Lure of the Emerald Peacock

It's 1947, the end of the British Raj, and a surge of chaos is sweeping across India. Duncan McGavin, a brilliant Scottish engineer known for his ruthlessness in business, has arrived at the request of the Maharaja of Khadampur to construct a magnificent dream palace. The tall and powerful Scotsman is used to getting what he wants, and the second he meets the exotic Geraldine Pearce, he knows he wants her. Geraldine, a rare beauty of Indian and English heritage, lives in the palace. A ward of the former Maharaja, twenty-two year old "Dina" is naive and sheltered. The present Maharaja is power-drugged, steeped in vice, and has held fast to both Dina and the Emerald Peacock, the exquisite jewelled brooch that is her legacy. Passed down through the generations of her mother's family, the Emerald Peacock is priceless and has been the obsession of many.Dina's charm and spirit steal Duncan's heart, arousing in him an unsuspecting and consuming passion that takes Dina by storm. Threatened by cruel prejudice, and afraid of loosing the woman who has come to mean everything to him, Duncan devises a clever plan to escape with both the woman and the Peacock. When the plan is foiled and Dina and Duncan are captured, they are faced with a harrowing choice. Will they choose love? Or will they, too, succumb to the Lure of the Emerald Peacock?Hilliger, Romona is the author of 'Lure of the Emerald Peacock', published 2006 under ISBN 9781905393657 and ISBN 1905393652.