A Certain Splendour

by Carola Salisbury

In A Certain Splendour, Carola Salisbury tells the moving story of a young woman's journey from riches to rags.Faith Dangerfield enjoys the privileged life of British naval high society in the golden days before The Great War of 1914-18. The only daughter of a widowed Commodore, she plays hostess on her father's luxury yacht from Portsmouth to Malta, from Monte Carlo to Alexandria. But Faith's father makes what is thought to be a reckless manoeuvre at sea, resulting in his court martial and disgrace. The key witness at his trial is Jack Cummings, an officer to whom Faith ad formed an irresistible attraction - until he testifies against the Commodore.Her father's premature retirement from the Navy is followed by financial downfall for the Dangerfields, and for the first time in her life, Faith is forced to earn her own living - as a cleaning woman at a Mayfair hotel, where she is subjected to sweated labour accompanied by insults and humiliations. And to crown off her difficulties, she is confronted by Natasha Chalmers, the rich widow who once connived to marry her father before the crash - but has become Faith's bitter enemy.Faith wins through to a modest success in her work, and enjoys a brief happiness in love; until her life is again blighted by the revelation of a dreadful secret that forces her to see her own future in a new and heartbreaking light, and which only her courage and resolve can overcome.

Genres: World War I, Edwardian

Hardcover

First published April 1, 1987

About the author

Carola Salisbury is a pseudonym for John Michael "Mike" Butterworth.

Butterworth trained as an artist at Camberwell College of Art and worked briefly as a tutor in drawing at Nottingham College of Art. After briefly working as a salesman, he joined the Amalgamated Press (later renamed Fleetway Publications) after submitting samples of artwork to them. Although these were turned down, he tried again, submitting a script for a sea-going adventure strip. This was accepted and Butterworth was hired as a scriptwriter, at first working primarily Western strips featuring Billy the Kid and Buffalo Bill. His interest in history (particularly naval history) led him to pen many historical comic strips for Comet and Sun, including the Napoleonic era adventures of Max Bravo, the Happy Hussar and World War II air-ace Battler Britton.

Aside from his writing, Butterworth was a gifted editor and created a number of new papers for the firm including Playhour Pictures (soon after abbreviated to Playhour), Valentine and the teenage girls' magazine Honey.

In 1965 he became one of the main script writers for Ranger where he penned the sprawling science-fantasy The Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire which remains one of the most popular boys' adventure strips published in the UK to this day.

Butterworth left Fleetway Publications and turned freelance. His first novel, The Soundless Scream, appeared in 1967 followed over the next few years by a number of well-received crime novels which appeared under his full name, which has led to some confusion between his work and that of Science fiction writer and Savoy Books publisher Michael Butterworth. Butterworth also turned his hand to Gothic romance novels under the pen-name Carola Salisbury and Sarah Kemp.

He died at the age of 62.

Reviews

[Luminita Szen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story about Faith Dangerfield, a young woman who's life turns upside down as her father looses his position as commodore in the navy and his hole fortune. She learns to build up her life again, does not lose hope and in the end. finds the love she deserves.

I like the way Carola Salisbury writes and recommend this novel as a light, engaging read