Set against the glorious Cotswold countryside and the playgrounds of the world, Jilly Cooper's Rutshire Chronicles offer an intoxicating blend of skulduggery, swooning romance, sexual adventure and hilarious high jinks. This special 2-for-1 collection features two of these classic titles: Riders and Rivals. Riders Riders takes the lid off international showjumping, a sport where the brave horses are almost human, but the humans behave like animals. The brooding hero, gypsy Jake Lovell, under whose magic hands the most difficult horse or woman becomes biddable, is driven to the top by his loathing of the beautiful bounder and darling of the show ring, Rupert Campbell-Black. Having filched each other's horses, and fought and fornicated their way around the capitals of Europe, the feud between the two men finally erupts with devastating consequences during the Los Angeles Olympics. Rivals Into the cut-throat world of Corinium television comes Declan O'Hara, a mega-star of great glamour and integrity. Living rather too closely across the valley is Rupert Campbell-Black, divorced and as dissolute as ever, and now the Tory Minister for Sport. Declan needs only a few days at Corinium to realise that the Managing Director, Lord Baddingham, is a crook who has recruited him merely to help retain the franchise for Corinium. Baddingham has also enticed Cameron Cook, a gorgeous but domineering woman executive, to produce Declan's programme. Declan and Cameron detest each other, provoking a storm of controversy into which Rupert plunges with his usual abandon. As a rival group emerges to pitch for the franchise, reputations ripen and decline, true love blossoms and burns, marriages are made and shattered, and sex raises its (delicious) head at almost every throw as, in bed and boardroom, the race is on to capture the Cotswold Crown.
During the ten years she lived at the edge of Putney Common Jilly Cooper walked daily on this expanse of green. For most of the time she lived there she kept a diary, noting the effects of the changing seasons and writing about her encounters with dogs and humans. The book is a distillation of those diaries: an affectionate and enthralling portrait - warts and all - of life on Putney Common. Never has Jilly Cooper written more lyrically about flowers, trees, birds and the natural world; more tellingly about the sorrows - as well as the joys - of caring for dogs and children; or more outrageously about the gossip, illicit romances and jealousies of life in a small community.
Ricky France-Lynch was moody, macho, and magnificent.nbsp;nbsp;He had a large crumbling estate, a nine-goal polo handicap, and a beautiful wife who was fair game for anyone with a chequebook.nbsp;nbsp;He also had the adoration of fourteen-year-old Perdita MacLeod.nbsp;nbsp;Perdita couldn't wait to leave her dreary school and become a polo player.nbsp;nbsp;The polo set were ritzy, wild, and gloriously promiscuous.nbsp;nbsp;Perdita thought she'd get along with them very well. But before she had time to grow up, Ricky's life exploded into tragedy, and Perdita turned into a brat who loved only her horses--and Ricky France-Lynch. Ricky's obsession to win back his wife, and Perdita's to win both Ricky and a place as a top-class polo player, take the reader on a wildly exciting journey--to the estancias of Argentina, to Palm Beach and Deauville, and on to the royal polo fields of England and the glamorous pitches of California where the most heroic battle of all is destined to be fought--a match that is about far more than just the winning of a huge silver cup...
Fall in love with Jilly Cooper, one of Britain's most popular authors, in this wonderful collection of upbeat and hilarious short stories. Fans of Jojo Moyes, Marian Keyes, Dolly Alderton and Jane Fallon will love this perfect dose of escapism - guaranteed to have you laughing out loud! 'The Jane Austen of our time' -- Harpers and Queen 'I've read this book before and it never fails to delight me' -- ***** Reader review 'Love it' -- ***** Reader review 'Utterly fabulous' -- ***** Reader review 'Charming' -- ***** Reader review 'A real treat from start to finish' -- ***** Reader review ************************************************************************************** From an author who has endeared herself to millions of readers and bewitched them all, comes a sparkling collection of love stories that are both moving and funny. As well as Lisa, we meet Hester, Julia, Helen and Caroline, and a host of other devastating girls, falling in and out of love, finding, losing (and often finding again sometimes in the most unexpected places) the men of their dreams. Lisa & Co could only have been written by the unique Jilly Cooper.
