Design, build, and program your own remarkable robots with JavaScript and open source hardware About This Book Learn how to leverage Johnny-Five's Read, Eval, Print Loop, and Event API to write robot code with JavaScript Unlock a world of exciting possibilities by hooking your JavaScript-programmed robots up to the internet and using external data and APIs Move your project code from the Arduino Uno to a multitude of other robotics platforms Who This Book Is For If you've worked with Arduino before or are new to electronics and would like to try writing sketches in JavaScript, then this book is for you! Basic knowledge of JavaScript and Node.js will help you get the most out of this book. What You Will Learn Familiarise yourself with Johnny-Five Read, Eval, and Print Loop (REPL) to modify and debug robotics code in real time Build robots with basic output devices to create projects that light up, make noise, and more Create projects with complex output devices, and employ the Johnny-Five API to simplify the use of components that require complex interfaces, such as I2C Make use of sensors and input devices to allow your robotics projects to survey the world around them and accept input from users Use the Sensor and Motor objects to make it much easier to move your robotics projects Learn about the Animation API that will allow you to program complex movements using timing and key frames Bring in other devices to your Johnny-Five projects, such as USB devices and remotes Connect your Johnny-Five projects to external APIs and create your own Internet of Things! In Detail There has been a rapid rise in the use of JavaScript in recent times in a variety of applications, and JavaScript robotics has seen a rise in popularity too. Johnny-Five is a framework that gives NodeBots a consistent API and platform across several hardware systems. This book walks you through basic robotics projects including the physical hardware builds and the JavaScript code for them. You'll delve into the concepts of Johnny-Five and JS robotics. You'll learn about various components such as Digital GPIO pins, PWM output pins, Sensors, servos, and motors to be used with Johnny-Five along with some advanced components such as I2C, and SPI. You will learn to connect your Johnny-Five robots to internet services and other NodeBots to form networks. By the end of this book, you will have explored the benefits of the Johnny-Five framework and the many devices it unlocks. Style and approach This step-by-step guide to the Johnny-Five ecosystem is explained in a conversational style, packed with examples and tips. Each chapter also explores the Johnny-Five documentation to enable you to start exploring the API on your own.

Explore architectural approaches to building Data Lakes that ingest, index, manage, and analyze massive amounts of data using Big Data technologies About This Book Comprehend the intricacies of architecting a Data Lake and build a data strategy around your current data architecture Efficiently manage vast amounts of data and deliver it to multiple applications and systems with a high degree of performance and scalability Packed with industry best practices and use-case scenarios to get you up-and-running Who This Book Is For This book is for architects and senior managers who are responsible for building a strategy around their current data architecture, helping them identify the need for a Data Lake implementation in an enterprise context. The reader will need a good knowledge of master data management, information lifecycle management, data governance, data product design, data engineering, and systems architecture. Also required is experience of Big Data technologies such as Hadoop, Spark, Splunk, and Storm. What You Will Learn Identify the need for a Data Lake in your enterprise context and learn to architect a Data Lake Learn to build various tiers of a Data Lake, such as data intake, management, consumption, and governance, with a focus on practical implementation scenarios Find out the key considerations to be taken into account while building each tier of the Data Lake Understand Hadoop-oriented data transfer mechanism to ingest data in batch, micro-batch, and real-time modes Explore various data integration needs and learn how to perform data enrichment and data transformations using Big Data technologies Enable data discovery on the Data Lake to allow users to discover the data Discover how data is packaged and provisioned for consumption Comprehend the importance of including data governance disciplines while building a Data Lake In Detail A Data Lake is a highly scalable platform for storing huge volumes of multistructured data from disparate sources with centralized data management services. It eliminates the need for up-front modeling and rigid data structures by allowing schema-less writes. Data Lakes make it possible to ask complex far-reaching questions to find out hidden data patterns and relationships. This book explores the potential of Data Lakes and explores architectural approaches to building data lakes that ingest, index, manage, and analyze massive amounts of data using batch and real-time processing frameworks. It guides you on how to go about building a Data Lake that is managed by Hadoop and accessed as required by other Big Data applications such as Spark, Storm, Hive, and so on, to create an environment in which data from different sources can be meaningfully brought together and analyzed. Data Lakes can be viewed as having three capabilities—intake, management, and consumption. This book will take readers through each of these processes of developing a Data Lake and guide them (using best practices) in developing these capabilities. It will also explore often ignored, yet crucial considerations while building Data Lakes, with the focus on how to architect data governance, security, data quality, data lineage tracking, metadata management, and semantic data tagging. By the end of this book, you will have a good understanding of building a Data Lake for Big Data. You will be able to utilize Data Lakes for efficient and easy data processing and analytics. Style and approach Data Lake Development with Big Data provides architectural approaches to building a Data Lake. It follows a use case-based approach where practical implementation scenarios of each key component are explained. It also helps you understand how these use cases are implemented in a Data Lake. The chapters are organized in a way that mimics the sequential data flow evidenced in a Data Lake.

