title: The Mistress of Alderley: A Novel of Suspense (Barnard, Robert)
author:  Robert Barnard 
description: Witty and subtle character portrayals, against a substantial background of opera and theater, lift the latest suspense novel from prolific British author Barnard (The Bones in the Attic; Unholy Dying; etc.). Actress Caroline Fawley has seemingly found her final and perfect role: that of mother and mistress. She and her two teenage children, Alex and Stella, are happily ensconced in a splendid house in the village of Alderley, where they are joined weekends by self-made business tycoon Marius Fleetwood. Marius spends the week with his wife, Sheila, who's pregnant by another man. Caroline's oldest child, Olivia, is a rising opera singer about to make a much-anticipated debut in La Forza del Destino in nearby Leeds. Caroline's idyllic, if somewhat unconventional, life is not so much shattered as it is dismantled when Marius disappears on the opera's opening night and the veils of deception that shrouded their lives begin to be stripped away. Having spent much of her life creating illusions on film, Caroline must now come to terms with those created by others. Ingenious twists to a satisfying plot make for fine entertainment. FYI: An eight-time Edgar nominee, Barnard has won the Nero Wolfe, Anthony, Agatha and Macavity awards.<br />Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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  There is only one woman who can tame London’s most notorious heartbreaker
  
  Anna Barrett is more comfortable filling tankards at the White Heron Theater
  than shopping for corsets. Her “take no prisoners” attitude has earned her a
  tough reputation. Where she was once innocent and naive, now she’s vowed never
  to be ensnared by a man again. Except Robert Alden is not just any man....
  
  Gorgeous, dashing and decidedly reckless, this playwright has left a trail of
  broken hearts across London. He’s also a spy on a dangerous assignment. Anna
  cannot help getting embroiled in his mission—even if this seemingly untameable
  rogue is the last person with whom she should become involved....
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  God’s wounds, but it was another fight. And Anna was sure she could guess what
  the cause was, too.
  
  As if theater life was not already unpredictable enough, Anna thought wryly.
  Robert Alden could always be relied upon to liven things up.
  
  And that was why s