection for each other, which seems rather likely to complicate matters.The Dangerous Islands, book four of The Julia Probyn Mysteries, is a tale of love, adventure, and espionage.

After the perilous circumstances in which the newly married Julia and Philip met, it is no wonder that the Colonel wants his pregnant wife safe and away from too much excitement. Unfortunately, the remote French mountain village he chooses is not only impractical, isolated, and far from medical assistance, but is unfortunately also in the path of smugglers and saboteurs.Collin Munro – Julia’s cousin and agent for the British Secret Service – arrives on the scene to investigate a threat to the local gasworks, but it is soon clear that once again, it will be down to Julia to solve the mystery, even if she is heavily pregnant.Emergency in the Pyrenees, book five of the Julia Probyn Mysteries, is rich with intrigue, peril, and humour.

The last thing recently widowed Julia Probyn expects to find on the lush and charming island of Madeira is a clue to her husband's mysterious death, for Colonel Jamieson perished somewhere in the wilds of Central Asia while on a top-secret mission for British Intelligence. No sooner does Julia arrive at Madeira with her infant son and his devoted Nanny, however, than a series of strange, sinister, but apparently unconnected events begin to occur.Suspecting a Cold War plot, Julia summons her cousin, Colin Munro, and together they might just be able to blow the entire Russian scheme wide open. The Malady in Madeira, book seven in the Julia Probyn Mysteries, is a high adventure interwoven with all the sights, sounds and scenes of fecund Madeira.

Julia Probyn, like most people, knew very little about anonymous numbered accounts in Swiss Banks. Until her cousin, Colin Munro, asked her to look into the matter of one containing a fortune for his fiancée Aglaia Armitage, left to her by her Greek grandfather. Julia – journalist, amateur sleuth, occasional spy – must learn fast.When the account is compromised, and documents of vital interest to the British Secret Service go missing, it is again down to Julia to foil a Communist plot. In The Numbered Account, book three in The Julia Probyn Mysteries, Ann Bridge brings her characteristic wit, suspense and sense of adventure.

Julia Probyn, like most people, knew very little about anonymous numbered accounts in Swiss Banks. Until her cousin, Colin Munro, asked her to look into the matter of one containing a fortune for his fiancée Aglaia Armitage, left to her by her Greek grandfather. Julia – journalist, amateur sleuth, occasional spy – must learn fast.When the account is compromised, and documents of vital interest to the British Secret Service go missing, it is again down to Julia to foil a Communist plot. In The Numbered Account, book three in The Julia Probyn Mysteries, Ann Bridge brings her characteristic wit, suspense and sense of adventure.

While on an assignment with British Intelligence in Morocco, the widowed Julia Probyn Jamieson, journalist, amateur sleuth and occasional spy, loses her heart to Gerald O''Brien, a kind and unassuming lawyer. Together with her five-year-old son, Julia travels to Gerald''s family home in Ireland to see if the country life could be for her.Julia''s quiet vacation is interrupted when she stumbles upon a plot by a cunning landowner. It is down to Julia to investigate the devious scheme, which would destroy the wild beauty of the coast and disrupt the peace of the community. Julia in Ireland, is book eight and last in The Julia Probyn Mysteries.

Julia Probyn, journalist and amateur sleuth, must acquaint herself with the world of counterespionage. Hetta, a young Hungarian Countess, just released from behind the Iron Curtain, is drawn into a communist plot. Together the two young women will need all of their strength to unravel the schemes and machinations closing in from all sides. With Ann Bridge''s talent for evoking place and mixing mystery with humour, The Portuguese Escape, book two in The Julia Probyn Mysteries, is full of danger and adventure amidst Communist intrigue.

While on an assignment with British Intelligence in Morocco, the widowed Julia Probyn Jamieson, journalist, amateur sleuth and occasional spy, loses her heart to Gerald O’Brien, a kind and unassuming lawyer. Together with her five-year-old son, Julia travels to Gerald’s family home in Ireland to see if the country life could be for her.Julia's quiet vacation is interrupted when she stumbles upon a plot by a cunning landowner. It is down to Julia to investigate the devious scheme, which would destroy the wild beauty of the coast and disrupt the peace of the community. Julia in Ireland is book eight and last in The Julia Probyn Mysteries.

