THAT'S HOW IT IS FOR US SERVANTS. NO ONE PAYS YOU MUCH HEED; MOSTLY YOU'RE INVISIBLE AS FURNITURE. YET YOU OVERHEAR A CONVERSATION, OR A WRITING DESK LIES OPEN - AND YOU FIND SOMETHING, SOMETHING YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE FOUND... Biddy Leigh, under-cook at the foreboding Mawton Hall, wants to marry her childhood sweetheart and set up her own tavern. But when her elderly master marries the young Lady Carinna, Biddy is unwittingly swept up in a world of scheming, secrets and lies. Forced to accompany her new mistress to Italy, Biddy takes with her an old household book of recipes, THE COOK'S JEWEL, in which she records her observations. When she finds herself embroiled in a murderous conspiracy, Biddy realises that the secrets she holds could be the key to her survival - or her downfall...
