The Palace Affair
An irresistible thriller with tantalising twists
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
The most imposing invitation on the mantelpiece was the one from Buckingham Palace...
Three women await the Buckingham Palace Garden Party, unaware that it will deliver not only in decadence, but also drama, depravity and danger. The Palace Affair by Una-Mary Parker will enthral fans of Penny Vincenzi and Jackie Collins.
'Deliciously entertaining' Sunday Telegraph
Three women are anticipating the royal Garden Party with varying degrees of pleasure and apprehension.
For Jackie, social editor of Society magazine, it is just one of a series of glittering events that she must cover for her glamour-hungry readers. Newly divorced, Jackie enjoys the hectic whirl of her career, but hopes to find a more settled lifestyle...
For Elfrieda, ex-Swedish au pair and current Lady Witley of Vauxhall, the invitation represents one further rung up the social ladder. Elfrieda is so desperate to be accepted, she will do anything to make her mark. It is a determination that is to have dangerous consequences...
As Lady in Waiting to the Queen, Celia is 'on duty', charged with the responsibility of helping ensure all the arrangements go smoothly. Celia values the position of confidence she enjoys at the Palace, and is careful to do nothing to jeopardise it...
But this is one Garden Party that turns out to hold some nasty shocks for the guests. An unscrupulous man is scheming ruthlessly for his own advancement. And when he crosses swords with Jackie, Celia and Elfrieda, he vows he will get his revenge, whatever it takes...
What readers are saying about The Palace Affair:
'Absolutely unputdownable. An intriguing and believable plot'
'The story and suspense surrounding three different women of difference classes of society was captivating'
'Brilliant. 5 stars'
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
London social editor Jackie Daventry follows a glamorous if unvarying routine of parties with the Best People until she meets Gerald Gould, an adoring, self-made millionaire who is everything she wants in a man--except that he's married. Life is downright rosy for Jackie's friend Celia, Countess of Atherton, who serves as one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, leaving two sons in the care of tutor Roland Shaw. But lurking at the edge of these women's gracious lives are people who want to bulldoze their way into society; one anonymous man threatens Jackie's career (he crashes parties by claiming to work with her) and Celia's happiness (he unearths a dark secret about her family). Parker's ( Enticements ) convincing portrayal of British high society makes her lightweight tale entertaining in a snobbish sort of way--provided one ignores its underlying attitudes (e.g., social climbers are contemptible, but economic opportunists are inevitable). However, one group should be truly pleased: the author's cropped and airbrushed picture of Britain's royals (the Queen, Celia thinks, ``spread happiness wherever she went'') is everything the Palace could hope for.
