Violets And Other Small Scandals

One singer past her prime, one admirer out of his depth, and one last chance at an encore.

Scene: London, 1835. Once the darling of Covent Garden, Aimée Millet has exchanged ovations for creditors and a pension barely fit for decency. Her loyal maid, Nellie Simmons, guards what remains of their household pride with a teapot and a tongue sharp enough to steal scenes.

Enter Mr Julian Harcourt: twenty-four, earnest, and catastrophically well-bred. His impulsive gallantry sets Bloomsbury whispering and Aimée's temper alight. A polite apology spirals into a comedy of missteps, music, and inconvenient tenderness.

Julian believes love can mend what the world has broken; Aimée knows better. Yet when kindness arrives with violets, laughter, and the first glimmer of hope she has dared to feel in years, it becomes impossible to refuse.

For readers who like their romance witty, their heroines wary, and their happy endings hard-won.