Shades of Milk and Honey
Contents (55)
- Shades of Milk and Honey
- Table of Contents
- One
- Jasmine and Honeysuckle
- Two
- Doves and Roses
- Three
- Nymphs at the Ball
- Four
- Neighbours and Salts
- Five
- Art and Glamour
- Six
- Strawberries and Bonnets
- Seven
- Nymph on the Hill
- Eight
- Flowers and Novels
- Nine
- A Tonic in the Maze
- Ten
- The Broken Bridge
- Eleven
- A Dinner Invitation
- Twelve
- Beast and Beauty
- Thirteen
- The Beast Upset
- Fourteen
- Curiosity Unrequited
- Fifteen
- A Book and a Gift
- Sixteen
- Change and Fury
- Seventeen
- Leaves and Confession
- Eighteen
- Order and Disarray
- Nineteen
- Trust and Distractions
- Twenty
- Packing and Discovery
- Twenty-one
- Wolves and Muses
- Twenty-two
- Leaving the Maze
- Twenty-three
- The Box on the Mantel
- Twenty-four
- Duels and Deals
- Twenty-five
- Snake in the Grass
- Twenty-six
- Solicitations
- Acknowledgments
Shades of Milk
and Honey
TOR BOOKS BY MARY ROBINETTE KOWAL
Shades of Milk and Honey
Shades of Milk
and Honey
Mary Robinette Kowal
A Tom Doherty Associates Book
New York
Table of Contents
Title
Copyright
Dedication
One: Jasmine and Honeysuckle
Two: Doves and Roses
Three: Nymphs at the Ball
Four: Neighbours and Salts
Five: Art and Glamour
Six: Strawberries and Bonnets
Seven: Nymph on the Hill
Eight: Flowers and Novels
Nine: A Tonic in the Maze
Ten: The Broken Bridge
Eleven: A Dinner Invitation
Twelve: Beast and Beauty
Thirteen: The Beast Upset
Fourteen: Curiosity Unrequited
Fifteen: A Book and a Gift
Sixteen: Change and Fury
Seventeen: Leaves and Confession
Eighteen: Order and Disarray
Nineteen: Trust and Distractions
Twenty: Packing and Discovery
Twenty-One: Wolves and Muses
Twenty-Two: Leaving the Maze
Twenty-Three: The Box on the Mantel
Twenty-Four: Duels and Deals
Twenty-Five: Snake in the Grass
Twenty-Six: Solicitations
Acknowledgments
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
SHADES OF MILK AND HONEY
Copyright © 2010 by Mary Robinette Kowal
All rights reserved.
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
www.tor-forge.com
Tor® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
ISBN 978-0-7653-2556-3
First Edition: August 2010
Printed in the United States of America
0 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To my grandmothers, Mary Elois Jackson
and Robinette Harrison, who taught me
the importance of family and storytelling
One
Jasmine and Honeysuckle
The Ellsworths of Long Parkmead had the regard of their neighbours in every respect. The Honourable Charles Ellsworth, though a second son, through the generosity of his father had been entrusted with an estate in the neighbourhood of Dorchester. It was well appointed and used only enough glamour to enhance its natural grace, without overlaying so much illusion as to be tasteless. His only regret, for the estate was a fine one, was that it was entailed, and as he had only two daughters, his elder brother’s son stood next in line to inherit it. Knowing that, he took pains to set aside some of his income each annum for the provision of his daughters.
The sum was not so large as he wished it might be, but he hoped it would prove enough to attract appropriate husbands for his daughters. Of his younger daughter, Melody, he had no concerns, for she had a face made for fortune. His older daughter, Jane, made up for her deficit of beauty with rare taste and talent in the womanly arts. Her skill with glamour, music, and painting was surpassed by none in their neighbourhood and together lent their home the appearance of wealth far beyond their means. But he knew well how fickle young men’s hearts were. His own wife, while young, had seemed all that was desirable, but as her beauty faded she had become a fretting invalid. He still cherished her from habit, but often he wished that she had somewhat more sense.