Kate and John Ryan have four children, of which the eldest are Michael ard Dara. Their small town is peaceful and friendly, an unchanging background for a goldeni childhood. In long, hot summers, Dara, Michael and their friends fish, swim and play in the ivy-clad ruins of Fernscourt, the great house burned down during the Troubles. No one in Mountfern has the slightest inkling of what it will mean when the ruins are bought by Patrick O'Neill, an lrish-American with a dream in his heart and a great deal of money in his pocket...

Devon, 1912, and Tim Wilson cannot believe his luck. He has landed the job of his dreams as a newspaper reporter, and he is captivated by Katherine Coates. Romance blossoms, but their happiness is short-lived. For Katherine's mother, Ruth, has her sights set much higher for her daughter's happiness. Tim is neither rich nor well connected enough for her liking and she breaks up the relationship by whisking Katherine off to the London scene, to meet a suitable husband....

Ruth Rendell
The Copper Peacock And Other Stories

Bernard has borrowed a friend's flat to finish writing his latest biography. Home life with his wife and children was chaotic but here, he could spread himself around. And then there was Judy who came to clean three times a week and it was a shock when she gave him the copper peacock for his thirty-fifth birthday. Had she offered herself, he might have been ble to save her life...