"A week at Trysting had its trials", Leigh thought. A round of odd jobs with Aunt Elvira, bad poetry with Aunt Rosande, and bouts of hay fever with Aunt Dolly were not his idea of a restful holiday. Nor did his cousin Raymond, who seemed sunk in gloom, help matters. Or a mystery Leigh could not fathom about someone burning down the old house and the disappearance of the family silver. But meanwhile there was a Hampshire summer, and there was Auriol. Auriol, Leigh thought, was lovely - but he didn’t want to live on eggs.

Nether Stapling Manor nor any of the fine family possessions of this stately home really belonged to Lady Laura, but for more than 20 years she had enjoyed them undisturbed. Many people in the nearby little town of Rivering were well aware of the situation. No one was worried except nice old Cosmo Brierley, trustee of the Estate, and he had no control whatever over this eccentric aristocrat. His one comfort was that Lady Laura was a wonderful custodian of the place, keeping all intact and cherished, even making money by son et lumière in summer.

Tourists found it hard to imagine a quainter, more lovable spot than Deepwood Village; but the villagers were not quite as lovable as their surroundings. Deepwood House, too, was chiefly known as the home of three wicked and rich Stirlings. So one summer, Deepwood attracted some rather strange visitors, as well as the tourists. Like the eccentric new gardener, who let the flowers scorch and talked to people nobody else could see.

The friendly air describes the atmosphere in warm, sunny Portugal where young, beautiful Emma Challis finds herself as the temporary companion to Lady Grantly who has just bought a home there. She took on the task at the request of her fiancé, Gerald Delmont - brilliant, sophisticated and with a promising legal career ahead. A perfect husband for Emma - but would he be? Enter handsome local lawyer Robert Weybridge, a mysterious young woman with five small children who take up residence in a packing crate, and you have the ingredients for one of Elizabeth Cadell’s finest romances.

This is the diary of an English girl who falls in love with an eligible young Portuguese, Afonso. The bride recounts, vividly and hilariously, her and her mother's plans for an English country wedding, how they dealt with Uncle George (The Head of the Family), and their success in making sure that on her wedding day the church was filled with music and flowers (both officially banned due to the “mixed” marriage of a Catholic bridegroom and a Church of England bride). She subsequently finds herself living on a horse-rearing estate in a rural part of Portugal, coping with a truculent cook and a primitive kitchen....

On his retirement, George Ainstey had moved to Ellstream, hoping to escape from the tensions of London life. His only neighbors were Lady Charlotte Merrion, who lived in the mansion on the site of an 18th-century ruin, and her daughter-in-law, Antonia Merrion, whose land adjoined Mr. Ainstey’s.

Although this story's particular events could not have happened anywhere except in British-India, everyone will feel at home in its sunny atmosphere. The three girls who lived these adventures were completely different, but they formed a close-knit trio and shared all of each other's joys and problems. Poopy possessed a face that seemed blank to everyone but her two friends, who read it with ease.

The memory of her late husband's slow and painful death is fresh in Anita Stratton's mind when she finds herself confronted with the high-voltage glare of national publicity when her first novel rockets into the best-seller lists. The furor she arouses leaves her publishers, the staid and respectable firm of Beetham Brothers, as bewildered as she herself is.

When, like Ruth and Roger Mallard, you inherit a large house but no money to keep it up, one thing you can do is turn it into a guest-house. And having made up their minds, the Mallards decided that River Lodge was to be a guest-house of the very best kind. The first week’s guests were specially chosen - or self invited: a rich aunt; a theatrical producer and the lovely Felicity; Felicity’s sister and her twins; a famous artist and the amiable “Goosey”; the fattest dog in fiction; and a not-so-rich but very comic uncle and aunt.

David Eliot’s future seemed secure with his engagement to Marly Tranter, the daughter of the incredibly rich and powerful Sir Bertram Tranter. As an architect, David seemed to fit right in with the family, even if it included a golden collar. But the mission on which Sir Bertram sent David and Marly to Portugal created havoc in everyone’s plans, including the preposterous Mr. Easter, the eccentric Lady Pearling, and Teresa, Senhora Silva’s delightful and beautiful niece. What David finds out when he gets there changes his perspective on his life and future.

Edmund Forth, a handsome young man in his mid-30s (though admittedly, a bit stogy and sober for his years) is engaged to the beautiful but selfish Angela Wilde. His world seems perfect until lovely Fran Nash comes riding into his life on the back of a Portuguese donkey. Fran’s sunny personality melts Edmund’s reserve, and when she changes a few words of a telegram he had entrusted to her, Fran also alters the whole course of his settled existence.

Rae knew a good deal about Richard Ashton. Sharing his sister Judy’s flat, she'd lived for a year with his photograph: a dark, handsome, somewhat commanding young man. She'd listened to long extracts from his letters and built up a picturesque if inaccurate picture of his life in Kenya. She knew he declared himself heart-whole and had instructed his sister to find him a wife.

