The Scandalous Duchess. Anne O'Brien

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      ‘…he [John, Duke of Lancaster] was blinded by desire, fearing neither God nor shame amongst men.’

      Knighton’s Chronicle 1337-1396

      ‘…a she-devil and enchantress…’

      The Anonimalle Chronicle 1333-1381

      ‘…an unspeakable concubine…’

      Thomas Walsingham’s Chronicon Angliae

      Table of Contents

       Cover

       Title Page

       Copyright

       Dedication

       Epigraph

       Chapter Seven

       Chapter Eight

       Chapter Nine

       Chapter Ten

       Chapter Eleven

       Chapter Twelve

       Chapter Thirteen

       Chapter Fourteen

       Chapter Fifteen

       Chapter Sixteen

       Chapter Seventeen

       Chapter Eighteen

       Chapter Nineteen

       Chapter Twenty

       Chapter Twenty-One

       Chapter Twenty-Two

       Epilogue

       Extract

       AUTHOR NOTE

       Read all about it…

       MORE ABOUT THIS BOOK

       About the Publisher

      Prologue

       January 1372: The Manor of Kettlethorpe, Lincolnshire

      The water that had swamped the courtyard overnight, thanks to a sudden storm, soaked into my shoes. And then my stockings. I hitched my skirts, scowling at the floating debris around me. Even the chickens, isolated on a pile of wood in the corner, looked morose.

      ‘Who left that harness out?’ I demanded, seeing the coils of leather black and dripping on the hook beside the stable door. My servants, few as they were, had gone to ground, and since nothing could be done until the rain actually stopped, I squelched under cover again.

      Kettlethorpe. My young son’s inheritance, and a poor one at that. The burden of it, since my husband’s recent death and the administration of the estate not yet settled, fell on my shoulders. I flexed them, my sodden, mud-daubed cloak lying unpleasantly around my throat. The shadow of a lively rodent caught my eye as it vanished behind the buttery screen.

      ‘What do I do?’ I asked aloud, then winced at the crack of despair in my voice.

      There was no one to give me advice.

      I imagined what Queen Philippa might have said to me. Raised by her, educated by her at the English court, the

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