Mimi and her husband, Ralph, have left social climbing, pushy parenting, and their marital problems behind them in London in favor of perfect, bucolic tranquility. Or so they thought. What should be rural heaven turns out to be just as tricky to navigate as Notting Hill, even with Mimi's new best friend Rose -- Dorset's answer to Martha Stewart -- by her side. While Honeyborne is thankfully free of prestigious preschools with waiting lists that begin in utero, it has its own fierce brand of competition. Without a helipad for trophy guests, an organic farm shop, and a bottom that looks good in jodhpurs, Mimi is at a distinct disadvantage. And that's just the start of her problems. Mimi also has a secret. Can she keep it? With a gimlet eye for telling details and human foibles, Rachel Johnson has crafted a novel that is fresh, hilarious, and irresistibly funny -- a brilliant slice of social satire with surprising depth and heart.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1859. The publishing house Anatiposi publishes historical books as reprints. Due to their age, these books may have missing pages or inferior quality. Our aim is to preserve these books and make them available to the public so that they do not get lost.

Publisher Description

Shire Hell is the hilarious sequel to Rachel Johnson's brilliant novel Notting Hell in which Mimi and Ralph have managed to escape the city and move to the idyllic Dorset countryside, but have they moved out of the frying pan and into the fire? **Winner of the Literary Review's infamous Bad Sex in Fiction Award in 2008** Mimi and Ralph have left social climbing, pushy parenting and their marital problems behind them in London, and moved west to the bucolic green depths of the country. Or so they though. Yes, there's mud and masses of fresh air, plenty of handsome hayseeds and there's Rose, Mimi's new best friend and Dorset's answer to Martha Stewart. But what should be Shire Heaven is, it turns out, just as tricky to navigate as Notting Hell. There's low-level conflict between the racehorses in vintage/Diesel/Ralph Lauren and the brood mares in Barbour/Boden, there's guerrilla warfare between the landowners and eco-warriors and naked hostility between Old Money, New Money and No Money. Yes, in Honeybourne, if you don't have: 1. A landscaped garden with 1,000 acres (minimum) of prime land2. A helipad for your trophy guests3. An organic farm shop selling sixteen sorts of home-made sausages4. Four pony-mad polo-playing children5. A Literary Festival in your mini-stately6. A bottom that looks smackable in jodhpurs Then, well...you're Mimi, basically. And that's just the start of her problems. Mimi also has a secret. But can she keep it? Rachel Johnson is known for her wickedly funny novels The Mummy Diaries and Notting Hell; also available from Penguin is her first non-fiction book A Diary of a Lady.

Scientific journal from Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust