Highland Pursuits

My Lady Ophelia #1

by Emmanuelle de Maupassant

The Scottish Highlands, 1928.
Feisty debutante Lady Ophelia has no intention of marrying, unless it's to a man who can make her toes tingle.

Banished to her ancestral home of Castle Kintochlochie, accompanied by her little terrier, Pudding, she finds herself drawn to the ruggedly attractive and wildly unsuitable estate manager, Hamish.

A weekend party brings the arrival of a host of eccentric characters, including glamorous coquette Felicité, who has her own designs on the sexy Scotsman.

Can Ophelia avoid the dangerous attentions of French aristocrat playboy, the Comte de Montefiore, and claim Hamish for her own, alongside her rightful place in managing Castle Kintochlochie?

A 1920s romance, with a dash of wicked humour, for fans of Rhys Bowen, Stella Gibbons and Nancy Mitford.

Genres: Romance, Historical Fiction, Historical Romance, Historical, Ebooks, Fiction, Scotland

167 pages, Paperback

Published January 27, 2017

About the author

Emmanuelle lives in a medieval tower house in the Highlands, with her husband and Ernie McFloof (connoisseur of bacon treats and squeaky toys).

She writes historical romance filled with adventure, suspense, and red-hot passion.

Visit her website - www.emmanuelledemaupassant.com - to find a FREE story to download, and to sign up for her newsletter (monthly gossip, giveaways and goodies).


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Emmanuelle lebt mit ihrem Mann (Hersteller von Tee und Obstkuchen) und ihrer Schnüffelnase, Ernie, auch bekannt als ihr liebstes Fellknäuel und Liebhaber von quietschenden Spielzeugen und Schinken.

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Emmanuelle de Maupassant vive con il marito e ama i suoi fagottini pelosi a quattro zampe (che sono dei grandi intenditori di giocattoli da mordere e snack al bacon).

Iscriviti alla newsletter di Emmanuelle per ricevere direttamente nella tua casella di posta notizie in anteprima sulle nuove uscite, ricevere degli omaggi, e per dare un’occhiata dietro le quinte.

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Emmanuelle de Maupassant vive con su esposo y ama las mascotas peludas de la variedad de cuatro patas (expertos en juguetes ruidosos y golosinas de tocino).

Regístrate en el boletín de Emmanuelle, para ver los nuevos lanzamientos, obsequios y las historias detrás de escena, entregados directamente a tu bandeja de entrada.

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L'auteure publie (des romances historiques) sous trois noms de plume : Annabelle Quinn, Anna Quinn et Emmanuelle de Maupassant.

Elle vit avec son mari et a un sérieux penchant pour les terriers à poils longs (amateurs de jouets qui font pouêt-pouêt et de gourmandises au bacon).

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Reviews

[eyes.2c · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charming novel of a young society woman who wants more than marriage to an innocuous earl. Her mother sends her to her grandmother in the highlands as punishment. It turns out to be anything but

[Rachel Vine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of Highland Pursuits by Emmanuelle Maupassant

I can’t tell you how much I love this book. It was a true delight to read. The author has captured the period in 1920s Britain wonderfully, and her detail is exquisite.

Lady Ophelia Finchingfield has turned down the chance of marriage to the dull Honourable Percival Huntley-Withington, whom she met while coming out as a debutante during the Season in London. She finds the life of a woman of her era and class to be limited and boring, and longs for greater freedom to live her life differently. She is packed off to her grandmother in Scotland by her mother, who hopes that Ophelia will come to her senses and marry Percival.

In Scotland we are introduced to a whole host of delicious characters, both above and below stairs, and the author captures their personalities and idiosyncrasies wonderfully. Her grandmother, for example, describes a man called Hector as follows. He’s been creeping towards the grave so long that the Reaper has grown tired of waiting for him to shamble within arm’s reach. Wonderful description! And a comment from the Comte, “If a woman cultivates the sexual appeal of a parsnip, she will find herself bedding a cabbage.” The whole story is full of such engaging and often humorous comments, which makes the story so delightful.

The character who most appeals to Ophelia is Hamish, the estate manager on her grandmother’s estate. He is everything that Percival is not, but is not so easily persuaded that Ophelia is the woman for him. Will she be able to compete against the sophisticated French woman Felicité, who has charmed Hamish into her bed?

