Cinders & Sapphires (At Somerton)

One house, two worlds...



Rose Cliffe has never met a young lady like her new mistress. Clever, rich, and beautiful, Ada Averley treats Rose as an equal. And Rose could use a friend. Especially now that she, at barely sixteen, has risen to the position of ladies’ maid. Rose knows she should be grateful to have a place at a house like Somerton. Still, she can’t help but wonder what her life might have been had she been born a lady, like Ada.

For the first time in a decade, the Averleys have returned to Somerton, their majestic ancestral estate. But terrible scandal has followed Ada’s beloved father all the way from India. Now Ada finds herself torn between her own happiness and her family’s honor. Only she has the power to restore the Averley name―but it would mean giving up her one true love . . . someone she could never persuade her father to accept.

Sumptuous and enticing, the first novel in the At Somerton series introduces two worlds, utterly different yet entangled, where ruthless ambition, forbidden attraction, and unspoken dreams are hidden behind dutiful smiles and glittering jewels. All those secrets are waiting . . . at Somerton.






“A thoroughly satisfying romp for Downton Abbey fans…Breathless readers will look forward to the next sudsy chapter in this planned series.”

--Kirkus Reviews

“Readers who always wondered how the heroines of Jane Austen’s novels would have fared in a world careening towards modernity need not look any further.”

--VOYA

Leila Rahseed is the author of the middle grade Bathseba series, and a young adult novel called The World Turned Upside Down. Leila has two Masters degrees, one in Children's Literature and one in Writing.