Take your expertise to the next level by unraveling various techniques to customize TFS 2015About This BookLearn how to efficiently modify your TFS-specific dashboards for complex server pluginsFind out the pros and cons of various extension points and customizations in TFSA fast-paced guide with highly concentrated information on TFS customizations Who This Book Is For This book is intended for anyone with experience with TFS, and in particular, those intermediate users who want to add more value to their organization by making its TFS users more productive. The book requires basic coding skills.What You Will LearnCustomize TFS 2015 dashboard and administer various componentsConfigure board cards, swim lanes, and columnsExplore the types of changes that can be made on the TFS process templatesCreate your own custom control for the Web and client work item formsBuild up new check-in policiesGet to grips with your personal server plugins and their usesCustomize both XAML builds and the new build systemSchedule jobs for more complicated business rules to run on a scheduleExtend your TFS possibilities with service hooks and VSO extensions In Detail Team Foundation Server is an efficacious collaboration tools that will allow you to share code, track records, software, all in a single package. Integrate it with your existing IDE or editor and let your team work in a flexible environment that adapts to projects of all shapes and sizes. Explore what gives you the edge over other developers by knowing the tips and quick fixes of customizing TFS. Effectively minimize the time users spend interacting with TFS so that they can be more productive. In this book you will quickly cover lots of TFS extension points, from the very basic task of customizing and configuring dashboards to customizing automated builds and check-in policies. You will learn how to create dashboards in TFS 2015, as well as add tiles, graphs, and more useful modifications. You'll perform customizations that make TFS work for you by streamlining your team’s boards. You'll cast modifications to the process template and learn the tips and tricks required to make efficient and valuable uses of your team’s board. From team-specific dashboards to complex server plugins, everything is covered in this concentrated guide to aid your knowledge. Delving deep, this book covers the pros and cons of check-in policies, as well as their proper debugging and deployment strategies. After that you will learn about advanced XAML builds and TFS jobs to further experiment with the activities of your jobs on your system. Finally, you will learn about service hooks and the amazing utility of .VSO extensions to help you create new extensions and explore new levels of customization.Style and approach This is an easy-to-follow guide with clearly explained and demonstrated examples.

