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HABITS OF THE HOUSE By: Fay Weldon
Habits of the House #1
St. Martin's Press
January 2013
On Sale: January 15, 2013
320 pages ISBN: 1250026628 EAN: 9781250026620 Kindle: B008KGP98Y Hardcover / e-Book
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Historical
As the Season of 1899 comes to an end, the world is poised on the brink of profound, irrevocable change. The Earl of Dilberne is facing serious financial concerns. The ripple effects spread to everyone in the household: Lord Robert, who has gambled unwisely on the stock market and seeks a place in the Cabinet; his unmarried children, Arthur, who keeps a courtesan, and Rosina, who keeps a parrot in her bedroom; Lord Robertβs wife Isobel, who orders the affairs of the household in Belgrave Square; and Grace, the ladyβs maid who orders the life of her mistress. Lord Robert can see no financial relief to an already mortgaged estate, and, though the Season is over, his thoughts turn to securing a suitable wife (and dowry) for his son. The arrival on the London scene of Minnie, a beautiful Chicago heiress with a reputation to mend, seems the answer to all their prayers. As the writer of the pilot episode of the original Upstairs, DownstairsβFay Weldon brings a deserved reputation for magnificent storytelling. With wit and sympathyβand no small measure of mischiefβHabits of the House plots the interplay of restraint and desire, manners and morals, reason and instinct.
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