A Tea Drinker’s Novel: Chilverton Park
Celebrating the Styles of Austen, Trollope & Wodehouse
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Mrs. Hortensia Wald bustled with her typical energy into the breakfast room at her house in London where she found her son, Sir Erskine, dawdling over his coffee. “You are early, my dear.” “I have been thinking, Mother. Perhaps you may have some idea how we may be of help to Lady Caroline.” “What sort of help do you mean?” “You are, of course, very well acquainted with her aunt, Miss Clara Hilliard?” “Very well indeed.” “So you are aware of the kind of opposition she can pose when she has her back up?” “I see! Clara is making herself unpleasant, is she?” “She is. And she knows how to do it.”
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About the Book
Chilverton Park, the first in a planned series of Tea Drinker’s Novels, is a humorous, light Victorian-style romance in a period setting, written in a manner reminiscent of both Anthony Trollope and P. G. Wodehouse. At the heart of this charming story lies an unusual attachment between the gay, confirmed bachelor about London, Sir Erskine Wald, and his childhood friend, the winsome but delicate daughter of the Earl of Chilverton, Lady Caroline Downey. Lady Caroline, who earnestly wishes to remain single, reveals her intention to Sir Erskine, who eventually acknowledges that they have that aim in common. But avoiding marriage in Victorian England is an admittedly tricky business. Lady Caroline’s Aunt Clara is determined to oppose her at every step and begins a program of ill-conceived interference, which brings Sir Erskine to Lady Caroline’s aid in league with his mother, the formidable Mrs. Hortensia Wald. Lady Caroline manages, with their help, to stay above the Victorian era intrigue surrounding her until her Aunt Clara manages to corner her in an almost inescapable dilemma.
About the Author
Susan Russell Thompson is a lifelong lover of British fiction and found her inspiration for A Tea Drinkers’ Novel: Chilverton Park through reading the works of Anthony Trollope, Jane Austen, and P. G. Wodehouse. She is also a 1975 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting. Some of her artwork may be seen in the collection of Columbus State University and the offices of Pratt & Whitney in Columbus, Georgia. Presently, she resides in the rolling hills of North Carolina with her husband, Dan, and her dog, Molly.