Kent Stuart left the West Country town of Redcliffe Bay more than thirty years ago, pursued by the guilt and shame of a scandal that cost him his youth and happiness. Having led an exciting life as a photographer, Kent now returns to find a town that bears little physical resemblance to the one he left so many years before. Yet in spite of this, memories come flooding back of a young man swept up in a passionate affair with an older woman, which ended in tragedy. And Kent must decide wheth...

Adam Swann is hungry for success. He is one of the new breed of entrepreneurs thrown up by the Industrial Revolution, determined to take advantage of current economic conditions to build an unrivalled business empire. And he is determined to win the beautiful, strong-minded Henrietta, and persuade her to share in his struggles and triumphs.

1912-1940A generation fallen.A country that will never be the same again.Nowhere in England avoids the searing loss of young men during the First World War and the remote Devon village of Shallowford is no exception. Many never return and the lives of those who do come back are changed forever.Paul Craddock must try to rebuild the estate and, with more difficulty, the bonds broken between the people who belong there. It is a time of huge soc...

Miner's son David Powlett-Jones returns from the carnage of the Western Front in 1918, shell-shocked and bitterly hardened by the violence of war. He begins life again as a master at a remote Devon school, controlling the destiny of boys barely his junior.As the years pass David becomes a teacher of rare talent, begins to find peace, and is able to adjust to the changes which are overwhelming society. But soon he will have to face up to the prospect of another terrible war...

1942-1964Paul and Claire Craddock have grown older in years - but not in spirit.The turbulence of war is followed by a penurious peace. Changes are taking place in the countryside, from the way land is farmed to the hopes and expectations of the men and women who live there. Paul Craddock's livelihood, his peace, and his vision of a good and noble way of life in Shallowford are all threatened.With the help of his children and his children's children...

Jim Carver: a tough, resolute war veteran, he returns from the trenches to build a better life for his family to find his wife dead. Archie Carver: Jim's eldest son, smart, ruthless, he has a quick eye for financial profits and beautiful women. Elaine Frith: beautiful and ambitious, she uses her charms to snare any man she thinks will bring her wealth. The First World War ends and the soldiers return to the peaceful Avenue. On the surface their homes look just the same, but behind the care...

Between the years 1804 and 1815, Napoleon created twenty-six Marshals of France. These men, who held the highest positions in the Empire after Napoleon himself, came from very diverse backgrounds and ranged from a smuggler to a Prince. They acquired titles and great riches but in the end there was only one who was not corrupted by greed or ambition. This book describes their rise and fall.

1902-1911An age of innocence and hope.Before the storm clouds roll over Europe.As Paul Craddock recovers from his Boer War injuries, he starts to plan a new life. As soon as he is able he invests all he has in a remote but beautiful estate in Devon, determined to make something wonderful of the place and to be at the heart of what is most real and most important.Then he meets Grace, beautiful and passionate, and mistress of the land he has s...

It happened on the second day of the summer term. Was it caused by the smell of lilac, the droning of the bees, or the French incense which Lane-Perkins had set alight? Nobody knew, but that spring afternoon following a heated exchange with a pupil, Sebastian Sermon, a forty-nine-year-old schoolmaster, experiences a brainstorm. Dissatisfied with his life, he leaves his job, wife and children, and takes to the road. In the months that follow, Sebastian discovers that excitement and romance ...

Life didn't stop in the Avenue because the war had started . . . Berni Carver joins up with the Commandos with his twin brother hoping they will serve out the war together. Archie Carver is determined to end the war richer than when it started. Elaine Fraser seizes her opportunity to live a little now her husband is out of the way. War has broken out and the blitz will soon change everything in the Avenue. Many men have gone off to fight but others stay behind with less honourable intentio...

Adam Swann has grown old, and is struggling to keep up with the changing times. The Victorian age is giving way to the Edwardian and the horse is being overtaken by the motorcar, with devastating effect on his transport business. As the new century is born, the Boer war brings tragedy, but even this cannot quench the indomitable spirit of the Swann family.

The second book in R.F. Delderfield's Swann family saga. Adam Swann's expanding business empire now stretches as far north as the Scottish Highlands and as far west as the Dublin Pale. Alex, his elder son, is a professional solder; George is a pioneer of the motor industry and his adopted daughter Deborah works to uncover the terrible injustices facing working-class women. The great edifice of the British Empire is beginning to crumble, and as the gap between prosperity and poverty widens ...