Australian bestselling novelist Karen Brooks rewrites women back into history with this breathtaking novel set in 17th century London—a lush, fascinating story of the beautiful woman who is drawn into a world of riches, power, intrigue...and chocolate.Damnation has never been so sweet...Growing up in an impoverished household with a brutal family, Rosamund Tomkins is both relieved and terrified when her parents all but sell her in a marriage of convenience to a wealthy nobleman, Sir Everard Blithman. Though Rosamund will finally be free of the torment she'd become accustomed to in her childhood home, she doesn't know if she's traded one evil for another. But much to her surprise, Rosamund soon discovers that her arranged marriage is more of a blessing than curse. For her new husband recognizes not only Rosamund's unusual beauty, but also her charm and vibrancy, which seem to enchant almost everyone who crosses her path.Sir Everard presides over a...

lgli/Karen Brooks - The Chocolate Maker's Wife (US) (epub)

zlib/no-category/Karen Brooks/The Chocolate Maker's Wife_17077980.epub

Brooks, Karen

William Morrow Paperbacks

HarperCollins Publishers

Longman Publishing

United States, United States of America

New York,USA, 2019

1, 20190820

c2019

lg_fict_id_2245720

Australian bestselling novelist Karen Brooks rewrites women back into history with this breathtaking novel set in 17th century London—a lush, fascinating story of the beautiful woman who is drawn into a world of riches, power, intrigue...and chocolate.
Damnation has never been so sweet...
Rosamund Tomkins, the illegitimate daughter of a nobleman, spends most of her young life in drudgery at a country inn. To her, the Restoration under Charles II, is but a distant threat as she works under the watchful eye of her brutal, abusive stepfather . . . until the day she is nearly run over by the coach of Sir Everard Blithman.
Sir Everard, a canny merchant, offers Rosamund an "opportunity like no other," allowing her to escape into a very different life, becoming the linchpin that will drive the success of his fledgling business: a luxurious London chocolate house where wealthy and well-connected men come to see and be seen, to gossip and plot, while indulging in the sweet and heady drink.
Rosamund adapts and thrives in her new surroundings, quickly becoming the most talked-about woman in society, desired and respected in equal measure.
But Sir Everard's plans for Rosamund and the chocolate house involve family secrets that span the Atlantic Ocean, and which have already brought death and dishonor to the Blithman name. Rosamund knows nothing of the mortal peril that comes with her new title, nor of the forces spinning a web of conspiracy buried in the past, until she meets a man whose return tightens their grip upon her, threatening to destroy everything she loves and damn her to a dire fate.
As she fights for her life and those she loves through the ravages of the Plague and London's Great Fire, Rosamund's breathtaking tale is one marked by cruelty and revenge; passion and redemption—and the sinfully sweet temptation of chocolate.

Rosamund Tomkins, the illegitimate daughter of a nobleman, spends most of her young life in drudgery at a country inn. To her, the Restoration under Charles II is but a distant threat as she works under the watchful eye of her brutal, abusive stepfather--until the day she is nearly run over by the coach of Sir Everard Blithman. Sir Everard, a canny merchant, offers Rosamund an "opportunity like no other", allowing her to escape into a very different life, becoming the linchpin which will drive the success of his fledgling business: a luxurious London chocolate house where wealthy and well-connected come to see and be seen, to gossip and plot, while indulging in the sweet and heady drink. Rosamund adapts and thrives in her new surroundings, quickly becoming the most talked about woman in society, desired and respected in equal measure. But Sir Everard's plans for Rosamund and the chocolate house involve family secrets spanning span the Atlantic Ocean which have already brought death and dishonor to the Blithman name. Rosamund knows nothing of the mortal peril which comes with her new title, nor of the forces spinning a web of conspiracy buried in the past, until she meets a man whose return tightens their grip upon her, threatening to destroy everything she loves and damn her to a dire fate. As she fights for her life and those she loves through the ravages of the plague and London's Great Fire, Rosamund's tale is one marked by cruelty and revenge, passion and redemption--and the sinfully sweet temptation of chocolate

"Damnation has never been so sweet.... When Rosamund Tomkins enters the world with her darkling eyes and strange laughter, the midwives are afraid, believing her a changeling. But Rosamund's life is set to be anything but enchanted.... Born into poverty, brutalised and ignored by her family, it is only when she is married off to a nobleman that her life undergoes a transformation, as her husband recognises in Rosamund a magic she does not know she possesses but which affects almost all who encounter her. Presiding over a luxurious chocolate house where men go to be seen, exchange news and indulge in the sweet and heady drink to which they have become addicted, Rosamund feels blessed. But disaster strikes, and Rosamund stands on the brink of losing all she has worked so hard to achieve. Forced to make a choice, she can either walk away from all she has grown to love with her soul intact or make a deal with the devil.... Set against the backdrop of Restoration London, the plague and the Great Fire, this is a tale of cruelty, revenge, redemption, love and hope, and the sweet, sinister temptation of chocolate"--FantasticFiction.com

2021-06-18