Julia Probyn, journalist and amateur sleuth, must acquaint herself with the world of counterespionage. Hetta, a young Hungarian Countess, just released from behind the Iron Curtain, is drawn into a communist plot. Together the two young women will need all of their strength to unravel the schemes and machinations closing in from all sides. With Ann Bridge’s talent for evoking place and mixing mystery with humour, The Portuguese Escape, book two in The Julia Probyn Mysteries, is full of danger and adventure amidst Communist intrigue.

In Enchanter''s Nightshade, first published in 1937, Bridge presents her reader with a "period piece" of Italian provincial society and distributes our sympathies over a surprising range of characters, several of whom touch on individual tragedies. The lovely "Enchantress" in the late thirties; the little English governess in the early twenties, full of Oxford enthusiasms; the ardent youth, Giulio; Marietta, that delightful child, puzzling over the problems into which she is plunged by the disaster which overtakes her beloved English instructress; the old Marchesa, whose hundredth birthday looms all through the book; above all perhaps the wise, patient Swiss governess - all these in turn claim our affection or our pity. Ann Bridge shows here an intensity of feeling and a dramatic power which may come as a surprise after the gentle restraint of her earlier books. But for all the characters who are capable of forging happiness for themselves, the doors open, at the end, on possibilities of future contentment.

Feride and Nilüfer lead a elegant and comfortable life in Turkish aristocratic society until their lives are turned upside down by Atatürk''s fight for independence after WWI. Finding strength and courage they didn''t know they had, the women become pioneers for the freedom of their countrywomen.When their husbands leave to join general Atatürk in the fight for a new Turkey, Feride and Nilüfer dress in disguises and follow them. Through rain and mud and past glittering snowy peaks, the inexperienced women are plunged into hardships they had never dreamed of - living with the roar of Greek guns, fearing the horrors of military disaster. The magnetic Atatürk, having led his forces victoriously against the Greeks, proceeded to cajole and bully his people into trading the fez for hats and adopting a new alphabet. Almost overnight, Atatürk- with the help of courageous women like Feride – turned Turkey into a 20th-century nation. "Absorbing reading...There''s color in the rich tapestry of Turkish custom and thought; there are vivid scenes and live characters." - Kirkus

In the beautiful countryside of Portugal, erstwhile British secret agent Julia Probyn is to attend a royal wedding. But her former acquaintance, Countess Hetta Páloczy, the young Hungarian refugee, unwittingly gets them both tangled in Cold War intrigue. After Hetta accidentally uncovers a Communist plot to assassinate an American admiral in Spain, she is a marked woman yet again and must flee to Portugal. But even in the tranquil beauty of Gralheira, peril lurks. Unluckily for the assassins, these women are no strangers to danger.In The Episode at Toledo, book six in the series, Julia is joined by Hetta and Luzia, uniting all our heroines from The Julia Probyn Mysteries.

This novel records the lives of a group of English diplomats in Budapest from the Spring of 1940, up to the entry of the Germans which compels them to leave in Easter 1941. Crossing the Russian frontier en route for Moscow and the U.S.A., an episode at once dramatic and distinctly comic, sees the characters' main pre-occupation as less about their own predicament than the desperate and sustained endeavour to send food and clothing to the 44,000 British prisoners-of-war in Germany, during those first months when no Red Cross Parcels from England reached the camps. A touching love-story, a personal tragedy, and a disconcerting glimpse of treachery are skilfully interwoven in this revealing book.

In the beautiful countryside of Portugal, erstwhile British secret agent Julia Probyn is to attend a royal wedding. But her former acquaintance, Countess Hetta Páloczy, the young Hungarian refugee, unwittingly gets them both tangled in Cold War intrigue. After Hetta accidentally uncovers a Communist plot to assassinate an American admiral in Spain, she is a marked woman yet again and must flee to Portugal. But even in the tranquil beauty of Gralheira, peril lurks. Unluckily for the assassins, these women are no strangers to danger.In The Episode at Toledo, book six in the series, Julia is joined by Hetta and Luzia, uniting all our heroines from The Julia Probyn Mysteries.

