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The Unbroken Dream

The Duke of Laverdale is ambitious to be appointed Master of the Horse and the new Queen Adelaide is determined that behaviour at Court should be moral after the licentiousness of King George IV. The Duke therefore ends his affaire de coeur with the enchanting Lady Sybil Mersham and drops his ballet dancer mistress as well. Up to now he has been determined not to be married, but he now decides to become respectable and find a suitable bride as befits his standing. As he has always avoided debutantes, he asks the Marquis of Coleburn, whom he has known since he was a boy, to help him. The Marquis is delighted and tells the Duke that he has the perfect wife for him in his beautiful daughter Oleta, who would have been a debutante by now but for family mourning. The Duke arranges to visit the Marquis, who returns home to tell his daughter that she is a very lucky girl. Oleta, however, is horrified at the idea of marrying a man she has never seen and who obviously cannot be in love with her. She is very romantic and loves the country especially the woods, which have a magical influence on her and she talks to them when she rides through them on her beloved horse, Apollo. When the Marquis tells her that she cannot refuse the Duke, even if he has to drag her to the altar, Oleta runs away to her old Nanny in Norfolk, having no idea of the dangers she might face on the journey. When the Duke arrives to stay with the Marquis, he is appalled to learn that, because she is afraid of him, Oleta has ridden off on her own. He then follows her as he has a much faster horse than anyone else. How the Duke finds Oleta in a dangerous predicament and how he saves her. How, not knowing who he is, she is impressed by his intelligence, his kindness and his bravery. And how, when they finally escape from horse-thieves, he takes her to a place where they can be alone and how there they can both dream the same dream of love, is all told in this thrilling romance by BARBARA CARTLAND.

162 pages, Paperback

Published April 29, 2016

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About the author

Barbara Cartland

1,352 books874 followers
Born in 1901, Barbara Cartland started her writing career in journalism and completed her first book, Jigsaw, when she was just 24. An immediate success, it was the start of her journey to becoming the world’s most famous and most read romantic novelist of all time. Inspiring a whole generation of readers around the globe with her exciting tales of adventure, love and intrigue, she became synonymous with the Romance genre. And she still is to this day, having written over 644 romantic fiction books.
As well as romantic novels, she wrote historical biographies, 6 autobiographies, plays, music, poetry and several advice books on life, love, health and cookery – totalling an incredible 723 books in all, with over 1 billion in sales.
Awarded the DBE by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991 in honour of her literary, political and social contributions, she was President of the Hertfordshire branch of the Royal College of Midwives as well as a Dame of Grace of the Order of St John of Jerusalem and Deputy President of the St John Ambulance Brigade.
Always a passionate advocate of woman’s health and beauty, she was dubbed ‘the true Queen of Romance’ by Vogue magazine in her lifetime. Her legend continues today through her wonderfully vivid romantic tales, stories that help you escape from the day to day into the dramatic adventures of strong, beautiful women who battle, often against the odds, eventually to find that love conquers all.
Find out more about the incredible life and works of Dame Barbara Cartland at www.barbaracartland.com

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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
Profile Image for Andy.
2,251 reviews
February 14, 2024
I did not enjoy this one as much as the last. The love interest Rory was not great. I severely disliked how he thought of and treated his mistresses. He was a good guy to Oleta but to other women, he was very judgmental which is kind of hypocritical of him. Oleta tended to be a bit on the spoiled side. Once they met the book was better but individually, they weren't very likable.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews