Fashion designer Carla Kane has been too busy climbing the career ladder to sustain a long-term relationship - until she meets the charming, charismatic Harry Wilkinson, and falls deeply in love for the first time. There's only one problem: Harry is already married to Barbara, a stay-at-home wife who's been content until now to devote all her energies to looking after her husband and children. The close-knit Wilkinson family unit is blown apart when Harry leaves Barbara, deserting the family home to start a new life in Spain with Carla.

When Harry dies in strange circumstances, Carla...

"The House on the Beach" is a novel set in the years after the Civil War, in a Spain ruled by the military dictator Francisco Franco. This is a time when women had little independence; they were expected to lead prescribed lives, dominated by first their fathers and then their husbands. Rocio and Inma first meet as children. Despite coming from very different social backgrounds they form a close friendship. Rocio is the daughter of an Andalucian peasant, who makes his living from the land, growing olives and keeping goats; Inma is the daughter of a rich businessman, who lives and works in...

'Spanish Lavender' is a love story set in the Spanish Civil War. In January 1937, Elizabeth, a young English girl decides to remain in Spain when the rest of her family return to the peace of England. Alone in the devastated city of MAlaga she makes friends with two young men, Juan, an idealistic Spaniard and Alex, a pragmatic Englishman. Together they make their escape from the war-torn city along the coast to AlmerIa. Amongst the death and carnage she falls in love with Juan, only to lose him shortly afterwards when he is badly wounded. Believing he is dead she returns to...

SANTIAGO TALES

A journey in search of love

Beth is a woman whose life is falling apart; there are problems with her marriage, her career is in the doldrums and her health is not good. When she discovers her husband has been leading a double life she realises she has to get away from the cosy village life where everyone knows your business and spend some time alone. She decides to do something she has never done before. She embarks on a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. As Beth walks the five hundred miles across the north of Spain she is tested both physically and...

Daughters of Spain gives a gripping account of the hard won changes within society for the women of Spain, through the eyes and experiences of the women themselves. I first began to think about writing this book in the late 1980s, when I lived in Spain for a brief period. I was impressed by the way the Spanish women I met had embraced the freedom of modern life in the short period since the death of Spain's dictator General Franco, in 1975. However I did nothing about it. The years went by and I began to realise that if I didn't make a start soon, most of the women I wanted to interview...

This is the story of a city, a city that is now in ruins: Madinat al Zahra. The year is 947 AD, a time when southern Spain is under the rule of the Moors. The ruler, Caliph al Rahman III is rich, powerful and cultured. His lands are, at long last, at peace and the capital, COrdoba, is considered to be not only the most beautiful city in the civilised world but also the seat of learning and culture. Against this background we meet the artisan Qasim - he and his family have moved to Madinat al Zahra to make their fortune as potters. Qasim is a good husband and father. He works hard, says his...