The Midnight Rose

A spellbinding tale of everlasting love from the bestselling author of The Seven Sisters series

By: Lucinda Riley

Narrated by: Aysha Kala

From the author of the Seven Sisters series, Lucinda Riley, The Midnight Rose spans four generations and sweeps from the glittering palaces of the great maharajas of India to the majestic stately homes of England, following the extraordinary life of a girl, Anahita Chavan, from 1911 to the present day . . .

Read by Aysha Kala (The Appeal, The God of Small Things)

'A captivating read from Lucinda Riley. Ideal for a book club' – Daily Mail

A lifelong passion. An endless search.

At the height of the British Raj, eleven-year-old Anahita, from a noble but impoverished family, forms a lifelong friendship with the headstrong Princess Indira, the privileged daughter of rich Indian royalty. Becoming the princess's official companion, Anahita accompanies her friend to England just before the outbreak of the Great War. There, she meets the young Donald Astbury – reluctant heir to the magnificent, remote Astbury Estate – and his scheming mother.

Eighty years later, Rebecca Bradley, a young American film star, has the world at her feet. But when her turbulent relationship with her equally famous boyfriend takes an unexpected turn, she's relieved that her latest role, playing a 1920s debutante, will take her away from the glare of publicity to the wilds of Dartmoor in England. Shortly after filming begins at the now-crumbling Astbury Hall, Ari Malik, Anahita's great-grandson, arrives unexpectedly, on a quest for his family's past. What he and Rebecca discover begins to unravel the dark secrets that haunt the Astbury dynasty . . .

Shortlisted for the Epic Romantic Novel of the Year in the Romantic Novelists' Association Books Awards

Critic reviews

Irish-born Riley is quietly becoming a huge success story

A captivating read from Lucinda Riley. Ideal for a book club

What an absolutely fantastic storyteller - I was immediately immersed in the story, and absolutely compelled to keep reading to the very last page (Katherine Webb, author of The Misbegotten)

Spellbinding storytelling

A strong, often nostalgic offering

This is a beautifully written story that captures the imagination

Romantic fiction at its most captivating

Enchanting

Loved the way we were shown how the past influences the present, something we don’t have access to so much in our every day lives. The author Lucinda Riley was particularly good at this.

I enjoy books with ties to India, & the glimpse of how things were done in the past there. Lovely ending.

The narrator was absolutely fantastic, wish I could’ve given her six stars! As we all know, a narrator can make or break an audiobook.

The characters were well thought out and brought to life with so much compassion for each of them (other than the one that was truly odious - there are truly evil people in the world). There were no shallow characters that were just assigned roles “good guy” or “bad guy”. It was just everyone doing the best they could with what they had at the time.

I do like Lucinda Riley so much, I have read almost everything she wrote.

What a delight!

Oh I loved it from start to finish. Lucinda is such amazing Story teller. Kept on stealing any moment available to listen.
The narrator was really good which made it a pleasure to read.

Another fabulous tale!

I never tire of Lucinda Riley‘s interwoven stories. The characters are so real and written with such detail that you truly get attached to them! I highly recommend all of her books as I have nearly listened to every single one!

Beautiful story

Such an engaging story, with many characters both past and present, having a depth of connection. Loved the ending!

So loved this book.

Everything about it is mesmerizing! I highly recommend it. Narrator was amazing. Wonderful story. So good

Another delicious read

The character development, culture, history & being human are all braided together into top class story-telling.

An incredibly impelling story

If this hasn’t been made a movie yet, I can only hope it will be. I was completely immersed in this incredible story.

A well written tale of the journey of discovery

The story is very well researched and you feel like you are taking a trip to a time from the past. With many twists and turns you will enjoy the ride.

loved it! great narrator, too!

First read from this author and loved it. Great narrator, too. Will read more from her!

Incredible

I just found Lucinda Riley and have become her great fan! What an imagination! Her stories are deep, entertaining, educational and thoroughly enjoyable.