Master GUI programming in Tkinter as you design, implement, and deliver ten real-world applications from start to finish About This Book Conceptualize and build state-of-art GUI applications with Tkinter Tackle the complexity of just about any size GUI application with a structured and scalable approach A project-based, practical guide to get hands-on into Tkinter GUI development Who This Book Is For Software developers, scientists, researchers, engineers, students, or programming hobbyists with basic familiarity in Python will find this book interesting and informative. People familiar with basic programming constructs in other programming language can also catch up with some brief reading on Python. No GUI programming experience is expected. What You Will Learn Get to know the basic concepts of GUI programming, such as Tkinter top-level widgets, geometry management, event handling, using callbacks, custom styling, and dialogs Create apps that can be scaled in size or complexity without breaking down the core Write your own GUI framework for maximum code reuse Build apps using both procedural and OOP styles, understanding the strengths and limitations of both styles Learn to structure and build large GUI applications based on Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture Build multithreaded and database-driven apps Create apps that leverage resources from the network Learn basics of 2D and 3D animation in GUI applications Develop apps that can persist application data with object serialization and tools such as configparser In Detail Tkinter is the built-in GUI package that comes with standard Python distributions. It is a cross-platform package, which means you build once and deploy everywhere. It is simple to use and intuitive in nature, making it suitable for programmers and non-programmers alike. This book will help you master the art of GUI programming. It delivers the bigger picture of GUI programming by building real-world, productive, and fun applications such as a text editor, drum machine, game of chess, media player, drawing application, chat application, screen saver, port scanner, and many more. In every project, you will build on the skills acquired in the previous project and gain more expertise. You will learn to write multithreaded programs, network programs, database driven programs and more. You will also get to know the modern best practices involved in writing GUI apps. With its rich source of sample code, you can build upon the knowledge gained with this book and use it in your own projects in the discipline of your choice. Style and approach An easy-to-follow guide, full of hands-on examples of real-world GUI programs. The first chapter is a must read as it explains most of the things you need to get started with writing GUI programs with Tkinter. Each subsequent chapter is a stand-alone project that discusses some aspects of GUI programming in detail. These chapters can be read sequentially or randomly depending upon the readers experience with Python.

Build mesmerizing visualizations, analytics, and logs from your data using Elasticsearch, Logstash, and Kibana About This Book Solve all your data analytics problems with the ELK stack Explore the power of Kibana4 search and visualizations built over Elasticsearch queries and learn about the features and plugins of Logstash Develop a complete data pipeline using the ELK stack Who This Book Is For If you are a developer or DevOps engineer interested in building a system that provides amazing insights and business metrics out of data sources, of various formats and types, using the open source technology stack that ELK provides, then this book is for you. Basic knowledge of Unix or any programming language will be helpful to make the most out of this book. What You Will Learn Install, configure, and run Elasticsearch, Logstash, and Kibana Understand the need for log analytics and the current challenges in log analysis Build your own data pipeline using the ELK stack Familiarize yourself with the key features of Logstash and the variety of input, filter, and output plugins it provides Build your own custom Logstash plugin Create actionable insights using charts, histograms, and quick search features in Kibana4 Understand the role of Elasticsearch in the ELK stack In Detail The ELK stack—Elasticsearch, Logstash, and Kibana, is a powerful combination of open source tools. Elasticsearch is for deep search and data analytics. Logstash is for centralized logging, log enrichment, and parsing. Kibana is for powerful and beautiful data visualizations. In short, the Elasticsearch ELK stack makes searching and analyzing data easier than ever before. This book will introduce you to the ELK (Elasticsearch, Logstash, and Kibana) stack, starting by showing you how to set up the stack by installing the tools, and basic configuration. You’ll move on to building a basic data pipeline using the ELK stack. Next, you’ll explore the key features of Logstash and its role in the ELK stack, including creating Logstash plugins, which will enable you to use your own customized plugins. The importance of Elasticsearch and Kibana in the ELK stack is also covered, along with various types of advanced data analysis, and a variety of charts, tables ,and maps. Finally, by the end of the book you will be able to develop full-fledged data pipeline using the ELK stack and have a solid understanding of the role of each of the components. Style and approach This book is a step-by-step guide, complete with various examples to solve your data analytics problems by using the ELK stack to explore and visualize data.

"?Do you really think you could work as I had to work to keep your mother from starvationMy dear child, you have lived in the lap of luxury all your life. You could no more earn a penny piece than fly over the moon!Kasia?s father laughs scornfully. This is justification for his decision to marry her off to a man she does not love purely to save her from fortune hunters. So Kasia runs away to prove him wrong by working as Governess to the Duke of Dreghorne?s unruly nephew. As Kasia gains the trust of the child, she earns first the respect and then the growing affection of the Lord. But when she and the boy are kidnapped the stakes are irrevocably raised and the Duke?s reputation as a Dare-Devil will be tested one final time... Will Kasia?s father forgive herWill Fate finally unite the hearts of Kasia and the Dare-Devil Duke?"

