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In 1587, the people of Dartington Hall turn to Roberda, a young Huguenot woman who married into one of Devon's most prestigious families, for guidance during troubled times. Her world is thrown into confusion by the unexpected return of her estranged husband, Gawen Champernowne.
Later Roberda will have to fight to remain Mistress of Dartington Hall and secure her children’s inheritance. Can she ever truly find fulfilment for herself?
Set against the backdrop of the Spanish Armada in a well known Devon location, this is a woman's story during wartime and beyond.
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The Dartington Bride tells the extraordinary story of Lady Gabrielle Roberda Montgomery, a woman who, after a childhood in war-torn France, came to England to marry into one of Devon’s most prominent and well connected families. Like most women of her time Roberda must be a good wife, run a large household and produce a son and heir.
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Few women of her time lived to see their name in print. But Katherine was no ordinary woman. She was Sir Walter Raleigh’s mother, and she inspired her sons to follow their dreams.
As the daughter of a Devon family with close connections to the glittering court of King Henry VIII, Katherine’s duty is clear. Still a girl, she starts a new life at Greenway Court on the River Dart. She settles into the life of a dutiful wife and mother until a chance shipboard encounter with a handsome privateer, turns her world upside down.…..
Learn MoreDid Henry VIII eat turkey for Christmas dinner?
It’s a question that often comes up at my T…

A sixteenth century Christmas
We know quite a lot about how the wealthy spent Christmas …

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In this detailed and fascinating historical fiction novel, readers follow Roberda Dartington as she…
In the late 1580s, England is holding its breath: word has it that Philip of Spain is assembling a …