I urge you to read this book and I’m sure that, like me, you won’t want to put it down until you have finished it. It is a real tours de force.

[Coco.V]

💝 FREE on Amazon today (3/16/2018)!💝

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highlander Interlude

Disclaimer up front: I am not a romance book reader. Well, not exactly, I do enjoy a Clive Cussler book now and then, they are men's romance books after all. Nonetheless, I did enjoy this book.

Emmanuelle is a very good writer, both from language structure and description, as well as character development and most of all story. Her work sneaks up on you. It begins as a colorful scene and before you know it you are caught up in the story and turning pages to see what happens next.

This book captures 1929s Scotland in a very Agatha Christie way, but not to worry there are no murders in it! It is a gentle story of coming of age and finding ones self.

The main character, Lady Ophelia Finchingfield is a debutant cast to the shores of a loch visiting her grandmother's castle for a summer in 1928. She discovers the handsome and wounded scot in a kilt and her own person in the whirl of parties, storms, and the beauty of the highlands. There are French interlopers, right proper British geezers, lecherous footmen, horses, visiting American movie people, grand dinners, parties, and even sex to spin a complete tale to amuse even "non-romance readers" as well as those who love them.

I recommend this book to escape from the 21st century back to the beginning of the 20th for an interlude of calm and fun.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read a version of Highland Pursuits in a charity anthology, Because Beards. I say 'a version' because if you also read that one and enjoyed it, you will enjoy this version as if reading it anew. It has had characters added and been developed and lengthened to give a much fuller, more detailed account of Lady Ophelia Finchingfield's time spent at her mother's ancestral home and her meetings and lust for Hamish.

This book is described as a comedy of manners and romance and there are certainly moments of tongue in cheek humour and hilarity. There is amusement in the character names alone – Lord and Lady Fawcett-Plumbly, not to mention Ophelia's dog, Pudding. The story is set in affluent London in 1928 when Lady Ophelia Finchingfield, in her debutante summer, rather rebels at a marriage proposal from the very acceptable but undesirable Percival Huntley-Withington – it must have been something to do with his overly lubricated kisses! Lady Ophelia's mother sends her to Scotland as a punishment but this slightly backfires when Ophelia has a whale of a time.

Emmanuelle de Maupassant writes confidently with emotion and depth. Her characters come to life on the page and I could almost visualise this set as a west-end farce on stage. Her books are well written and edited, and I would have no hesitation in picking up any book by Emmanuelle de Maupassant knowing I will thoroughly enjoy it.

[Les · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I really am lazy about not reading book blurbs in depth or reading reviews before I pick books, especially KU books.

I saw this on some one's list and saw "if you like Downton Abbey ..." and I clicked read for free...
And the beginning of the book was pretty gosh darn entertaining with the adventures of a roaring 20's debutante in London. And her subsequent dispatch to the Highlands to stay with her maternal grandmama.

So I was pretty surprised to drift into some risque material (see disclaimer). Which I guess doesn't detract from the story but didn't improve it either.. Let me say the Roaring 20's were certainly roaring.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Emmanuelle de Maupassant's writing. Erotically brilliant!!

[Terrance Shaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the Britain of 1928, 'Highland Pursuits' begins as a feather-light Wodehouse-ian romp liberally crossed with elements of 'Downton Abbey' and 'Upstairs, Downstairs'. Lovely, young, and uncomfortably eligible Ophelia rejects her upper-class twit of a suitor in London and is summarily packed off to the Scottish highlands to “come to her senses” spending the summer on her grandmother’s manor estate. Ophelia hardly fits the mold of a typical Wodehouse leading lady; she is neither an insufferable battle-axe nor a doe-eyed ditz, though she encounters her share of the like in her travels, along with effusively pretentious artists, foreign scoundrels, loudmouthed Americans, dirty old men, titled eccentrics, and divers members of the aristocratic huntin’-shootin’ set.

But it’s the handsome estate manager Hamish who catches Ophelia’s eye. Hamish, of course, possesses all the characteristics of the perfect romance hero; impossibly good-looking (especially in a kilt), macho, sometimes gallant, but also brooding and darkly aloof as he nurses a broken heart from his past. You KNOW how this is going to turn out, right? Yet, it’s in the “getting there” that this superbly crafted story shines.