Destitute after the death of her beloved Papa, Carmela is miserable working as Nanny to the brattish children of the local vicar. So when her closest friend Felicity asks her to take her place in the home of her guardian, the dictatorial Earl of Galeston, she nervously agrees. The subterfuge is necessary to ensure Felicity can marry the love of her life – and possible firstly because none of Felicity’s feuding family have set eyes on her since she was a child... And secondly because both young women are blue-eyed, blonde and beautiful. The Earl’s ancestral home is awe-inspiring – but it is the Earl himself who makes the greatest impression on Carmela. Growing to appreciate the profound kindness behind his steely fa?ade, she falls deeply, utterly in love... But can true love live when it’s based on a lieThe Earl finds the answer in his heart when Carmela’s life – and any hope of love – is at stake...

In the loveless household of General Sir Frederick and Lady Emily Osmund and their empty-headed twin daughters, begrudgingly adopted niece Azalea is little more than a wallflower. And all because her kind, heroic and beloved father died in a manner they wrongly consider scandalous – and because her mother was Russian! ‘You must pay the price of your father’s sins and what happened in India you will take to your grave with sealed lips’, her uncle says, as if to seal her fate. When the General is posted to Hong Kong, Azalea is thrilled but there, as always, she is cast aside and abused. Only the handsome, dashing but imperious Lord Sheldon shows any interest in her – until to her aunt and uncle’s disgust she’s befriended by a kind Chinese family. But her joy at learning of their culture and customs is short-lived. Kidnapped by pirates, she faces death and worse. Is there any hope now that she’ll find true love and a life of her own ?

The death of her beloved father, has left artistic and idealistic Tempera and her stunning, scatterbrained stepmother Lady Rothley bereft not only of love but also of money. So when Lady Rothley?s womanly wiles attract an invitation from none other than the Duke of Chevingham to join him in the South of France, it?s a Godsend. At last the prospect of a handsome, aristocratic suitor for Tempera?s Belle-m?re who would keep them both in the style to which they would dearly love to be re-acquainted! To arrive without a lady?s maid is inconceivable to afford one impossible. So Tempera escorts her Belle-m?re in the guise of a servant and attempts to coach her in fine art, the Duke?s consuming passion. While her stepmother flirts with C?te D?Azur society Tempera contents herself with capturing the local flora?s beauty on canvas. And when the flair she inherited from her father captivates and mystifies the magnificent Duke, something stirs in Tempera that she has never felt before. Is it loveOr is it betrayal?

Anastasia is about to be married, which should be the most exciting day of any young girl?s life. Pretty, impulsive and wise beyond her years it seems that the young Princess will make an ideal bride for one lucky man. There is only one flaw in the wedding plans she is not in love with her bridegroom. Commanded to marry by Queen Victoria, Anastasia is horror struck at the thought of an arranged marriage. Having dreamt of true love since childhood, she despairs that a marriage based on political allegiance can ever be a happy one. Especially when her bridegroom, the handsome King of Maurona, is reputed to have a preference for anything French, including the seductive wife of Maurona's French ambassador. Determined to do her duty, Anastasia prepares to meet her future husband just days before their wedding. The roar of the assembled crowd tells her that she has won the love and approval of the people, but will she ever have the love of their KingAs passions and political intrigue simmer amidst the idyllic palaces and sun-kissed olive groves of Maurona, Anastasia decides that this is a challenge she must rise to. As well as ensuring British protection for the tiny Principality from the greedy hands of neighbouring France, she determines to make her marriage a success. But can an innocent English rose compete with the dark smoldering beauty of the sensual Comtesse le GranmontTwo women, one man and only one winner but as danger grows ever closer will the King realise who his real friends are, and which woman should be at his side, in time to save his country?

