Jo's task is to evaluate the house's contents for a sale, but she soon finds herself drawn into the complex lives of Thirlbeck's inhabitants, each with their own secrets and desires.Jo is absorbed by the tragic story of The Spanish Lady, whose young life was cut short at Thirlbeck many centuries before. She also encounters La Española, the brilliant diamond which, according to legend, brings disaster to all who try to possess it. And she is shocked to learn of her own mother's connection to Thirlbeck.Meet the residents of ThirlbeckRobert Birkett, the Earl of Askew: returning to Thirlbeck after many years abroad, a decorated war hero who also spent time in prison after a fatal car accident for which he was blamed.Carlota, the Spanish Condesa: the Earl's sophisticated companion, who yearns to leave the cold of Cumberland for the warmth of the Mediterranean sun.Nat Birkett: the local farmer, and single father of two young boys, who is the reluctant heir to Thirlbeck. His passion is for the land rather than titles and possessions.Gerald Stanton: Jo's wise mentor and friend, who is like a father to her.George Tolson: the brooding keeper of Thirlbeck, who jealously guards it from unwelcome strangers.Jessica Tolson: George's intelligent but fragile granddaughter, who must be protected from herself.Jo will struggle with difficult discoveries as she unlocks the puzzles which link Thirlbeck's past and present residents.About Catherine GaskinBorn in Ireland and raised in Australia, Catherine Gaskin studied music at the conservatorium in Sydney, before becoming a bestselling author at the age of just seventeen. After moving to London she met her future husband, a US TV executive, on a blind date. The couple lived in Manhattan for ten years, before moving to the Virgin Islands, followed by Ireland, and then the Isle of Man. After her husband's death, Catherine returned to Australia where she spent the rest of her life.During her lifetime Catherine Gaskin's books sold over 40 million copies worldwide, and she was known as “The Queen of Storytellers” and “The Girl with the Golden Pen.”

    The doctors tell her the strange and disturbing hallucinations she's been experiencing ever since her accident are all in her head, and that, with a little rest, the haunting visions will vanish. But accepting an invitation to stay with her cousin in the country may be the worst decision Meg has ever made. Here, in a remote old house miles from anywhere, the terrible sights and sounds have gotten even worse. Suddenly eerie black shapes dance in the shadows—mocking Meg, haunting her . . . threatening her. And the presence of kind, considerate Andy Brenner, the caretaker, both reassures her and terrifies her—because Andy also sees these dark specters . . .

    She had grown up a servant's child on the Grant family's estate, and had savored the memory of its elegance as well as her love for young Lennox Grant for long years after she'd been abandoned by her parents and forced to leave.Now, unexpectedly an heiress, Helen found she could go back to Gallowmerry. She could fulfill her desire to live among the Grants as an equal... .But the Gallowmerry to which she returned was not the fond home of her childhood. It had become a house of dark secrets and unspoken hatreds whose poisons had infected the entire Grant family. It had become a house of horror luring Helen herself to the brink of madness.

    Transforming Lalage from a pale, dull cocoon of secretary into the glamorous blonde butterfly of the moonlight-and-magic record world, Petal Starr, Mike gave her what he believed every girl dreamed of. But Lallie felt that she was merely a valuable toy Mike had made with his own hands, nothing more than a cheap rag doll. And so, at the peak of her success, she decided to give it all up. But her one last visit to Mike at his family home, Midwinter End, would suddenly open up a Pandora’s Box of tensions that threatened to destroy both Lallie and Mike.

    

    When she awoke, she was in Fenwick Hall, a huge, strangely menacing old house where murderous hatred reigned. Joan began to wonder who among the inhabitants was marked for death. Then the truth appeared - it was Joan herself who had been tapped.Where could she turn for help? Where else but to the ghostly apparition that had first brought her to Fenwick Hall!

    Had Valerie, who loved her mother desperately, driven her to the sea and her tragic death? Sabrina, with her flame-red hair and athletic figure, was a paragon of will. She quickly claimed Valerie's father and Tidehawks. Did she want Valerie's fortune? In the shadow of these two women, the \young heiress, Valerie, fought for her own womanhood and the man she loved. But her unwanted fortune possessed her spirit-and forced her to face the deathly, unrelenting terrors of Tidehawks.

    She stood at the foot of a staircase where two fountains splashed in the quiet of the night. Suddenly, from the garden's looming topiary shapes, a silken cord ringed her throat with death. The vision was so vivid, so real! And it lingered after her fever left her. Then, one day, she rode down a winding road and saw the formal garden spread out before her, and the nightmare began to come true...

    Now the young American found herself shadowed by a fate just as fearful, as the ancient gods of darkness demanded their tribute in blood. In coming to this foreign land where the passionate love of an irresistibly handsome and arrogant man tore away her defenses, and the cold hostility of the natives chilled her to the bone, Marianna Latimer realized too late that she had left safety far behind, and that every terrified heartbeat might be her last...

    But Richard's housekeeper had always been the girl's guardian, and his second cousin Carol was not about to sacrifice either Richard or his wealth to Ruth's happiness when Richard offered her marriage.It was obvious to Ruth that someone in the household was obsessed by the need to keep her from marrying Richard. When fire nearly claimed her life, and a voice from beyond the grave threatened her, the truth was frighteningly clear. Someone wanted her dead--but who?