For Anabelle Baird, the fortnight’s holiday with her fiancé, Philip Ancell, in Lisbon has not been a happy one. At the Lisbon airport she has a surprise encounter with Angus Pemberton, whom she had last seen seven years ago when he left Steyne under a cloud and went to Brazil. Anabelle’s reunion with Angus and her strange meeting with Luis, a small Portuguese boy, are but portents of her involvement in a mystery which pursues her to Steyne and finds its roots there in the home of Angus’ eccentric old grandmother Lady Evelyn Pemberton.

When Jeanne spent her summer holidays there as a child with her school friend, Parson’s House on the cliff top had been a seaside haven, and the small Devon village a sleepy, tranquil place where nothing much ever happened. Now, years later, returning there from Canada, divorced and with twin four-year-old daughters, she could hardly expect the place or the people to be the same. But she was quite unprepared for the bustle of the modern town which greeted her, for the shadowy rumors and mystery surrounding the old house....

At Rushing Farm, the Manning household — with Aunt Flora at its head — lives in harmony. With the appearance of George Manning, however, peace is at an end. George is a successful actor, spoilt and selfish. He sees nothing at Rushing but discomfort and boredom, and his relations hope that he will carry out his repeated threat of departing by the next train. But with the arrival of Brian Lorimer and the enchanting Angela Reynolds, George finds something at Rushing which proves a greater attraction than his comfortable existence in London.

When Sasha receives a call from her old university friend Gabby inviting her to spend Christmas at Gabby’s remote Scottish lake house, Sasha knows she shouldn’t go. Twelve years ago, on Christmas Eve, when Sasha and her five closest friends were celebrating the festive season, something truly horrific happened that would change the course of their friendship forever. Something that meant Sasha hasn’t spoken to any of them since that night.

Two little girls stand with their heads bowed in my living room. I’m told they’re my granddaughters. Daisy is nine, and Alice seven. Daisy is the spitting image of her mother. This is the first time I’ve met them since my daughter and I fell out after she married that waste of space, Vince. They’ve come to live with me because their mother — my daughter — was murdered. In her own home while they slept close by. I think Vince killed her. But the police can’t prove it. I’ve always known he was no good. He treated my daughter like dirt. I said he’d cheat on her — but she wouldn’t listen.

Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of best-selling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity's notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn't expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read.

After the killing of a prominent mob lawyer, NYPD homicide detectives Jacob Jackson and Caitlin Grimes start receive chilling, written “rules” for how to commit the perfect murder. "Rule number one for the perfect murder: Evidence is your enemy. Leave none behind." Jackson (Reid Scott) and Grimes (Cobie Smulders) race to find the killer, setting them on a collision course with the city’s crime underbelly, and a perpetrator who seems happy to toy with them. “Rule number two. No crimes of passion. The perfect murder is always business, never pleasure.”

Jenny sits in the same seat on the same train every week, seeing familiar faces come and go. Until a chance encounter shatters her world. Sixteen years ago, Jenny survived a traumatic ordeal that left her best friend, Susie, missing and presumed dead. The world has its theories about what happened to Susie Patterson, and one of those theories points the finger at Jenny. Now she lives a quiet life, volunteering at a crisis helpline while trying to deal with her own anxiety and the true crime fans obsessed with finding her missing friend.

It’s been two years since Anna Cartwright’s life fell apart. During her first school trip as a young teacher, a student went missing and was never found. Not only was her career ruined, she was also accused of having an affair with fellow teacher and prime suspect Graham. Facing questions from journalists, police and family, Anna said she didn’t know what happened. She was lying. Now, Anna has returned to Australia. Her only hope is Land’s End Area School, an isolated concrete wasteland perched on the cliffs.

Kidnappers grabbed Jenna in broad daylight, right in front of her children and their horrified classmates. Her family was issued an insane ransom demand: $25 million in cash and jewels, payable by the end of the school day, otherwise they’ll never see her again. As Jenna’s mother scrambles to gather the money, detectives Mo Butler and George Ortega follow the trail of the kidnappers, which will lead them through a sordid landscape of jealous lovers, broken dreamers, and twisted schemers. But every second counts, and there’s one thing Jenna Wade doesn’t have: very much time.

My fiancé brought me tea and scrambled eggs in bed that morning, and we snuggled together, talking about buying our rings, and about our perfect wedding next year. Then we headed into town. He held my hand and gazed at the ring I liked best, a smile spreading slowly over his face. Then a glass of bubbly to celebrate. I felt flushed, excited and ready for the rest of my life with the man I loved. We race to get on the train home. It screams to a halt and I run towards its open doors. Made it. I think he’s right behind me — but when I turn around, he’s gone.

Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent. Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down.