Have you ever been so desperate that you would do literally anything for moneyThis is the tragic situation Giselda finds herself in, with no money for an operation her younger brother desperately needs to save his life, and no one to turn to. Ground down by poverty she plucks up her courage to offer the only thing she has of value her purity. Choking back her pride and knowing that she is about to forfeit his respect, she approaches her wealthy employer, the handsome Earl of Lyndhurst, who is recovering from his injuries sustained in the Battle of Waterloo. Appalled that this frail and innocent young girl should be faced with such a terrible decision, he vows to find a way to help her without offending her dignity. He knows she would never accept his charity, and she refuses to confide in him the reasons for her family's poverty. Intrigued by the air of mystery about a girl of obvious quality reduced to the role of maidservant, the Earl decides to discover why a beautiful young woman of strong principles has been reduced to such extreme measures. Discovering her to have gentle hands and wonderful nursing skills he employs her as his private nurse and turns his sharp mind to uncovering her secrets and learns his own lessons in love in the process.

Bereaved of her beloved father at sixteen, and now her mother, Belinda Wyncombe?s only comfort is that she still has the family?s home. Until she finds her irresponsible stepfather, Captain D?Arcy Rowland, has squandered their money and fraudulently mortgaged the house. This means he faces jail while Belinda faces penury, unless she complies with her stepfather?s shameful scheme to gain and ruthlessly exploit the trust of the famed adventurer ?LuckyLogan, who has made a fortune with his legendary ability to find diamonds, gold and other precious metals wherever he travels. Every fibre of Belinda?s being recoils from such deceit more so when she finds that Marcus ?LuckyLogan is not the greedy fortune hunter of her imagining but a generous, handsome and heroic man. When murderous thugs come for Marcus in the dead of night, it is Belinda who raises the alarm and saves his life. And when he kisses her,Belinda is suddenly, utterly, in love but surely her love is doomed by her deceit?

Following the sudden death of his rakish father, Seldon Burn unexpectedly inherits the title of Duke of Otterburn. Returning to the family estate, he swiftly discovers that the title is the only thing he has inherited – along with a mountain of his father’s debts and nothing to pay them with. A brave and proud soldier, nothing has prepared the new Duke for the devastation to the family coffers caused by his late father’s love of lavish entertainment, Gaiety Girls and good living. Meeting with the family Solicitor, the Duke is horrified to discover the Ducal properties are crumbling, everything of value is entailed and even the racehorses have not been schooled properly. Desperately seeking to rebuild the family fortune and honourably fulfil his duty of care to the old and infirm of the village, his cousin Edith, a sophisticated Socialite, offers a solution. She suggests that he follows in the footsteps of many an impoverished English aristocrat and marries a wealthy American heiress – she even has a fitting bride in mind from her recent visit to New York. With no viable alternative and a pressing demand for money, a wedding is hastily arranged – but will the English traditions of generations of the Burn’s family be overshadowed by the razzle-dazzle of the Duke’s mother-in-law to be, Mrs. Vandevilt, the renowned New York hostessHorrified at being married for his title and not love, the Duke is so angry that he barely considers the feelings of his young and vulnerable bride. Meanwhile, the lovely Magnolia Vandevilt, one of the richest heiresses in America, is equally disgusted and contemptuous of a man who is marrying her only for her money. Joined together in holy matrimony, can this marriage of convenience ever be more than a disappointment and battleground as both parties dream of the love they might have had?

Teresa is everything her father Sir Hubert Bryan could wish for – clever, loyal and sharp-witted. The only problem is that she was born a girl and not the son he hoped would follow in his footsteps. But Teresa sees no reason why her gender should prevent her from being an asset to him in his mighty shipping empire, and tells him so. Sir Hubert is astounded at her request – he is far more concerned that his beautiful daughter will fall prey to the scavengers and fortune hunters amongst London Society. Having made his own vast fortune the hard way he is only too aware of what men will do to have access to the kind of wealth his lovely daughter will inherit. So when his dear friend the Marquess of Walstoke begs for help to prevent his heir Harry, the Earl of Lanbourne, making a disastrous marriage to a notorious actress he sees an opportunity to help his friend, and set a test of intelligence for his daughter too. Together, the two men hatch a plot to ‘save’ Harry from himself and prevent him from ruining his life. Promising her work in the family business, Teresa agrees to her father’s pleas to play a central character in a daring deception. But Harry is not a fool, and astounded at his uncle’s lack of faith in him he storms off to Bourne Hall, his family estate, taking Teresa with him. Teresa is torn; she loves her father but the longer she spends with Harry the more her loyalties are tested. Experiencing strange new feelings, she begins to have her own reasons to make sure that Harry puts the past behind him. But are these reciprocatedOr is Harry destined to shake the foundations of Society by making his flame-haired actress the new Countess of Lanbourne?