Fall in love with Jilly Cooper, one of Britain's most popular authors, in this fabulously frothy rom-com. Fans of Jojo Moyes, Marian Keyes, Dolly Alderton and Jane Fallon will love this witty and whimsical read - the perfect dose of laugh-out-loud escapism! 'Unputdownable' -- Marian Keyes 'Joyful and mischievous' -- Jojo Moyes 'The funniest and sharpest writer there is' -- Jenny Colgan 'Flawlessly entertaining' -- Helen Fielding 'An absolute delight to read' -- ***** Reader review 'The pages just whizzed by and I'm gutted to have finished it' -- ***** Reader review 'Frothy, light, humorous.....loving it' -- ***** Reader review 'Couldn't put it down' -- ***** Reader review 'Wonderful writing from Jilly, she really grabs you and pulls in you the book' -- ***** Reader review **************************************************************************************** The trouble with the Mulholland family, Prudence decided, was that they were all in love with the wrong people. She'd been overjoyed when Pendle, her super-cool barrister boyfriend, invited her home for the weekend to meet his family. But home turned out to be a decaying mansion in the Lake District, and family were his glamorous, scatty mother who forgot the mounting bills by throwing wild parties, and brothers, Ace, dark and forbidding, and Jack, handsome, married and only too ready to take over with Pru if Pendle didn't get a move on. It was only when she noticed the way Pendle looked at Jack's wife Maggie that it began to dawn on Pru that there was more to this weekend than met the eye. It looked like a non-stop game of changing partners . . .
CLASS IS DEAD! Or so everyone claims. Who better to refute this than Jilly Cooper! Describing herself as 'upper middle class', Jilly claims that snobbery is very much alive and thriving! Meet her hilarious characters! People like Harry Stow-Crat, Mr and Mrs Nouveau-Richards, Samantha and Gideon Upward, and Jen Teale and her husband Brian. Roar with laughter at her horribly unfair observations on their everyday pretensions - their sexual courtships, choice of furnishings, clothes, education, food, careers and ambitions... For they will all remind you of people that you know!
Etta Bancroft -- sweet, kind, still beautiful -- adores racing and harbours a crush on one of its stars, the handsome high-handed owner-trainer Rupert Campbell-Black. When her bullying husband dies, Etta's selfish, ambitious son and daughter drag her from her lovely Dorset house to live in a hideous modern bungalow in the Cotswold village of Willowwood. Etta's life changes when, in the snow in the nearby woods, she finds a horribly mutilated filly, which she names Mrs Wilkinson and nurses back to health. The filly charms everyone in the village, then tests reveal her to be a spectacularly well-bred racehorse. After a nail-biting court case, Mrs Wilkinson is awarded to Etta, thus ensuring the lasting and vengeful enmity of her evil former trainer and owner. A village syndicate is formed to put the filly into training, consisting of a riotous mix of village characters, who set off to the races in a minibus clanking with bottles. Ridden by Rupert's delectable god-daughter, Amber, Mrs Wilkinson captivates vast crowds as she progresses from point-to-point races to major races and brings fame and fortune to the syndicate, until, at last, she is entered in the Grand National. Can she be the first mare in thirty years, and Amber the first woman ever, to conquer this mighty race? In Jump! you will meet rich capricious owners, obsessive trainers and gallant stable lads and lasses; you will get to know the tough, brave jockeys; and you will fall in love with the horses,and above all with Mrs Wilkinson herself -- hilarious, heroic and so gutsy she will gallop into your heart forever.
