'Irresistible...history at its most human. Elegant and addictively readable.' William Dalrymple
During the course of the 18th- and 19th-century a small group of women rose from impoverished obscurity to positions of great power, independence and wealth. In doing so they took control of their lives - and those of other people - and made the world do their will.
Men ruined themselves in desperate attempts to gain and retain a courtesan's favours, but she was always courted for far more than sex. In an age in which women were generally not well educated she was often unusually...
'Irresistible...history at its most human. Elegant and addictively readable.' William Dalrymple
Venice, 1604. When rumours of a spectacularly rare and priceless diamond begin to circulate, Paul Pindar becomes convinced that the jewel is somehow linked to the fate of his former love, Celia Lamprey. As his obsession with the mysterious stone grows it becomes clear that there are other, more sinister forces at play.
Venice, 1604. When rumours of a spectacularly rare and priceless diamond begin to circulate, Paul Pindar becomes convinced that the jewel is somehow l...
