My Dearest Enemy (1998) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit

Write a ridiculously simplified synopsis.

Characters/People edit see section history

• Avery Thorne: Adventurer extraordinaire
• Lillian Bede: Suffragette
• Francesca Thorne: Add a description of this character.
• Evelyn Thorne
• Bernard Thorne
• Polly Makepeace
• Lily Bede
• Mr. Drummond
• Martin Camfield
• Teresa
• Karl
• Kathy
• John Neigl
• Horatio
• Mrs. Kettle
• Evie
• Brockway
• Mr. Benton
• Avery Thome
• Gerald
• Billy

Quotes edit see section history

• “Here is my heart, Avery,"she whispered. "Here is my past. Here is my future. They've been yours all along. I was just too blind to see.”

  Lillian Bede

• “Yes. It can be so wonderful. You think for one brilliant instant, that it is all worth it, that you have found your heart's desire, your Nirvana... your Eden, and you are so pure and innocent in taking your pleasure as you were wicked in seeing it. Of course, it's not Eden. It's not even the Promised Land. But just the echoes of the illusion keep you searching, looking... bargaining.”

  Francesca

• “Mill House is like a friend you knew as a child and aren't sure you still like, but then you meet again and you discover that the changes in the years have wrought in both of you rather than separate you, draw you even closer together. When I arrived, it wasns't the house I remember visiting as a boy. That was a place set in a green park. But the Mill House I discovered since I've been here is even better than a fairy tale castle. It's real. It's like a person, with quirks and oddities--the ivy that refuses to give up its place above the front door, the way the northeast wind causes the sitting room fire place to hum. It even has its own affectations like the oriel window and that ballroom on the second floor. It's simple and well built, solid and enduring, without the weight of too much heritage pressing down on its tennants, or the sheen newness masking its underlying quality. It's a place where one can live and work and rest. A home.”

  Avery Thorn

• “The boy's in love with you, Lily. <...> No. That's wrong. Not *in* love. He loves you. Simply. Deeply. Unhappily. <...> Sometimes you're only allowed one chance, only a second to decide the course of your life. Don't be distracted by your pride, Lily. Or your common sense. Or your past. Or anything that keeps you from . . . Eden”

  Francesca

• “If Miss Bede loves this chap, and he seems a decent chap, but she does nothing about it, it will be *wrong*. Love is not a reward, it is a chance. A chance to be something more. When that chance is offered to a man or a woman, it has to be accepted, no matter what the risks. Love is important, Evelyn.”

  Polly

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Mill House: set in Devon, England, Mill House is the inheritance of Avery Thorne kept in trust by Lilian Bede through a competition that its previous owner bestowed on the two.
• London
• England
• Devon
• Africa
• Harrow
• India

Organizations edit see section history

• Women's Coalition: a group pushing for societal changes, including the right to vote. One of its founding members was Polly Makepeace and Lilly Bede was nominated as its secretary.

First Sentence edit see section history

Series & Lists edit see section history

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Connie Brockway (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Awards edit see section history

• RITA Award (1999: Best Long Historical Romance)

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
• Dewey: 813.54

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Add a note to help parents select a book for a child.

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Romance › Authors, A-Z › ( B ) › Brockway, Connie
• Books › Romance › Historical › England
• Books › Literature & Fiction

More Books Like This edit see section history