If I have any complaints about 'Highland Pursuits', it is that the tone becomes decidedly less lighthearted towards the middle, whence, consequently, the pacing seems to flag. Where do all the wonderful jokes go—even the delightful antics of Ophelia’s cairn terrier Pudding? It’s all-too serious of a sudden, perhaps because, knowing how stories like this are supposed to end, it’s necessary to spin out the dramatic irony for a spell. This inconsistency in tone is ameliorated to some degree by the quality of the writing, and, perhaps, most people, who read considerably faster than I, won’t even notice. Still, 'tis ne’ bu’ a wee quibble considering the excellence of the whole.

Highly recommended!

[Ellen Whyte · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was expecting a novel filled with high society parties laced with witty and sharp one-liners, like The Thin Man films or the Mrs Bradley books. While there are lords and ladies, they're mostly obsessed with sex.

I had to laugh because I've always thought that too much money and leisure means the super rich tend to focus on getting their end away rather than anything else. According to Highland Pursuits, I was right!

Highland Pursuits is a romance romp with a very independent heroine. It's a fun story, with tonnes of bonking, and I liked Hamish, the man Ophelia loses her heart to. In short, a sizzling read.

Reading this, I also got awfully jealous of Emmanuelle's bio at the front of the book. I ended up totally redoing mine. More about that here: http://sweethotsexy.blogspot.my/2018/...

[R.T. Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fun book. Ophelia is sent to her grandmother's in Scotland after she refuses to marry. Expecting her exile to be horrible, she soon meets Hamish, and instead, her banishment becomes an adventure. While historical romances aren't my usual "cup of tea", Emmanuelle de Maupassant's dry wit and vivid descriptions made this a very enjoyable read!

[Pandora Spocks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! But then, I’ve been a huge fan of Emmanuelle de Maupassant since I read The Gentlemen’s Club, which I also highly recommend. In Highland Pursuits, young Ophelia is sent to visit her grandmother in Scotland as a punishment for declining the proposal of a proper, if boring, suitor. But her grandmother’s progressive attitudes about life, love, and the role of women in society serve to fuel the fire Ophelia feels. She’ll not be content to merely be some man’s property.
At their first meeting, she’s not impressed with the brooding but handsome Hamish, nor he with her. It’s funny how love grows that way sometimes. But complications abound, and the sexual tension between Ophelia and Hamish is palpable—you just ache for the pair to get together.
I actually read a shorter version of this story as part of an anthology. De Maupassant has reworked the piece and added a few more nicely spicy scenes. All in all, just another reason to love Emmanuelle de Maupassant. 5 BIG STARS!!

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now I don't normally set out to read books based fully or partially in Scotland, but having read other books by this author I was keen to see how my homeland was depicted.

Emmanuelle has clearly done her homework - she has the period (1920's) lifestyle perfect - life above and below stairs and the way a Highland estate was run.

The story of 'banished' debutante, Ophelia, to her Grandmothers draughty castle was a fun read and the characters well written.

A highly enjoyable story. I have not read the original short story as was included in the Because Beards anthology - I may go read it now as I am keen to see how the author was able to expand her story.

I received a copy through a Christmas blog.

[Charlie B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you've read Emmanuelle's previous books, notably, ' The Gentleman's Club', the you might think this is more of the same, it isn't. Is it Erotica, no. Is it Erotic, most certainly, but in an underscored manner that teases rather than hits you in the face. But what you do have here is a beautiful exploration, in fiction, of the changes of attitude between the Edwardian period and the jazzy era of flappers and, to quote E, the bright young things of the twenties.
The characters are amazing, from dowager older ladies, who tell tales of their younger days that will shock, and dip into racy novels by D.H. Lawrence, to grumpy old men and flirtatious counts, carefree French mademoiselles bent on satisfying their lusts. then we have Ophelia, the M/C whose banished to the Scottish wilderness by her mother, only to discover that the intoxicating Hamish will set her heart on fire. Great characters such as Haddock, the butler, who like all servants, is seen but never heard, and topping the cast, pudding who intercedes in every scene, as most four legged creatures must.
So, if you want a great read, that will draw you into the delights of highland castles, placid lochs and big, kilted Scotsmen with sexy knees, of flighty young girls, then start turning the pages, you won't regret it

[Felicity Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I previously had the pleasure of reading this story as a short in the Because Beards anthology, and recently enjoyed devouring Emmanuelle de Maupassant's updated version!
I love the sensual, luscious tone of the narrative - its elegance is rich and absorbing, and draws the reader into the romance of the time and environment. The geographic and historical descriptions are amazing; adding an authenticity to Ophelia's burgeoning romantic feelings for Hamish.
So, why only four stars, and not five? The only reason is that my personal erotic preferences demand a more intense, carnal sexual content. What plays out in the book is sensual and erotic, but just failed to detonate for me personally. That said, it is a thoroughly pleasurable and well-written book, and I would definitely recommend it!

