Adriana Colombo Book order (chronological)

Five linked families live out their destinies as the world is shaken by tyranny and war in the mid-twentieth century

Escape into a world of exotic intrigue and romance. A breathtaking and absorbing novel set in Malaya propelled by the superb storytelling instinct of the author of THE RICE MOTHER. Parvathi leaves her native Ceylon for Malaya and an arranged marriage to a wealthy businessman. But her father has cheated, supplying a different girl's photograph, and Kasu Marimuthu, furious, threatens to send her home in disgrace. Gradually husband and wife reach an accommodation, and the naïve young girl learns to assume the air of sophisticated mistress of a luxurious estate. She even adopts his love child and treats Rubini as her own daughter – a generous act which is rewarded by a long-wished-for son. But it is a life without passion, and Parvathi dreams of loving – and being loved – with complete abandon. When the Japanese invade Malaya, in WW2, they requisition the estate. Marimuthu dies and Parvathi is forced to accept the protection of the Japanese general who has robbed her of her home. For the first time, she experiences sexual ecstasy. And gradually, her sworn enemy becomes the lover she has always yearned for . . .

"Broken-hearted by his wife's infidelity, Nicholas leaves the comfortable life he has known in Dublin for a ramshackle house in rural Cavan. There, the house seems to speak to him, and he catches glimpses of a presence - a fragile lady in blue, a woman trapped in the memory of one regret." "June Fanning came to Cavan from England in 1941 with her Irish husband, the solid but unimaginative Robert. She knows she should be grateful for a release from her previous existence in wartime London but June is a stranger in a foreign land, an outsider. And then Robert leaves to fight in the war. Outside the house lies the orchard, trees ripe with blood red hearts, and on the other side of it is temptation." --Book Jacket.

Four weddings. Three disgruntled ex-boyfriends. Two very effective chicken fillet boob-enhancers. And one gorgeous man. It's tough being a bridesmaidWith less than an hour to go before her best friend, Grace, is to walk down the aisle, Evie is attempting to fulfil her most important bridesmaid role: to deposit the bride at the start-line at the appointed time. But with a bride famed for her chaotic sense of time, and the bride's daughter busy mashing Molton Brown into the expensive hotel carpet, minus underwear, the odds are stacked against her . . . At least she has her new 'chicken fillet' boob-enhancers to make her feel special. That is, until these are spotted poking over the top of her dress. So spotted by Jack - the most ruggedly attractive man Evie has ever laid eyes on. Evie is twenty-seven; a sparkly, down-to-earth journalist. She has never been in love and has started to fret that she never will be. Small wonder, then, that the prospect of being bridesmaid at no less than three impending weddings is one that fills her with trepidation. Things get worse when Evie learns that Jack is her friend Valentina's date. Valentina is beautiful, shallow and self-obsessed. Her dates tend to be mirror-images. Which can mean only one thing: Jack can't possibly be as good as he seems. But as they sit together talking late into the night, Evie finds herself yearning to believe he's all real.

When the spirit of Lara's great-aunt Sadie-a feisty, demanding girl with firm ideas about fashion, love, and the right way to dance-mysteriously appears, she has one last request: Lara must find a missing necklace that had been in Sadie's possession for more than seventy-five years, and Sadie cannot rest without it. Never mind that Lara has her own problems--which Sadie could care less about. Will this sparring duo ever find what they're after?

There's Aibileen, raising her seventeenth white child and nursing the hurt caused by her own son's tragic death; Minny, whose cooking is nearly as sassy as her tongue, and white Miss Skeeter, home from college, who wants to why her beloved maid has disappeared.

Lexi wakes up in a hospital bed after a car accident, thinking it's 2004 and she's a twenty-five-year old with crooked teeth and a disastrous love life.But, to her disbelief, she learns it's actually 2007 - she's twenty-eight, her teeth are straight, she's the boss of her department - and she's married! To a good-looking millionaire! How on earth did she land the dream life?! She can't believe her luck - especially when she sees her stunning new home. She's sure she'll have a fantastic marriage once she gets to know her husband again. He's drawn up a 'manual of our marriage', which should help. But as she learns more about her new self, chinks start to appear in the perfect life. All her old colleagues hate her. A rival is after her job. Then a dishevelled, sexy guy turns up... and lands a new bombshell. What the **** happened to her? Will she ever remember? And what will happen if she does? Everybody loves Sophie Kinsella: "I almost cried with laughter" Daily Mail "Hilarious . . . you'll laugh and gasp on every page" Jenny Colgan "Properly mood-altering . . . funny, fast and farcical. I loved it" Jojo Moyes "A superb tale. Five stars!" Heat