Philippa Carr was a favorite author of mine when I was young, and now I am rereading them in order. I didn't realize the first time that I read them that if you start with The Miracle at St. Bruno's and read them in order, the story continues on and on. It's fun to read them that way. They start out in 1600s England, with a historical background. There is rmance and intrigue, and I find myself thinking they are racier than I remembered, but you just know they have sex, it isn't described. Philiipa Carr is the pen name for Victoria Holt, who is dead now, but she was a very gifted and prolific writer.