Banners of Silk

Successful in life but not love… Louise Vernet was raised in the slums of Paris, coming of age amid the splendor and corruption of the Second Empire. She ruled the world of fashion, clothing the most fabled women of title and pleasure in a society where even sin had to have style. Pierre de Gand, godson of the Emperor himself, taught Louise Vernet what it was to love and be loved. But it was all destroyed in a shattering act of betrayal. Robert Prestbury, an Englishman who claimed to be a gentleman, lured Louise into a Victorian marriage. It was a union that trapped her like a vice as he used her for his profit and tormented her for his pleasure. Will Russell nurtured Louise’s genius and offered her the financial backing that made her fortune. It wasn’t long before her debt to him mounted beyond what she could pay without gambling her heart. There were many men in Louise Vernet’s life who fed her ambition and passion — but where was the one who could give her happiness…? Will she ever get her happy ending? Sweeping from the Paris of Louis Napoleon to the England of Queen Victoria, and from the depths of despair to the heights of joy and fulfilment, this is the unforgettable saga of a woman of daring and destiny — and the dazzling world of French haute couture she helped create. Praise for Rosalind Laker ‘Dazzling and glamorous…a compelling heroine, a sweeping plot…sure to please fans of a woman of substance’ – Publishers Weekly ‘Glittering, glamorous, compelling!’ – Publishers Weekly ‘Fascinating, romantic, well-written. Parisian fashion at its zenith.’ – Fort Wayne News-Sentinel ‘An absorbing novel … an exciting journey through the world of silks and satins in the days of Prince Louis Napoleon.’ – Cleveland Press Rosalind Laker and her husband live in Sussex, England, and have a second home in Norway: a four-hundred-year-old cottage in the mountains, overlooking a peaceful valley and pine forest. Mrs. Laker is also the author of novels of romantic suspense, The Smuggler’s Bride and Ride The Blue Riband. She has also written a trilogy which includes Warwyck Woman, Claudine’s Daughter and Warwyck’s Choice.