A Secret Affair

Hannah Reid, born a commoner, has been Duchess of Dunbarton since she was nineteen years old, the wife of an elderly Royal to whom she is rumoured to be consistently and flagrantly unfaithful. Now the old Duke is dead and, more womanly and beautiful than ever at thirty, Hannah has her freedom at last. And she knows just what she wants to do with it. To the shock of a conventional friend, she announces her intention to take a lover - and not just any lover, but the most dangerous and delicious man in all of upper class England: Constantine Huxtable.

Constantine's illegitimacy has denied him the title of Earl, but otherwise he denies himself nothing. Lounging in a country house he populates with trollops, vagabonds and thieves, drinking deep from the goblet of his own carnal lust, he always chooses recent widows for his short-lived affairs. Hannah will fit the bill nicely. But once these two passionate and scandalous figures find each other, they discover it isn't so easy to extricate oneself from the fires of desire - without getting singed.

"Poignant, thought-provoking, deliciously sensual, and completely enthralling."--"Library Journal"

"Mary Balogh has masterfully woven a romantic tale of the importance of family, of compassion, and of love and forgiveness."--Fresh Fiction

Mary Balogh is a NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author. A former teacher, she grew up in Wales and now lives in Canada.

Julia belongs to the inner circle of Johannesburg high society. But in the New South Africa, things have changed - the days of tea on the lawn are over. Julia's husband, Douglas, is a serial adulterer who is no longer prepared to pay for the small luxuries she has always enjoyed. Her daughter has rebelled herself right out of Julia's life. She doesn't seem to be able to manage the 'home workers' who seem to have developed a will of their own, and her best friend, Caroline, is quietly considering killing her husband. Now Douglas's ex-wife, who is never spoken of, has announced her intention of coming to visit from London bringing, no doubt, her politically correct credentials along with her. She's coming to see Nelson Mandela, she says. People Like Ourselves takes a wry look at the brave new world that is the 'African miracle' today, by the prize-winning author of Frieda and Min, Like Water in Wild Places and Dance with a Poor Man's Daughter.

Hannah Reid, born a commoner, has been Duchess of Dunbarton since she was nineteen years old, the wife of an elderly Royal to whom she is rumoured to be consistently and flagrantly unfaithful. Now the old Duke is dead and, more womanly and beautiful than ever at thirty, Hannah has her freedom at last. And she knows just what she wants to do with it. To the shock of a conventional friend, she announces her intention to take a lover - and not just any lover, but the most dangerous and delicious man in all of upper class England: Constantine Huxtable.Constantine's illegitimacy has denied him the title of Earl, but otherwise he denies himself nothing. Lounging in a country house he populates with trollops, vagabonds and thieves, drinking deep from the goblet of his own carnal lust, he always chooses recent widows for his short-lived affairs. Hannah will fit the bill nicely. But once these two passionate and scandalous figures find each other, they discover it isn't so easy to extricate oneself from the fires of desire - without getting singed.

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