The Scots Never Forget

When her sister, Denise, seven years her senior, and her husband Alistair drowned in a storm at sea, the beautiful nineteen-year-old Pepita Linford is left alone to cope with the care of their young children, Rory and Jeanie, as well as Alistair's huge amount of debts. Exiled from his Scottish Clan for ever by his father, the Duke of Strathnairn, because he dared to marry an Englishwoman against his wishes they then settled in Hertfordshire. Alistair had been deprived of his allowance from his father and had lived on a fast-dwindling legacy from his mother. Virtually destitute Pepita has no choice but to travel to Scotland to throw herself and the children on the mercy of the Duke of Strathnairn. But sadly His Grace, consumed with hatred for the English, is not in the slightest pleased to see them, but grudgingly agrees that they can stay at his imposing Castle for a short while. Pepita is at once aware of the hostility and dislike of the Duchess of Strathnairn, who does everything she can to make life unpleasant for her and Rory and Jeanie. Save for the children Pepita finds herself on her own in a hostile country until she finds warmth, kindness and sympathy in the handsome and charming Torquil McNairn, Alistair's cousin. Soon that warmth becomes an all-encompassing and consuming love for both Pepita and Torquil. But surely it is a passion doomed. Pepita is determined that she must never inflict Alistair's fate on Torquil - to be an outcast for no other reason than that he loved a 'Sassenach' from England!

Barbara Cartland was the world's most prolific novelist who wrote an amazing 723 books in her lifetime, of which no less than 644 were romantic novels with worldwide sales of over 1 billion copies and her books were translated into 36 different languages. As well as romantic novels, she wrote historical biographies, 6 autobiographies, theatrical plays and books of advice on life, love, vitamins and cookery. She wrote her first book at the age of 21 and it was called Jigsaw. It became an immediate bestseller and sold 100,000 copies in hardback in England and all over Europe in translation. Between the ages of 77 and 97 she increased her output and wrote an incredible 400 romances as the demand for her romances was so strong all over the world. She wrote her last book at the age of 97 and it was entitled perhaps prophetically The Way to Heaven. Her books have always been immensely popular in the United States where in 1976 her current books were at numbers 1 & 2 in the B. Dalton bestsellers list, a feat never achieved before or since by any author. Barbara Cartland became a legend in her own lifetime and will be best remembered for her wonderful romantic novels so loved by her millions of readers throughout the world, who have always collected her books to read again and again, especially when they feel miserable or depressed. Her books will always be treasured for their moral message, her pure and innocent heroines, her handsome and dashing heroes, her blissful happy endings and above all for her belief that the power of love is more important than anything else in everyone's life.