While staying at Lady Merrill’s French Riviera villa, flame haired and beautiful American heiress Nevada van Arden passes her time by casually breaking the hearts of her many ardent suitors – particularly that of young David, Lord Merrill. When his uncle, intrepid explorer and diplomat Tyrone Strome, overhears her cruel humiliation of his lovelorn nephew, he resolves to teach this ‘vixen’ a lesson – and save David from his misery. Tyrone Strome abducts Nevada, spiriting her away in his luxury yacht to Morocco. There the reluctant voyager, swaddled in native clothing, is terrified by the perils of the Sahara and its nomadic tribesmen. But, as they flee from certain death or worse, they find sanctuary in a beautiful hidden valley, a second Garden of Eden, where to Nevada’s surprise, love begins to blossom in the desert.

While staying at Lady Merrill’s French Riviera villa, flame haired and beautiful American heiress Nevada van Arden passes her time by casually breaking the hearts of her many ardent suitors – particularly that of young David, Lord Merrill. When his uncle, intrepid explorer and diplomat Tyrone Strome, overhears her cruel humiliation of his lovelorn nephew, he resolves to teach this ‘vixen’ a lesson – and save David from his misery. Tyrone Strome abducts Nevada, spiriting her away in his luxury yacht to Morocco. There the reluctant voyager, swaddled in native clothing, is terrified by the perils of the Sahara and its nomadic tribesmen. But, as they flee from certain death or worse, they find sanctuary in a beautiful hidden valley, a second Garden of Eden, where to Nevada’s surprise, love begins to blossom in the desert.

The Marquis of Stowe is on the verge of a dreadful scandal that threatens to ruin both him and the lovely, but married, Lady Burnham. Knowing that their secret is out and that her husband will be plotting revenge, the Marquis casts about desperately for a way to avoid the scandal, which he knows is inevitable despite the wealth and good looks that have made him a darling of the Beau Monde. Seeing a perfect solution, he decides to offer marriage to the Duke of Dawlish’s daughter and leaves for the country. Surely the Duke will be grateful for his daughter to make such a matchThere is only one problem – marrying the Duke’s daughter might provide a way out of his current dilemma, but having met her the Marquis is dismayed by her dullness. Horrified at the sacrifice he would have to make, he suddenly realises that there is another way to put the cuckolded husband off the scent and preserve his freedom – as long as he can find a young woman happy to go along with his seemingly foolproof idea. Eager to renew his acquaintance with Ajanta Tiverton, the beautiful daughter of a local Vicar, the Marquis hurtles to the Vicarage to tell her his plan and the role that only she can play. Certain that this will get him out of immediate danger and sure that he can offer an attractive financial incentive to help the impoverished family, it seems that if their daring charade is successful everyone involved will benefit. All Ajanta has to do is play her part and all will be well. Swept into a rich luxurious world they have never known before, the Marquis sets out to charm the Vicar and Ajanta’s sisters. Delighted by their new surroundings and excited by the attention of the eloquent Marquis they cannot believe the happiness Ajanta has bought into their lives. But the Marquis is not the only one masking the truth – Ajanta too has a family secret she would prefer not to share and, as the deception continues and feelings run high, she cannot help but worry what will happen in the final Act of their play and where the curtain will fall.

