July 2010 Good Housekeeping selection.

The Pindar Diamond by Kat ie Hickman is an enjoyable mystery entwining the tales
of a dissolute merchant and a freed harem slave.

Synopsis

It's Venice, 1604. When rumours of a spectacularly rare and priceless diamond begin to circulate amongst the gamblers and courtesans of the Venetian demi-monde, the Levant Company merchant, Paul Pindar, becomes convinced that the jewel is somehow linked to the fate of his former love, Celia Lamprey. As his obsession with the mysterious stone grows it becomes clear that there are other, more sinister forces at play. Is the diamond real, or is it just a trick to lure him to his ruin? The Pindar Diamond moves from the canals of Venice to the coasts of Dalmatia, from a famed physic garden in the Venentian lagoon to the secret corridors of a convent - a tale of lust, love, greed, wealth and danger set among the Levant traders in the early years of the seventeenth century. Written in the exquisitely evocative style that is Katie Hickman's trademark, this is a gripping and superbly told story that goes as deeply into history as into the human heart.

Reviews

Praise for The Aviary Gate:

'Hugely enjoyable ... fast-moving and deeply satisfying
Joanne Harris

'Teasing, erotic, suspenseful and expertly done'
Daily Mail

'Forbidden love, sailors and secrets - fasten your seat belts for Hickman's period tome ... Think Jane Austen meets Pirates of the Carribean'
In Style

'A magical, engrossing read that takes us inside a sixteenth-century harem - and into a world populatred by scheming, exotic characters ... With all the intricate detail of historical non-fiction and all the pace of a romantic drama, this really is beautifully written stuff'
Glamour

About the Author

Katie Hickman is the author of five previous books, including two best-selling history books, Courtesans and Daughters of Britannia. She has written two travel books: Travels with a Circus, which was shortlisted for the 1993 Thomas Cook Travel Book Award, and Dreams of the Peaceful Dragon. She is the author of one previous novel, The Quetzal Summer, for which she was listed for the Sunday Times Young British Writer of the Year award. The Aviary Gate published by Bloomsbury in April 2008 and in paperback in February 2009, is a stunning tale of intrigue in the Sultan's harem.  Katie Hickman lives in London with her two children and her husband, the philosopher A.C.Grayling.   Author photo © Neil Bennett More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation