The Saint and the Sinner

by Barbara Cartland

After the tragic death of her mother and father when their horses took fright and sent their carriage hurtling into a river, orphaned Pandora was taken in by her uncle, the Bishop of Lindchester. She has never been happy with him, but now she is horrified to overhear that he plans to marry her off to his Chaplin, the Honourable Prosper Witheridge.
There is no denying the will of her Guardian – but just maybe she can fill her husband-to-be with revulsion at the very thought of marrying her! With this is mind she invites herself to stay with her cousin, the shockingly decadent Earl of Chartwood, who is notorious for ‘entertaining’ ‘droxies and play-actresses – women with whom no decent man would be associated...’
‘Perfect!’ she thinks. But arriving at the awesome Chart Hall she is appalled by the outrageous goings on. If only her Guardian would relent and release her to embrace the love she finds burgeoning in her heart...
The Barbara Cartland Eternal Collection is the unique opportunity to collect as ebooks all five hundred of the timeless beautiful romantic novels written by the world’s most celebrated and enduring romantic author.
Named the Eternal Collection because Barbara’s inspiring stories of pure love are just the same as love itself, the books will be published on the Internet at the rate of four titles per month until all five hundred are available.
The Eternal Collection , classic pure romance available worldwide for all time .

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical, Historical Fiction, Regency, Fiction, Indonesian Literature

220 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 24, 2012

About the author

Born in 1901, Barbara Cartland started her writing career in journalism and completed her first book, Jigsaw, when she was just 24. An immediate success, it was the start of her journey to becoming the world’s most famous and most read romantic novelist of all time. Inspiring a whole generation of readers around the globe with her exciting tales of adventure, love and intrigue, she became synonymous with the Romance genre. And she still is to this day, having written over 644 romantic fiction books.
As well as romantic novels, she wrote historical biographies, 6 autobiographies, plays, music, poetry and several advice books on life, love, health and cookery – totalling an incredible 723 books in all, with over 1 billion in sales.
Awarded the DBE by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991 in honour of her literary, political and social contributions, she was President of the Hertfordshire branch of the Royal College of Midwives as well as a Dame of Grace of the Order of St John of Jerusalem and Deputy President of the St John Ambulance Brigade.
Always a passionate advocate of woman’s health and beauty, she was dubbed ‘the true Queen of Romance’ by Vogue magazine in her lifetime. Her legend continues today through her wonderfully vivid romantic tales, stories that help you escape from the day to day into the dramatic adventures of strong, beautiful women who battle, often against the odds, eventually to find that love conquers all.
Find out more about the incredible life and works of Dame Barbara Cartland at www.barbaracartland.com

Reviews

[Sandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5* ...der Großteil war ganz amüsant

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, but not great, either. Pandora is a bit too naive for her own good, and the book is really predictable, but it's a mostly pleasant read. I say mostly pleasant, because Pandora's dialogue was AGONIZING to read, not in a George Lucas Phantom Menace way (stilted and awkward), but in a poorly edited way. Pandora's sentences are all broken up with M dashes!! I coildn't tell if that meant she stuttered or just paused for breathe incessantly (too tight corset, perhaps?). It was so annoying I almost stopped reading.

[Sandi *~The Pirate Wench~* · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 1/2 Really...extra for the cover only.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very sweet story. Who wouldn't love reading about true love conquering all, in the end. And the Saint reforms the Sinner. Very satisfying. We need something like this in a world that seems to have grown so dark and troubling. Though Barbara Cartland writes of a time long past and far away, she will lift the spirits of all who read her stories.

[Gena Lott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I actually remember specifics about this book and I remember that it seemed more, I don't know, romantic?

[Marguerite · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 Stars.

Another foray into the world of Barbara Cartland. Hmmm, this is a tricky one... of all the Barbara Cartland novels I've read so far, plot wise this is definitely the weakest, and also the romance is rather thin too. The ending scene is rather cute, but can't make up for a lackluster novel overall. Additionally, Pandora is a bit too... dull. She's all sweetness and loveliness, but any challenges she comes across, whilst she does tackle them, everything sort of works out for her because she's so pretty, not really due to a strength of character (in my interpretation). Still a fun read!

So far, my ranking of the five I've read would be: -
1. The Ghost of Monte Carlo (the strongest in romance and plot so far and rather a fun romp!)
2. A Duel of Hearts (strong start, but suddenly went in an odd direction in the second half)
3. The Little Pretender (the funniest and most dramatic one lover runs away plot use I've ever read, with the most delightful outcome - still a plot point I use as an example of how funny and delightful a Cartland romance can be)
4. Elizabethan Lover (questionable plot overall, but at least the romance angle stands significantly stronger and a lot more stuff occurs over the duration of the plot!)
5. The Saint and the Sinner (cute, but a weaker addition in the catalogue - still fun).

