A Daphne Du Maurier-esque chiller set on the mysterious Cornish coast, from the award-winning author of The Silent Companions.'Du Maurier-tastic' GUARDIAN'Deliciously sinister' HEAT 'A clever, creepy read' SUNDAY EXPRESS Consumption has ravaged Louise Pinecroft's family, leaving her and her father alone and heartbroken. But Dr Pinecroft has plans for a revolutionary experiment: convinced that sea air will prove to be the cure his wife and children needed, he arranges to house a group of prisoners suffering from the same disease in the cliffs beneath his new Cornish home. Forty years later, Hester Why arrives at Morvoren House to take up a position as nurse to the now partially paralysed and almost entirely mute Miss Pinecroft. Hester has fled to Cornwall to try and escape her past, but she soon discovers that her new home may be just as dangerous as her last...Laura Purcell's spine-chilling new novel, The Shape of Darkness, is out now!

Porcelain and bone china have fascinated patrons, collectors, and makers for centuries. This practical book looks at their composition, making methods, and decorative techniques, as well as glazes and firing processes. It examines their different characteristics and explains how designers have worked with these clays within the ceramic industry. This new edition includes a chapter introducing emerging technologies and new materials. This beautiful book gives an authoritative account of these enduring materials, which ceramicists enjoy so passionately.

Grace de Silva, a mother of five, struggles to hold her family and her crumbling marriage together as civil unrest stirs in Sri Lanka. Her husband is charming but shiftless, and her children are poised to pursue their dreams for the future. Jacob, her eldest, wants to leave home for England, while Frieda longs to remain in her homeland. Thornton, Grace’s favourite son, dreams of becoming a poet; his sister Alicia wants to be a concert pianist. But when Grace’s youngest son, Christopher, becomes embroiled in the political tensions tearing apart the country, this once happy family is suddenly fractured. As four of the siblings make their way to London, they become caught in a cultural clash between East and West, and life as they’ve known it changes forever.

Theodosia Browning serves tea and solves crimes in Charleston, a city steeped in tradition and treachery in the latest Tea Shop Mystery from New York Times bestselling author Laura Childs. It is Sunday afternoon, and Theodosia and Drayton are catering a formal tea at a hot-air balloon rally. The view aloft is not only stunning, they are also surrounded by a dozen other colorful hot-air balloons. But as the sky turns gray and the clouds start to boil up, a strange object zooms out of nowhere. It is a drone, and it appears to be buzzing around the balloons, checking them out. As Theodosia and Drayton watch, the drone, hovering like some angry, mechanized insect, deliberately crashes into the balloon next to them. An enormous, fiery explosion erupts, and everyone watches in horror as the balloon plummets to the earth, killing all three of its passengers. Sirens scream, first responders arrive, and Theodosia is interviewed by the police. During the interview she learns that one of the downed occupants was Don Kingsley, the CEO of a local software company, SyncSoft. Not only do the police suspect Kingsley as the primary target, they learn that he possessed a rare Revolutionary War Union Jack flag that several people were rabidly bidding on. Intrigued, Theodosia begins her own investigation. Was it the CEO's soon-to-be ex-wife, who is restoring an enormous mansion at no expense? The CEO's personal assistant, who also functioned as curator of his prized collection of Americana? Two rival antiques' dealers known for dirty dealing? Or was the killer the fiancée of one of Theodosia's dear friends, who turns out to be an employee—and whistle-blower—at SyncSoft? INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES AND TEA TIME TIPS!

A gothic tale set in a rambling house by the sea in which a maid cares for a mute old woman with a mysterious past, alongside her superstitious staff--from the author of The Silent Companions. A perfect spooky read! Consumption has ravaged Louise Pinecroft's family, leaving her and her father alone and heartbroken. But Dr. Pinecroft has plans for a revolutionary experiment: convinced that sea air will prove to be the cure his wife and children needed, he arranges to house a group of prisoners suffering from the disease in the caves beneath his new Cornish home. While he devotes himself to his controversial medical trials, Louise finds herself increasingly discomfited by the strange tales her new maid tells of the fairies that hunt the land, searching for those they can steal away to their realm. Forty years later, Hester arrives at Morvoren House to take up a position as nurse to the now partially paralyzed and mute Miss Pinecroft. Hester has fled to Cornwall to try to escape her past, but surrounded by superstitious staff enacting bizarre rituals, she soon discovers her new home may be just as dangerous as her last. Laura Purcell's THE SHAPE OF DARKNESS is now out from Penguin!

A full-color, illustrated handbook describing various patterns and pieces of English china, with identification information and approximate values.

Book III in Jim & Susan Harran's series is all-new, with no repeats from their first two books. Over 1,000 color photographs are included this time, and the book concentrates on cups and saucers that are readily available to collectors. An expanded section on cabinet cups and saucers is provided, and some of the categories from books I and II are again covered: late nineteenth and twentieth century European and American dinnerware, English bone china and earthenware cups and saucers, miniatures, and mustache cups. There are also two brand new categories in the book, Japanese cups and saucers and art glass cups and saucers made by the leading glass factories in Europe and the United States. A marks section, helpful appendix, and bibliography are once again included, as well as useful tips for dealers and collectors. 2007 values.

Set within a world that’s a magical echo of our own, Porcelain is the story of Child, an urchin, who leaves behind the cold streets of a snowy city when she climbs the high wall into the Porcelain Maker’s garden. The Porcelain Maker discovers Child trespassing but, amused by her audacity, he offers her the chance to stay. He’s a lonely man, kept company only by his alchemically-powered automata, and he and Child form an unlikely friendship. Shut off from the world beyond the wall, Child wants or needs for nothing as the Porcelain Maker heaps affection and luxury upon her, indulging her like a daughter. In return, she can do as she pleases, except for one command, one rule that must never be broken, she must not look behind the workshop door.

A straightforward, practical guide for those interested in the boundless possibilities of this ceramic technique. The book contains more than one hundred color illustrations, diagrams, and slip formulas, plus examples of the slipcast work of contemporary ceramicists from around the world.