[⭐ Emerson ⭐]

Currently FREE on Amazon!

[C Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this free on Amazon for a limited time and it's only now that I got around to reading it.

I have to admit this book was quite different than I expected and it's not a bad thing. 4.5 stars for this!

This is more of a coming-of-age novel about a debutante who's feeling the strictures of life. It's either marriage or spinsterhood for Ophelia so her mother sent her to Scotland as punishment.

I could understand why this wasn't highly rated but I appreciated how natural Ophelia was. She doesn't really know what she wants and is finding her way, exploring new things and getting into trouble (which was sometimes annoying), but that's just how she is.

Instead of dreading her stay, she enjoyed it and like a girl new to feelings of infatuation and love, she pined for Hamish, the manager of the estate. Her grandmother was a blast! She takes after her, more than her mother because there's the sense of adventure and she instilled in Ophelia the values the young lady really needed, not just frippery and flitting about in London.

There were quite a few liberties she allowed even though she felt bad afterward and it speaks of her character when she didn't rat out to Hamish what she witnessed. I felt her pain, the author clearly expressed this in her writing and just when you thought that everything's going to be rainbows and butterflies after their night in the cabin together, you couldn't be more wrong.

While this didn't go as Ophelia expected, I liked that she got hit by the reality and learned to slowly move on, but can't help but still think of Hamish. She could be your modern-day heroine in a chick flick, 'cause not all heroines are badass in the sense of fighting back when groped. Ophelia's strength lay in her resilience to embrace the estate and her future in managing it since it was bequeathed to her by Morag.

I resigned myself to not having a conventional HEA but there's a twist in the end and it could've used more detail when she and Hamish were reunited.

[Samantha MacLeod · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t expect to fall in love with this book.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I loved Cautionary Tales, de Maupassant’s collection of dark, erotic short stories. But I’ve never been crazy about the Roaring 20s – The Great Gatsby notwithstanding – and stories about the idly rich tend to make me roll my eyes.

So it was only my love of de Maupassant’s other works that led me to open Highland Pursuits, a romantic story about a London debutante set in the 1920s.

And it was awesome!

As usual, de Maupassant has such a gift for creating a setting; the Highland Castle Kintochlochie becomes another character in its own right, and a very romantic one at that. Not to mention Hamish, the ruggedly handsome Scotsmen (really, is there any other type of Scotsman?) who manages the Castle estate.

This novel contains de Maupassant’s usual knack for humor, which is sometimes dark and always entertaining, and her characters run the full gamut from sympathetic to downright dreamy to outright scoundrels. I especially enjoyed the braggart Americans and the crotchety old grandfather, who reminded me just a tad of Father Jack…

And it wasn’t just the romance that drew me in. Lady Ophelia herself, the afore-mentioned London debutante, undergoes a rich and satisfying transformation. Her romantic, sensual adventures are part of that journey, but not all. Sure, she wants romance and sex, but she’d also like to do something with her life (much to the shock of her upper-crust mother), and it’s quite refreshing to read a romance novel with such a fully developed female protagonist.

Also, as an avid fly fisherman myself, I have to say: If you lose a sexy man’s fly rod, and in response he shrugs and tells you it’s not a big deal, you MARRY THAT MAN!

