Showing results by author "Winston Graham" in All Categories

Ross Poldark returns to Cornwall from war, looking forward to a joyful homecoming with his family and his beloved Elizabeth. But instead, he discovers that his father has died, his home is overrun by livestock and drunken servants, and Elizabeth, having believed Ross dead, is now engaged to his cousin. Ross must start over, building a completely new path for his life, one that takes him in exciting and unexpected directions....

An impoverished miner's daughter, Demelza Carne is now married to Ross Poldark, who once rescued her from a fairground brawl. Her efforts to adapt to the ways of the gentry - and her husband - place her in hilarious and embarrassing situations, through which she becomes self-assured, mannered, and lovely, and the birth of her first child brings a joy she never experienced before.

Cornwall, 1795-1799: Although Ross Poldark, now something of a war hero, seems secure in his hard-won prosperity, a new dilemma faces him in the sudden infatuation of a young naval officer with his wife, Demelza. All four women - the four swans - whose lives touch Ross' face crises in these years. For his wife, Demelza; his old love, Elizabeth; his friend's new wife, Caroline; and the unhappy Morwenna Chynoweth, these are times of stress and conflict.

Reeling from the tragic death of a loved one, Captain Poldark vents his grief by inciting impoverished locals to salvage the contents of a ship run aground in a storm - an act for which British law proscribes death by hanging. Ross is brought to trial for his involvement, and, despite their stormy marriage, Demelza tries to rally support for her husband, to save him and their family.

When Ross Poldark plunges into a highly speculative mining venture, he risks not only his family's financial security but also his already turbulent marriage. When his old flame, Elizabeth Warleggan, reenters his life, Ross is tested like never before. But soon his wife, Demelza, retaliates, becoming dangerously involved with a handsome Scottish cavalry officer of her own.

Demelza sees a horseman riding down the valley and senses disruption to the domestic contentment she has fought so hard to achieve. For Ross has little option but to accept the summons - and travel to Paris with his family as an "observer" of the French armed forces. Parisian life begins well with an exhilarating round of balls and parties. But the return of Napoleon brings separation, distrust, and danger to the Poldarks...and always for Demelza, there is the shadow of the secret she does not even share with Ross.  

Cornwall, toward the end of the 18th century. Ross Poldark sits for the borough of Truro as a member of Parliament - his time divided between London and Cornwall, his heart divided about his wife, Demelza. His old feud with George Warleggan still flares, as does the illicit love between Morwenna and Drake, Demelza's brother. Before the new century dawns, George and Ross will be drawn together by a loss greater than their rivalry and Morwenna and Drake by a tragedy that brings them hope....

When Ross Poldark's former beloved gives birth to a son - with his enemy, George Warleggan - Ross must face the pain of losing her all over again. But soon they discover her cousin has fallen in love with Ross' brother-in-law, and the two families become entangled in surprising new ways. As the rivalry between Ross and George reaches new heights, the families must face an uncertain future.

The Poldark family awaits the return of Ross from his mission to Wellington's army in Portugal. But their ordered existence ends with Jeremy Poldark's dramatic rescue of a stranger from the sea. Stephen Carrington's arrival in the Poldark household changes all their lives. For Ross and Delmelza's children Clowance and Jeremy in particular, Stephen's advent is the key to a new world - one of both love and danger.  

We continue the tale of Ross and Demelza; of the wayward Valentine Warleggan, whose existence keeps open the old wounds of the feud between Ross and George; of Bella, the Poldarks' youngest daughter, whose precocious talent as a singer is encouraged by her old flame, Christopher Havergal, and by a distinguished French conductor who has more in mind than Bella's music; of Clowance, the Poldarks' widowed daughter, who considers remarriage to one of two rival suitors; and of a murderer who stalks the villages of West Cornwall.   

A silver cup lies half-forgotten in a dank cave among a pile of stolen goods. Yet the tiny vessel and its inscription, Amor gignit amorem, haunts the lives of the still-feuding Poldark and Warleggan families, as Ross, Demelza, and the ambitious and powerful Sir George Warleggan watch their children make the decisions that will shape their destinies. In the closing years of the wars against Napoleon, for Jeremy and Clowance, and for arrogant, cynical Valentine Warleggan, these are troubled and momentous times....

At Nampara, the Poldark family finds the new year brings involvement in more than one unexpected venture. For Ross and Demelza, there is some surprising - and worrying - news. And Clowance, newly returned from her London triumphs, finds that her entanglement with Stephen Carrington brings not only happiness, but heartache. As the armies battle in Spain and the political situation at home becomes daily more obscure, the Poldark and Warleggan families find themselves thrust into a turbulent new era as complex and changing as the patterns of the Miller's Dance....

The Angry Tide is the seventh novel in Winston Graham's sweeping series of Cornwall, Poldark. Cornwall, towards the end of the 18th century. Ross Poldark sits for the borough of Truro as Member of Parliament - his time divided between London and Cornwall, his heart divided about his wife, Demelza.

Tired from a grim war in America, Ross Poldark returns to his land and his family. But the joyful homecoming he has anticipated turns sour, for his father is dead, his estate is derelict, and the girl he loves is engaged to his cousin. But his sympathy for the destitute miners and farmers of the district leads him to rescue a half-starved urchin girl from a fairground brawl and take her home - an act which alters the whole course of his life....

The Twisted Sword is the 11th in Winston Graham's sweeping series of Cornwall, Poldark. Cornwall, 1815. Demelza sees a horseman riding down the valley and senses disruption to the domestic contentment she has fought so hard to achieve. For Ross has little option but to accept the summons - and travel to Paris with his family as an 'observer' of the French armed forces.

Demelza Carne, the impoverished miner's daughter Ross Poldark rescued from a fairground rabble, is now his wife. But the events of these turbulent years test their marriage and their love. Demelza's efforts to adapt to the ways of the gentry - and her husband - bring her confusion and heartache despite her joy in the birth of their first child. Ross begins a bitter struggle for the rights of the mining communities - and sows the seed of an enduring enmity with powerful George Warleggan.

The Loving Cup is the tenth in Winston Graham's sweeping series of Cornwall, Poldark. Cornwall 1813. A silver cup lies half forgotten in a dank cave, amongst a pile of stolen goods. Yet the tiny vessel and its inscription, " Amor gignit amorem", haunts the lives of the still-feuding Poldark and Warleggan families, as Ross, Demelza and the ambitious and powerful Sir George Warleggan watch their children make the decisions that will shape their destinies.

Cornwall, 1790. Ross Poldark faces the darkest hour of his life. Accused of wrecking two ships, he is to stand trial at the Bodmin Assizes. Despite their stormy married life, Demelza has tried to rally support for her husband. But there are enemies in plenty who would be happy to see Ross convicted, not least George Warleggan, the powerful banker whose personal rivalry with Ross grows ever more intense.

The Stranger from the Sea is the eighth novel in Winston Graham's sweeping series of Cornwall, Poldark. Cornwall, 1810. The Poldark family awaits the return of Ross from his mission to Wellington's army in Portugal. But their ordered existence ends with Jeremy Poldark's dramatic rescue of the stranger from the sea. Stephen Carrington's arrival in the Poldark household changes all their lives.

Cornwall, 1812. At Nampara, the Poldark family finds the New Year brings involvement in more than one unexpected venture. For Ross and Demelza, there is some surprising - and worrying - news. And Clowance, newly returned from her London triumphs, finds that her entanglement with Stephen Carrington brings not only happiness but heartache.