Vixen

At Abbey House, Violet Tempest watches her mother's renewed courtship with Captain Winstanley harden into an engagement that threatens to reshape the whole household. What Mrs. Tempest experiences as romantic rescue, Violet sees as a calculated seizure of power: a man of flattery and ambition stepping into her dead father's place, winning control of money, dignity, and memory. Their confrontation is fierce and heartbreaking, ending in silence, tears, and a home split between bridal fantasies and bitter distrust. As the wedding draws near, the widow retreats into dreams of trousseau, lace, and social triumph, while Violet grows more isolated, abandoning visits, charity, and old companions for lonely rides through the Forest. Her resentment deepens with her sense of exclusion, her grief over Roderick Vawdrey's absence, and her conviction that loveless marriage is a betrayal. Yet the arrival of Lord Mallow, a handsome Irish nobleman and political firebrand, briefly brightens Violet's winter. His music and easy charm stir unexpected warmth in her, even as Captain Winstanley's growing possessiveness and the household's mounting tensions make Abbey House feel ever more crowded, precarious, and divided. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.