Rose Trilogy – serie

This is a splendid, heartwarming novel of pain, struggle, decency, triumph – and just what we need in these times - Frank McCourtIt is 1888 and Jack the Ripper is stalking the streets of Whitechapel. For the people that live there, he is just one more adversary in their everyday battle to survive. Despite working long days at the tea factory, and the constant threat of the Ripper, Fiona Finnegan knows that life is better for her than for many others. With a father in work, a roof over her head, enough to eat and a loving family to keep her warm, she is among ‘the respectable working poor.’ And she also has Joe. Fiona and Joe Bristow have been sweethearts for as long as anyone can remember, and are saving up their meagre wages so that some day, they can open their very own shop. But things take a terrible turn for Fiona when events conspire to tear her, Joe and her family apart, and she finds herself alone in the world. The East End is a dangerous place to be by oneself, and the Ripper isn’t the only threat casting a dark shadow over her life. Somehow, she must escape, build a life for herself, and forget about Joe. But how can she? When Joe is the only man she has ever loved? The first instalment of Jennifer Donnelly’s acclaimed romance trilogy, The Tea Rose will leave you breathless, exhilarated, and longing for more.

'A book to lose yourself in' - The TimesWhen India Selwyn Jones graduates from medical school and sets off for her first job in a Whitechapel clinic, she is full of ideas on how to educate London’s poorest inhabitants to the dangers of malnutrition and poor hygiene, saving them from their own ignorance. When the rough and dashing Sid Malone – head of ‘The Firm’ and London’s biggest criminal – becomes one of her patients, he begins to open her eyes to the realities of life in the East End, and how her simple ideas hold no water against the kind of grinding poverty that her clients face. India is torn in two, for she is engaged to the handsome, ambitious MP Freddy Lytton, and now the criminal Sid Malone has stolen her heart. But Freddy is very possessive when it comes to what he considers his, and will go to any length to keep India.Sid Malone, however, is not all that he seems, for he has a hidden past, and a family that desperately wants him back. His sister Fiona Bristow, a successful business woman and happily married to her childhood sweetheart Joe, hires a private detective in a bid to win her brother back, and to get him away from a life of crime. But as she gets nearer to his world, the ugliness of it breaks into her own, dragging her family and her marriage into dreadful danger.Just when it looks as though Sid might have a way out, and a chance at happiness with India, things go terribly, terribly wrong. The Winter Rose, second instalment of Jennifer Donnelly’s acclaimed romance trilogy, is full of love, lust, and longing.

Enjoy the ride: 600-plus pages of romance, harrowing exploits, cinematic backdrops, cliff-hangers, and plot twists - Publishers WeeklyIt is 1914 and World War I looms over Europe. In London Seamus Finnegan – a famous polar explorer – considers settling down and taking up a prestigious position with the Royal Geographical Society. Unfortunately, despite many eager women around him, no one is able to soothe the pain left in his heart by Willa Alden, a childhood sweetheart and fellow traveller, who after an accident on mount Kilimanjaro, disappeared into the Himalayan wilderness, refusing to see Seamus ever again. Seamus’ family and friends doubt that he will be able to restrain his hunger for adventure and settle into the society life again, but just as he is to sign up for another mission in Antarctica he meets Jennie Wilcott, a beautiful and spirited young teacher. The passion that sparks between them is more than a mere fling and Seamus begins to believe that he could be happy in this new life with a steady job and a cosy home to come back to. But is this newly found happiness just a trick of his heart? Will his feelings for Jennie survive Willa’s unexpected return to London to attend her father’s funeral? Just as the moral and emotional dilemmas caused by Willa’s reappearance begin to devour Seamus’ short-lived bliss, war erupts, allowing him to escape the torments of his soul in the name of fighting for his country. But in a world ploughed by war, the past keeps resurfacing in the least expected places … The Wild Rose, first published in 2011, is the last part of the acclaimed multi-generational saga by Jennifer Donnelly that began with The Tea Rose. Set against the turmoil of World War I and filled with thrilling twists and cliff-hangers The Wild Rose is a satisfying conclusion to an unforgettable trilogy.

