The Shuttle is a turn of the century novel by the author of The Secret Garden about the increasing traffic between American and Britain, in particular the phenomenon of American heiresses marrying impoverished aristocrats to shore up the family fortunes. It is the story of rich New Yorker Rosaline Vandrepool, who marries Sir Nigel Anstruthers, and her sister Bettina, who some years later comes to England to "rescue" Rosy.

I picked this book up at the Persephone bookshop because I loved the Bucanneers. Burnett is not at the level of Edith Wharton, but the book was very good an only descended to "over the top" romantic in the last few chapters. The character of Bette Vanderpool, in particular, was intriguing, as a strong commanding presence well before the advent of the professional woman. This is another wonderful contribution from Persephone books.