Rupert Campbell-Black takes centre stage once more, this time in the cut-throat world of flat racing. Rupert is consumed by one obsession: that Love Rat, his adored grey horse, be proclaimed champion stallion. He longs to trounce Roberto's Revenge, the stallion owned by his detested rival Cosmo Rannaldini, which means abandoning his racing empire at Penscombe and his darling wife Taggie, and chasing winners in the richest races worldwide, from Dubai to Los Angeles to Melbourne. Luckily, the fort at home is held by Rupert's assistant Gav, a genius with horses, fancied by every stable lass, but damaged by alcoholism and a vile wife. When Gala, a grieving but ravishing Zimbabwean widow moves to Penscombe as carer for Rupert's wayward father, it is not just Gav who is attracted to her: a returning Rupert finds himself dangerously tempted. Gala adores horses, and when she switches to working in the yard, her carer's job is taken by a devastatingly handsome South African man who claims to be gay but seems far keener on caring for the angelic Taggie. And as increasingly sinister acts of sabotage strike at Penscombe, the game of musical loose boxes gathers apace . . . ----------------------------------- 'Packed with warmth, wit, and unforgettable characters, this is an utterly joyous read' Daily Express 'Pure, unadulterated joy' Sophie Kinsella 'It's Cooper doing what she does best ... it's a thoroughly enjoyable roll in the hay' The Times 'Witty and wonderful, as always' Trisha Ashley 'This endlessly fun humdinger of a novel is an absolute riot' Heat
No picture ever came more beautiful than Raphael's Pandora... Discovered by a dashing young lieutenant, Raymond Kelvedon in a Normandy Chateau in 1944, she had cast her spell over his family - all artists and dealers - for fifty years. Hanging in a turret of their lovely Cotswold house, Pandora witnessed Raymond's tempestuous wife Galena both entertaining a string of lovers, and giving birth to her four children: Jupiter, Alizarin, Jonathan and superbrat Sienna. Then an exquisite stranger rolls up, claiming to be a long-lost daughter of the family, setting the three Belvedon brothers at each other's throats. Accompanying her is her fatally glamorous boyfriend, whose very different agenda includes an unhealthy interest in the Raphael. When the painting is stolen during a fireworks party, the police are called and a global search ensues to discover once and for all who stole the masterpiece and who it actually belongs to. Will passionate love triumph, and will Pandora be restored to her rightful home? ---------------------------------- 'Cooper's sheer exuberance and energy are contagious' The Times 'The whole thing is a riot - vastly superior to anything else in a glossy cover' Daily Telegraph 'This is Jilly on top form with her most sparkling novel to date' Evening Standard 'One reads her for her joie de vivre, her maudlin romanticism, her love of arty references and her razor sharp sense of humour. Oh, and the sex' New Statesman
Fall in love with Jilly Cooper, one of Britain's most popular authors, in this up-beat and unmissable rom-com. Octavia is used to having anything (or anyone) she wants - but will she get her just desserts this time? Perfect for fans of Jojo Moyes, Marian Keyes, Dolly Alderton and Jane Fallon. 'Jilly is about bringing joy into your life: daft, silly, boozy joy ... There is no one else like Cooper' -- Guardian 'The Jane Austen of our time' - HARPERS & QUEEN 'Joyful and mischievous' -- Jojo Moyes 'Fun, sexy and unputdownable' -- Marian Keyes 'Outstanding read. If I could have given this book ten stars, I would have.' -- ***** Reader review 'Utterly timeless! Love it!' -- ***** Reader review 'Guaranteed to lift the spirits of every female who reads it. Brilliant!!' -- ***** Reader review 'Couldn't put it down' -- ***** Reader review ******************************************************************** As soon as Octavia catches a glimpse of Jeremy in the nightclub, she knows she just has to have him. It doesn't matter that he's just got engaged to an old school friend of hers: good natured Gussie. His look suggested bed rather than breakfast, and made her weak at the knees... Rich and stunning, Octavia is used to men falling in love with her at a moment's notice and an invitation to join Gussie and Jeremy for a cozy weekend on a canal barge comes like a gift from the gods. How can she fail to hook Jeremy? But the other part of the foursome is whizz-kid business tycoon Gareth Llewellyn, a swarthy Welshman with all the tenderness of a scrum-half...definitely not Octavia's type! And one way and another, he certainly manages to thwart her plans...