A story of Spain and its Civil War, and a pair of star-crossed lovers.This new novel has many virtues, all of them attractive -- picturesque montage, an appealing cast, substantial-and often exciting -- action, and her usual quality writing. - Kirkus

Author of best-selling novel Peking Picnic, Ann Bridge brings us her second novel set amongst the diplomatic circle of Peking. First published in 1934, The Ginger Griffin tells the story of a young English woman who comes to Peking to live with her diplomatic uncle, on a quest to get over an unhappy love affair she soon finds herself falling into another.The Ginger Griffin combines romance and adventure during the times when expatriates and diplomats enjoyed privileged and cosseted lives in the Far East.

Ann Bridge, besides being a famous author, was also, in her own words, “a person who frequently has, when awake, inexplicable ''knowings'' of events taking place at a distance: and, in dreams, am informed, sometimes uncomfortably, of facts of which I can have no knowledge by normal means”. In this remarkable book, part memoir, part a personal statement, she wrote of a number of such moments taken from a varied and distinguished career, and ranging from a startling premonition of a cypher-breaking job in the Admiralty during World War I to a somewhat macabre later episode concerned with the Duchess of Windsor. Moments of Knowing can be read for its appealing autobiographical qualities or for the steady and careful light its author throws on areas of experience of which few people may have first-hand knowledge.

Ann Bridge takes the little-known country of Albania for her background recreating the primitive grandeur of the country. The Albanian way of life demonstrates a noble standard of values that is rapidly disappearing under the pressure of modern materialism. Our protagonist is an unhappy and disillusioned young widow who travels to Albania as the result of a chance encounter on the Istanbul express. A fellow passenger tells her that there she will find a life that contains something far more satisfying than the restless gaiety of her cosmopolitan clique. Later, living in the feudal household of an Albanian prince, absorbing an atmosphere of immemorial dignity, and enjoying the friendship of two remarkable women – one a mature and cultured English writer, the other a wise old American doctor – she comes to understand what he had meant. And when, for the second time, she is faced with a tragic outcome to hopes of happiness in love, she is able to find solace among the granite heights and singing waters of Albania.

Fleeing from her failed marriage, Rose Pelham seeks sanctuary in Peking, China, with her cousins, Anastasia and Antony Lydiard. The romantic attentions of Captain Hargreaves are a welcome distraction from her woes, but in the society of Anglicised 1920''s Peking, it is hard for such relationships not to draw notice and create scandal. A long trek to the ''Mountain of a Hundred Flowers'' offers a chance to escape prying eyes, but Rose''s intellectual cousins cannot stop Captain Hargreaves from joining them, along with the most disagreeable Roy Hellier. The trip is fraught with peril, as the ''T''ao-Pings'' or ''masterless soldiers'' – cut loose from the feudal Chinese armies – are roaming the country, terrorising villagers and leaving turmoil in their wake. Faced with the realities of the dangerous journey, the five become close, and relationships shift and change under the pressure. But back in the reality of society, it is time for Rose to make some very hard choices. Should she push for a divorce, and marry the man she truly loves, at the cost of being socially ostracised? Or should she make amends, and try to recover the lost love of her cold husband? In Four-Part Setting, first published in 1939, Anne Briggs expertly tells a tale of love, loss, and tangled loyalties.

Anne Bridge, much beloved author of many works of fiction, focuses here on a point in her life that very nearly ruined her husband, and the prospects of her entire family. Whilst away with her ailing son in Switzerland, Bridge learns that her husband is not only to lose his position with the Diplomatic Service, but will also be leaving with his good name in tatters. This blow is all the more troubling because it was completely unexpected – the result of what Anne thought a minor transgression perpetrated four years previously – and she must rally herself in order to deal with the practical implications of such a change of fortune. But Anne Bridge is not a woman to sit by and meekly accept such an injustice. Within two weeks she is back in London, fighting tooth and nail to clear her husband''s name. This fascinating retelling of true events through letters, telegrams and her own account written in 1928, the year of the debacle, offers a glimpse into the normally closed world of the British Government. Permission to Resign was first published in 1971.