The Duke of Buckhurst, handsome, wealthy, a brilliant horseman and known to everyone as ‘Buck’ has sworn that he will never marry. Cutting a swathe through the sophisticated beauties of the Beau Monde, who are drawn to his sardonic charm like social butterflies to a bright light, he has only one requirement for his amours – that they are safely married to someone else. That is until he discovers that his heir apparent, his dissolute cousin Edmund, has married an actress. Horrified that a common showgirl will become the next Duchess and bring his family name into disrepute, the Duke is forced by his family into finding a bride. Bored by the very thought of being tied to a young, inexperienced young woman, he sets his loyal sisters the daunting task of choosing a suitable wife within the month, so that he can be married before the Royal races at Ascot. With time running out, Buck’s sisters are in despair – until they meet Lady Samala Wynn, the daughter of the honorable but impoverished Earl of Kenwyn. Lovely, innocent and angel-faced, she seems the ideal bride, but can they persuade her to marry their rakish brother, BuckFor Samala is a young woman with her own ideas about marriage – and they include love and romance. But can a marriage between two strangers, built on a foundation of the groom’s resentment and the bride’s family duty, ever bring happiness and loveAs the Duke, furious at the prospect of losing his freedom, dallies with the latest married woman to fall all too eagerly into his arms and Samala worries how her beloved father will cope living alone in his crumbling estate, it seems that this is a match that is doomed to bring nothing but sadness.

Lady Loretta's father, the well-respected Lord Lieutenant of the County, is doing his best to force her into marriage with the Marquis of Sauerdun, the son of a good friend. Whilst her father thinks he is making a good match for his beloved daughter, she is aghast at the thought of an arranged marriage and vows she will only marry for love. Searching her mind for a way to stay free to pursue the kind of love she has always dreamt of, she happens upon a good plan. What if she could prove to her straight-laced father that the man he means for her is not only an unsuitable husband, but a philandering rake tooWith the Marquis’s reputation for love affairs with beautiful, seductive and preferably married women well known in Society, surely this would not prove too difficultSeizing upon this last ditch attempt to stay unmarried, Lady Loretta devises a scheme to prove to her father that her intended is an unrepentant heartbreaker. Throwing herself upon the charity and good nature of her notorious cousin Ingrid, whose scandalous love affair has already rocked polite English Society, she heads for Paris alone. Delighted at how quickly she has escaped and enjoying the freedom of her adventure, Loretta determines to find out more about the Marquis and wastes no time in seeking him out. But Fate has its own plans for this spirited English beauty and before too long she is caught up in a web of deceit that threatens to change her life forever.

Although beautiful young Laetitia is a Princess, she and her family lead a life more befitting paupers. Despising them for the gypsy blood that runs in their veins, the Grand Duchess, their cruel Cousin Augustina, bullies and oppresses them just as she persecutes the Romany people and banishes them from Ovenstadt’s Capital. If only Laetitia could call upon some ancient gypsy spell to make things right. Worse still, Laetitia hears that the hateful woman has arranged for her daughter, Princess Stephanie, to marry King Viktor of Zvotana, despite her love for Laetitia’s handsome brother Kyril. Determined to save Stephanie from a loveless marriage, Laetitia enlists the help of a Romany Voivode and his powerful gypsy magic and then meets the King disguised as a gypsy princess – only to find herself enraptured by the Voivode’s spell and filled with a love too powerful to be denied –

Although Chandra’s father Professor Barnard Wardell is the world’s most distinguished Sanskrit scholar, his earnings are barely enough to support him, his daughter and their faithful servant Ellen. So when the dashing Lord Damon Frome invites him on a highly paid expedition to Nepal it is a Godsend. But, having spent much of his advance, the Professor is struck down by a heart attack. So, to the fury of the woman-hating Lord Frome, demure young Chandra arrives in Nepal in her father’s place. An arduous journey through Nepal’s mountains follows, during which Chandra is entrusted with a sacred treasure by a mysterious wise man. Soon the haughty Lord and the scholarly girl find another treasure that cannot be measured in money – the precious love that lies hidden in the Himalayan clouds.