Highly recommended, even if you’re not into the 1920s. ;)

[Brienne Dubh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third novel by Ms Maupassant I have read and reviewed, and I find that the more I read of hers, the bigger fan I become. This provides a departure from the sinfully erotic ‘The Gentlemen’s Club’ and the dark dramatic underbelly of the conscious depicted in the wonderful ‘Cautionary Tales’. ‘Highland Pursuits’ reminded me of both Cold Comfort Farm and My Man Jeeves! It is both funny, and relatable.
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Lady Ophelia Finchingfield is struggling to find meaning and fulfilment as a debutante in fashionable London. When her mother sends her to stay with her grandmother in Scotland it is intended as a punishment-by-boredom. However, it is in this beautiful setting, with the guidance of her wise and witty matriarch, that Ophelia can explore her true nature and desires, and finally to come to know her self. Because, as RuPaul says, ‘If you can’t love yourself, how the hell are you gonna love somebody else?’
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I loved the humour and the vivid visual depictions in this book, and it’s wonderful to see that Maupassant’s gift for creating atmosphere extends beyond the gothic into all of her work. I was also just so happy to see a heroine go through her own self-discovery, instead of being made ‘whole’ or ‘adult’ by successfully bagging her Man.
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Moreover, the most striking thing about this book is how accurately it depicts the feeling of obsession and longing a person feels for a romantic interest they cannot have. Ophelia’s mind is full of the man she simultaneously desires and abhors. It is so true to life and a real achievement.
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Rating 10/10 the perfect read in the paddling pool with a glass of cold bubbles in your hand.

Review By Vikki Heaven @ escapology Reviews.com

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this adaptation of the story. I first read this story as part of the Beards anthology and I really enjoyed it. My only drawback then was it ended too soon. When I heard the author and made some changes to the story and expanded it some, I knew I had to re-read the story. I am so happy that I did. The story still has it great historical charm but I felt more of a connection with the characters (both main and supporting). Our heroine is banned to her grandmother’s in Scotland because she dared to go against her high society mother and turn down marriage proposals to wait for a love with passion, plus she was tired of the nightly balls, men stepping on her poor feet and of course all the restrictions put on women of her time. She is quite the character, our heroine, and one I just couldn’t help but root for! Especially when she meets her ‘unique’ Scottish family (and their ‘friends’) and the oh so exciting estate manager, Hamish. But does Ophelia find the love and freedoms she seeks or do the highlands break our young English girl's spirit? 2 Thumbs Up for a great storyline - one I highly recommend!

[Darsie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult to imagine a 1920's debutante enjoying a long sojourn tucked away in the highlands of Scotland.

But it seems that Ophelia is a rare girl who is happy to eschew the "delights" of the season in London and more than willing to get off the marriage track.

I liked that Ophelia was a little different. Behind her well bred and polite veneer, is a young woman desperate to explore life and unwilling to settle for the first limp aristocrat who pops the question.

What she finds in Scotland is breathtaking scenery, a marvelous castle in an idyllic setting and a feisty Grandma who has relished life and encourages her granddaughter to do the same. Throw in a collection of eccentric relatives and a few rivals for her affection and this quiet country retreat is all action and drama!

[Emmalg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good

What a silly girl Ophelia is at the start of the book - yet her behavior as a young woman is uncomfortably familiar!
I usually prefer to have romance in a book and find gratuitous sex off putting. Somehow de Maupassant manages to write the more erotic scenes without the usual trite feeling, they feel natural and characters are sufficiently developed to carry it off. I don't think I've read erotic scenes that flow as smoothly since the oft mentioned Lady Chatterley's Lover.
I would have loved to have read a longer version of this still with a deeper romantic edge to it.
I certainly didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did and thank the other readers for their reviews which encouraged me.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Roaring 20's Romance

This was actually an entertaining book about a young debutante girl who is sent to live with her grandmother due to refusing to marry the husband her parents selected. In Scotland, not only does she falls in love with the scenery and the residents of the castle, she eventually falls madly in love with Hamish, the estate manager. I felt sad for Ophelia in certain circumstances when she was ignored by Hamish and he was in a serious relationship with the sex obsessed Felicite. The ending was pleasant and the preview of the second series seems more promising.

[J.R. James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Richly drawn characters and lush prose set the scene for indecorous romps 1920s style with language that lends authenticity to this period piece, which focuses on Ophelia, a young woman of breeding, who eschews the season in London, the round of debutante balls, and the attention of a rather unattractive suitor to whom her mother wishes her to become betrothed, and is banished to an isolated castle in Scotland to stay with an elderly aunt so that she might see sense.
Here, amongst a somewhat Bohemian cast, she finds the freedom of the Scottish Highlands and a series of life-affirming pursuits more to her liking, particularly when they involve the widowed estate manager, Hamish.
A very well-written, captivating read, with mildly erotic elements.

