by Clare Boylan (Author)
When Charlotte Bronte died in 1855, she left behind the beginnings of a new novel - twenty pages of a work in progress called Emma. Now, almost 150 years later, Clare Boylan has returned to this most intriguing of fragments, and turned them into an astonishing story of mystery, atmosphere and page-turning suspense. When Conway Fitzgibbon arrives at Fuchsia Lodge with his daughter Matilda, the headmistress Miss Wilcox couldn't be more delighted. The ladies' school is limited in numbers and eager for new pupils, particularly ones so finely dressed, and boasting a father who is 'quite the gentleman'. But as Christmas approaches, and Miss Wilcox inquires about arrangements for the holidays, she is in for a shock. Conway Fitzgibbon, like the address he left behind, does not exist. So who is Matilda? With Miss Wilcox unable to extract any information out of the girl, it falls to a local lawyer, Mr Ellin, and a young widow, Isabel Chalfont, to unravel the truth. What they discover is a tale that travels the highs and lows of nineteenth-century England, an investigation that begins as curiosity and ends up changing all their lives forever ...
Format: Paperback
Pages: 464
Edition: Revised ed.
Publisher: Abacus
Published: 01 Jul 2004
ISBN 10: 0349116725
ISBN 13: 9780349116723
Book Overview: * Large-space colour advertising in the TIMES, GUARDIAN, OBSERVER, DAILY TELEGRAPH, SUNDAY TIMES * Separate Irish press advertising * Author PR activity to include media interviews, events and appearances at literary festivals * Review and feature coverage anticipated across the national press and women's magazines * Submitted for trade promotions * Bookmark to highlight Bronte connection * Reading copies available