England, 1914. The world is at war. Captain Hastings, injured and shaken, is invited to Styles Court to recover. It’s a grand old country house - the family home of his old friend - and a perfect haven. Or so it seems. But in the blistering summer heat, trouble is afoot. Simmering tensions are tearing the family apart, and it all comes to a head in the most horrifying way.

Natalie Rome, timid and retiring, discovers that a new life at forty is not, after all, as difficult of achievement as she had feared. With new relations and a new home, she finds security and happiness. She also finds a stepdaughter as timid as herself and a stepson of exceptional charm; a mother-in-law in garden boots and ancient, formal hats who talks loudly and a great deal; and a father-in-law who seldom talks at all. Into this assembly comes Natalie’s own daughter Helen; young, beautiful, successful and supremely confident.

High Ambo, in England, is the setting. It is winter, and Caroline West - a very human, placid, and unexcitable person - has gone there to escape her late husband's relatives. Like so many good-hearted people, she is immediately put upon. Caroline's sister Iris comes first, full of impulse and determination to be a reporter - an ambition abruptly deflected by a handsome young schoolmaster - an authority on birds. Then comes Robert, with his sweet, ingenuous fiancée Polly, and thus making the three-ring circus of a genuine Cadell household.

When Jeanne spent her summer holidays there as a child with her school friend, Parson’s House on the cliff top had been a seaside haven, and the small Devon village a sleepy, tranquil place where nothing much ever happened. Now, years later, returning there from Canada, divorced and with twin four-year-old daughters, she could hardly expect the place or the people to be the same. But she was quite unprepared for the bustle of the modern town which greeted her, for the shadowy rumors and mystery surrounding the old house....

For Anabelle Baird, the fortnight’s holiday with her fiancé, Philip Ancell, in Lisbon has not been a happy one. At the Lisbon airport she has a surprise encounter with Angus Pemberton, whom she had last seen seven years ago when he left Steyne under a cloud and went to Brazil. Anabelle’s reunion with Angus and her strange meeting with Luis, a small Portuguese boy, are but portents of her involvement in a mystery which pursues her to Steyne and finds its roots there in the home of Angus’ eccentric old grandmother Lady Evelyn Pemberton.

Old Mrs. Lauder was as loathsome as her lilies were lovely. Every year, the vicar had hoped for a change of heart in this sinister woman whose murder brought fear and suspicion to the village, to the church, and the lilies she had denied them every Easter while she lived. But somewhere in those waxen blooms, there was a message and a danger signal.

Jessica de Vrais was 22, the only child of an elderly and irritable widower. Though they thought alike on almost all matters, they agreed on none; least of all did they see eye to eye on the subject of men. Jessica, pretty and popular, invited them to come and stay; Mr. de Vrais, irritable and suspicious, invited them to go away and stay away. Fortune-hunters all, he said furiously to his daughter. One and all, they were after her money - his money. One look, he shouted, and he could smell them a mile off. Hangers-on. Yahoos. Parasites.

Madame Landini’s memoirs promised to be sensational. Rodney, who had captured them for his publishing house, and Oliver, his literary agent friend who would handle the business side of the book, could congratulate themselves on a brilliant coup. But having covered her childhood as a Russian princess, her years of exile in Paris, and the discovery of her phenomenal voice, the prima donna reached her first husband’s death — "man overboard" — and declared she would write no more. Rodney suspected there was more to this than a display of temperament.

When young doctor Kit Stone returns to Britain, a female associate of his brother Henry secures him a post in a country practice. He meets a selection of charming - and not-so-charming - characters and quickly settles in. But then he falls in love with Mrs Rochester. Mardie Rochester is married to Henry's business associate, but her marriage is unhappy. Her husband is mentally ill. Yet, even when he suddenly disappears, Kit knows that it would be wrong to pursue his love. And when Mardie decides to live in a secluded part of Scotland to await her husband’s return, it seems all hope is lost.

When, like Ruth and Roger Mallard, you inherit a large house but no money to keep it up, one thing you can do is turn it into a guest-house. And having made up their minds, the Mallards decided that River Lodge was to be a guest-house of the very best kind. The first week’s guests were specially chosen - or self invited: a rich aunt; a theatrical producer and the lovely Felicity; Felicity’s sister and her twins; a famous artist and the amiable “Goosey”; the fattest dog in fiction; and a not-so-rich but very comic uncle and aunt.

Nether Stapling Manor nor any of the fine family possessions of this stately home really belonged to Lady Laura, but for more than 20 years she had enjoyed them undisturbed. Many people in the nearby little town of Rivering were well aware of the situation. No one was worried except nice old Cosmo Brierley, trustee of the Estate, and he had no control whatever over this eccentric aristocrat. His one comfort was that Lady Laura was a wonderful custodian of the place, keeping all intact and cherished, even making money by son et lumière in summer.