[Terri Oconnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A neat trip to the highlands

Where can I find my Scottish man in a kilt? This was a action packed fun filled trip to the highlands with a handful of love stories thrown in for good measure. A heroine finding her place in the world and learning sometimes you just have to have a leap of faith. The writing is so clear and makes everything come alive from the characters to the highlands themselves.

[Ian D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful romance with some naughty bits

Rather delightful story, with an “old-fashioned” feeling to the writing. No hugely dramatic moments, or brooding tension, but more than enough to entertain me, and keep me interested and reading on. Emmanuelle paints a very plausible picture of life in a big rural house in Scotland in the 1920’s, and does so while giving us an entertaining love story. And a love story with some rather teasing naughty bits!

[Ria Restrepo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first had the pleasure of reading Emmanuelle de Maupassant's "Highland Pursuits" as a short erotic story that appeared in the Because Beards anthology to benefit The Movember Foundation, a charity supporting prostate cancer research and treatment.

Although I really enjoyed the story, it felt a little unfinished, so I was excited that Emmanuelle developed it into a novella. While the earlier version was more erotic in nature, this version focuses more on romance with a delicious sensuality. Truth be told, while I appreciated the titillating nature of the original story, the novella is more in line with my romantic sensibilities.

Set in 1920s Great Britain, Highland Pursuits immerses the reader in the period with rich language, vivid descriptions, and a dry wit reminiscent of Jane Austen. Like Austen's Elizabeth Bennet, Lady Ophelia Finchingfield is not in want of a husband -- at least not one who's a sloppy kisser. After refusing the hand of a respectable suitor, Lady Ophelia's mother cuts short her debutante season and ships her off to Scotland to stay with her grandmother until she comes to her senses.

Regardless of her mother's intentions, Ophelia sees the banishment as an adventure and an opportunity to freely explore her sexuality. Perhaps she'll encounter a passionate poet or lusty artist in the highlands -- or maybe a bearded estate manager, rough in look and manner. Hamish may make a poor first impression, but Ophelia soon finds herself intrigued by the surly Scot in more ways than one.

Highland Pursuits is lushly written with a charming voice that captivates, enticing readers to follow Ophelia's alluring sexual awakening. The addition of secondary characters to the novella enhances the story with an amusing upstairs-downstairs appeal. Like most comedy of manners, misunderstandings abound. Between sleazy advances from the lecherous Comte de Montefiore and the intrusion of Hamish's would-be fiancée Felicité, Ophelia's journey to self-discovery is tempestuous and often droll. While still somewhat abrupt, the ending is very satisfying and Ophelia's happy ending seems well in hand. Overall, I'd highly recommend Highland Pursuits to fans of scintillating historical romances.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful tale of Scottish Folk

The characters in this book are very interesting, and some are very eccentric. The author take time, letting the reader get to know the characters while at the same time keeping the storylines moving.

Though it takes place in 1928, in some ways it could take place in modern times. I really enjoyed the storylines and look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a free ebook for an honest review.

[Jane Mercer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light short read (160 pages)
Lady Ophelia is sent to her grandmothers (Lady Morag ) home in Scotland as punishment for turning down a suitor.
Once there she meets a number of definite characters, the movie moghul and his starlet wife the lecherous french Count and his gorgeous half sister, Felicite.
And Hamish, nephew of Lady Morag's companion, who Ophelia falls in love with.
Hamish however has an understanding with Felicite, the Count making a bee line for Ophelia.
How everything falls into place is told in this delightful story of the late twenties.
The descriptions of scenery and costume were very good, I could almost see the countryside or dress described, the characters were equally well drawn, all in all a delightful tale

[OhWell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly enjoyable. Good writing, distinctive characters (a shout-out to Sir Hector who had the best lines!), and a plot set out in the 20's, a time period I don't often read about. My reservations relate to the romance aspect. There is lust on both sides and infatuation on one, but someone needs to knock some sense into the male MC.

[R.L.S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very well written, with well-drawn characters, but it took itself a bit too seriously for me to enjoy it as fully as I usually enjoy romances. It didn't help that it so obviously esteemed Lady Chatterley's Lover, a book a heartily disliked.