NOVEL: The Mirage

I was delighted to review Cynthia Harrod-Eagles' latest novel, the 22nd of the series The Morland Dynasty.

The series aims to follow through history the lives of successive generations of Morland Place in Yorkshire since its founding through love in the 15th century to the present day.

It is 1870, and the new heir George Morland marries a fortune hunter whose only interest in Morland Place is in changing it, and ridding it of his family, especially his sister Henrietta, and brother Manfred, who is sent to school in Oakworth, Keighley.

The status of women in society in the late Victorian era is vividly portrayed as Henrietta accepts life as a dutiful but repressed wife.

Meanwhile her London cousin Lady Venetia Fleetwood defies convention and is forced to renounce her family and face abuse, prejudice and tragedy when she fights to gain admittance into the medical profession.

With excellent historical detail, characters and narrative this novel, published by Warner Books as a £6.99 paperback, is complete in itself. I also recommend the entire series so far, and look forward to its continuation.

MARGARET MALPASS