They called her the She-Wolf From Provence. She'd shape the destiny of England ...Fans of Alison Weir, Anne O'Brien and Philippa Gregory, will devour this compelling new novel, starring one of English history's most fierce and courageous forgotten heroines!'Powerful, gripping and beautifully told' - Kate Furnivall, author of The Liberation'A feast for the senses and highly recommended' - Deborah Swift, author of Pleasing Mr Pepys'Well-researched . . . Fascinating' - Joanna CourtneyREADERS LOVE THE SILKEN ROSE!***** 'Stunning start to a new series of She-Wolf Queens'***** 'Spectacular . . . I will recommend this first part of her new trilogy to everyone'***** 'Fabulous . . . A lovely, highly researched tale'***** 'Exceptionally well-written . . . From the first page I was totally caught up in the story'1236. Ailenor of Provence, cultured and intelligent, is only thirteen when she meets her new husband, Henry III of England. A foreign and friendless princess in a strange land she is determined to please him. And she knows that when the times comes she must provide an heir, to secure the throne against those who would snatch it away. Rosalind, a commoner skilled in the arts of needlework and embroidery, catches the young queen's attention and a friendship blossoms. But she is unprepared for the dangerous ramifications of winning the queen's favour ... As closeness, and soon love, develops between Ailenor and Henry, so too does her influence on her husband and her power at court. As France and Wales provide constant threat, and England's barons increasingly resent her influence, Ailenor must learn to be ruthless. Who should she encourage her husband to favour? Who can she trust? Caught in a web of treachery and deceit, her choices will define the fate of England. To protect her close friends, and her beloved children, Ailenor, the She-Wolf from Provence, would do, and endure, anything ...

'A real tour de force of gripping writing, rich historical detail and complex, fascinating characters. Superb!' NICOLA CORNICK on The Stone Rose_________________EARLY READERS ARE GRIPPED BY THE STONE ROSE!* 'Springs to vivid life for the reader . . . A compulsive read' ANNE O'BRIEN* 'An enticing and intriguing tale of a woman who is driven to desperate and ruthless lengths to protect those she loves' ALEXANDRA WALSH* 'Carol McGrath really got into Isabella's head . . . Enlightening' SHARON BENNETT CONNOLLY* 'Bold and compelling' JENNY BARDEN* 'A novel that's a definite page-turner' LIZ HARRIS_________________London, 1350. Agnes, daughter of a stonemason, is struggling to keep her father's trade in a city decimated by plague. And then she receives a mysterious message from the disgraced Queen Isabella: mother of King Edward III, and widow of Edward II. Isabella has a task that only Agnes can fulfil. She wants her truth to be told.Much has been whispered of the conflicts in Isabella and Edward's marriage. Her greed and warmongering. His unspoken love for male favourites. But as Agnes listens to Isabella, she learns that she can be of help to the queen - but can either woman choose independence, follow her own desires, and survive? The sweeping third instalment of Carol McGrath's acclaimed Rose Trilogy: the gripping series exploring the tumultous lives and loves of three queens of England - and of three women who lived in their shadow.Based on the extraordinary true story of the female stonemason who carved a queen's tomb!

'You lay hands on a princess of the realm? It is treason.''But this princess disobeys her King. Treason indeed.''Fascinating . . . Brings to life one of the most determined and remarkable queens of the medieval world' K. J. MAITLAND, author of The Drowned City'Completely engrossed me from the start . . . A wonderful read' NICOLA CORNICK, author of The Forgotten Sister1266. Eleanor of Castile, adored wife of the Crown Prince of England, is still only a princess when she is held hostage in the brutal Baron's Rebellion, and her baby daughter dies. Scarred by privation, a bitter Eleanor swears revenge on those who would harm her family - and vows never to let herself be vulnerable again.As she rises to become Queen, Eleanor keeps Olwen - a trusted herbalist, who tried to save her daughter - by her side. But it is dangerous to be friendless in a royal household, and as the court sets out on crusade, Olwen and Eleanor discover that the true battle for Europe may not be a matter of swords and lances, but one fanned by whispers and spies . . .'Vibrant, enticing and with fascinating detail. . . . It held me gripped from beginning to end' ALEXANDRA WALSH, author of The Marquess House Trilogy'Excels at sweeping the reader away on an engrossing journey . . . Great storytelling and superb research' JANE JOHNSON, author of Court of Lions'Shines a true light on the gripping tale of Eleanor of Castile, the love of Edward I's life' SARA COCKERILL, author of Eleanor of Aquitaine: Queen of France and England, Mother of Empires'Pulls from the pages of history Eleanor of Castile: queen, business woman and true partner to one of England's most forceful kings' CRYSSA BAZOS, author of Severed Knot