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Typical Barbara Cartland, with overly drawn dramatic characters and ultra-tame romance. I loved reading these when I was 12 or 13. Many hours were spent pouring over my mom's copies, but I don't remember reading this one.

Poor Pandora is a complete Mary Sue. A wide-eyed orphan with so much family loyalty it is pouring out her young, innocent ears. Enter the dashing bad-boy cousin, the Earl. He has a chip on his shoulder about his family inheritance as deep as the ocean. Poor little rich boy! Pandora drops into his lap and shows him the error of his ways, and they live happily ever after.

Barbara almost made me snap with the weird phrasing and dialogue for Pandora. She - kept talking - like this. Was she - slow - in the - head? Did she - have a terrible - stutter? Unsure what the deal was, but I nearly threw the book down in frustrating a few times. At least it was a quick read.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I used to read Barbara Cartland as a teen and loved them. It doesn't completely stand up over time. The heroine is a little too perfect, the damaged hero not as damaged as you would expect from a current romance and the dilemma a little too easily wrapped up. Still, it was a nice easy read and I enjoyed it.

[Jo Notary]

maybe she can fill her husband-to-be with revulsio, he is trying to marry her off, she lives with uncle, after her parents death, the eternal collection bk 5, 271kb

[Tserten Tenzin]

Liked it.

[Lil’s bookshelf · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a booklover I was curious to read at least one book from one of the most read authors. I found this one on the neighborhood free bookshelf and took it home.
The plot is very simple and quite predictable, but I was not expecting something else for this kind of lighthearted romance.
This said, the book is full of sexism and misogyny, with a sprinkle of fatphobia, and it ruined it for me.
I have seen this book is one of Cartland’s early works, published in the 70s, so maybe those traits got better later ? I hope so, but am still not sure I will read another book of hers as this one made my eyes roll so often

[kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enjoyable book! The book was easy to understand even though dated. Some words I had to look up which was fun to do! This book had a very engaging story and I was totally absorbed. I also liked learning about a new author and the influence she had in this genre of writing. This book was a good choice! I am glad to have read it!

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the time in which it was written it's a very endearing story. Set against a more substantial plot or passionate story it may not hold up as well but this was written during a time in which ladies were "retiring" and submissive and it was a very cute love story.

[Frances Torres · Rating 3 out of 5]

✅️ENERO 2026
✍️〰️ESTUVE EN EL DUELO DE ESTA GENTE MUY TEMPRANO, ME ALEGRO DE QUE TODO HAYA SALIDO BIEN...😂🤣
✍️〰️OTRO LUNES NUBLADO Y YO COMIENZO EL DÍA CON UNA FRANCESADA (BOTELLA DE AGUA Y CHARCO INFERNAL)

[Elsie · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a 2.5. Honestly, I was really into it until the last couple chapters and it's meh of an ending.

[Jen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Total silliness.

[Regin Paguican · Rating 3 out of 5]

eager to read more...

[Ericka · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story shows a lot about how many aristocratic families probably view their history. It's very different from most Americans. There was a tiny bit of architectural history too.

[Julie Goodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling, beautiful story. Love her books!!

[Riz · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was easy to get through and kept me interested enough to flip through the pages. It is also short and gave me the feeling of accomplishment, of having read something, of having finished the first book in 2022 out of the total ten which I plan to read this year.

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pandora was not eavesdropping. It was only by accident that she found herself overhearing the horrifying conversation between her uncle and guardian--the Bishop of Lindchester--and his wife.

"I have not had a chance to tell you," began Pandora's uncle, "that Prosper Witheridge asked me yesterday if he could pay his addresses to Pandora."

"You mean to say he wishes to marry her?" asked the Bishop's wife. "She should be grateful, deeply grateful, that a good man should wish to make her his wife."

Pandora suddenly realised that she had been holding her breath for so long that she was now gasping for air.

Prosper Witheridge! Was it possible for one moment to entertain the idea of him as a husband?

[María Mónica Beltrami · Rating 5 out of 5]

A couple of decades ago...

Yes, it has been at least a couple of decades that I read this short novel.
It's plagued with format errors and out of time expression ones.
But, the plot is a compelling and good thought one, which dozens of books after were repetitive and bad copied.
Monica Beltrami. Montevideo, Uruguay.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chosen as part of Linz the Bookworm's 2021 Reading Challenge for prompt #21 "Read a book by Barbara Cartland"

[Lawanda Reed · Rating 2 out of 5]

Average

This book was equal to the other books that I have read. I have trouble getting to the next story.