In 2007, Diana Norman, under the name Ariana Franklin, published the first novel of her internationally acclaimed and best selling Mistress series, MISTRESS OF THE ART OF DEATH. Prior to this, Ms Norman was the author of several historical novels. Originally published in 1998, this book has now been made available again in ebook format only.
Forced by Sir Robert Walpole into a distasteful marriage and then ruined by her husband's speculation in the South Sea Bubble, Lady Cecily Fitzhenry vows revenge on the Prime Minister and all his myrmidons - including the creaking Hanoverian court and an obscure Scottish lawyer, Archibald Cameron.
Nothing if not spirited, Lady Cecily turns her hand to highway robbery and spying while transforming her sole remaining asset, an old tavern on the Great North Road, into a great coaching inn...and eventually Lady Cecily salvages her country and herself in ways she had never imagined...