ull of irresistible romance and laugh-out-loud moments, this is perfect for fans of Jojo Moyes, Marian Keyes, Dolly Alderton and Jane Fallon. ----------------------------------- If Emily hadn't gone to Annie Richmond's party, she would never have met the impossibly irresistible Rory Balniel; would never have married him and been carried off to the wild Scottish island of Irasa to live in his ancestral home along with his eccentric mother, Coco, and the dog, Walter Scott. She'd never have met the wild and mysterious Marina, a wraith from Rory's past, nor her brother, the disagreeable Finn Maclean; never have spent a night in a haunted highland castle, or been caught stealing roses in a see-through nightie... Yes, it all started at Annie Richmond's party. Fall in love with Jilly Cooper, one of Britain's most popular authors, in this upbeat and unputdownable rom-com. ------------------------------------- 'Jilly is about bringing joy into your life: daft, silly, boozy joy ... There is no one else like Cooper' -- Guardian 'The Jane Austen of our time' -- HARPERS & QUEEN 'A rollicking good read' -- ***** Reader review 'An absolute pleasure to read' -- ***** Reader review 'A quick feel good when you feel those Sunday blues!' -- ***** Reader review 'Really loved this book, it just flowed along, its twists enthralled me, especially the ending - it was not what I expecting, well done Jilly' -- ***** Reader review
After going to live in the country Jilly Cooper wrote regularly for the Mail on Sunday for several years and this is a selection of her best pieces written at that time. The topics she covers in her inimitable style range from the hunt balls and Henley to love and sex in the ages of AIDS. She interviews Margaret Thatcher, Neil Kinnock, Lord Hailsham, the cast of Eastenders and the proprietress of a famous brothel in the Nevada desert and writes about her fellow human beings and their foibles provocatively, affectionately and sometimes outrageously. Her portraits of family life in the Cooper household remain the most ruthless and hilarious of all.
Here is a book of stories of great variety and undoubted class from an author who has endeared herself to millions of readers and bewitched them all. As well as Lisa, we meet Hester, Julia, Helen and Caroline, and a host of other devastating girls, falling in and out of love, finding, losing (and often finding again sometimes in the most unexpected places) the men of their dreams. Lisa and Co is a sparkling collection of love stories that are both moving and funny and could only have been written by the unique Jilly Cooper.
The light-hearted, hilarious and gorgeous novel centring on the trials of the bashful but beautiful Harriet. Find out why Jilly Cooper is one of Britain most beloved authors... 'No one else can make me laugh and cry quite like Jilly Cooper.' - GILL SIMS 'The funniest and sharpest writer there is.' - JENNY COLGAN 'The Jane Austen of our time' - HARPERS Further praise for Jilly Cooper: 'Joyful and mischievous' Jojo Moyes 'Fun, sexy and unputdownable' Marian Keyes 'Flawlessly entertaining' Helen Fielding ******************************************************************** Shy, dreamy, and incurably romantic, Harriet Poole was shattered when her brief affair with Simon Villiers, the dashing Oxford undergraduate, ended abruptly, leaving her penniless, alone and pregnant. Still hopelessly in love with Simon, she took baby William and buried herself in deepest Yorkshire as nanny to the children of Cory Erskine, a somewhat eccentric scriptwriter. Local tongues were just beginning to wag when a whole host of visitors began to arrive to disrupt Harriet's peaceful routine: first Cory's estranged wife Noel, hellbent on winning Cory back, then Cory's glamorous brother Kit, whose old affair with Noel didn't stop him making passes at Harriet. Finally, of all people, Simon...
Endlessly taking clothes to the laundrette, cooking and cleaning is all going to be worth it to be Mrs Colin Lang. Until a disastrous night out with Colin's work colleagues, and an encounter with a scruffy-yet-sexy artist at the laundrette, leads a very dutiful girlfriend to go delightfully astray. Part of the Storycuts series, this short story was previously published in the collection Lisa & Co.
When Jilly Cooper, then a young Sunday Times journalist, was asked to write a book on marriage, she had been married to Leo Cooper for a mere seven years. Now they are celebrating their Golden Wedding, and although the institution of marriage has changed a great deal since this book was first written, much of Jilly's advice - frank, fearless, often hilarious, but always wise - still holds good. From the wedding and the honeymoon to life afterwards, including how to deal with the in-laws and how to tell if you spouse is having an affair, she dispenses anecdotes, jokes, common sense and endless optimism and fun.
Jilly Cooper's witty thumbnail sketch of office life - part valentine, part poison pen letter - offers a vivid evocation of the world in which many of us spend a large part of our lives. There will be few office workers, whether they are bosses, sekketries or office crones, who do not recognize the Machiavellian politics and the lunacies she describes. The topics covered by this survival guide range from 'The Hierarchy' and 'Office Happenings' to 'Extra-mural Activities' and 'The Firing Squad'. Early in her career the author worked in an office and she has many friends, including a husband, who still do: but it will come as no surprise to readers of this classic volume to learn that since its publication she has been self-employed.
Fall in love with Jilly Cooper, one of Britain's most popular authors, in this delightfully light-hearted page-turner of a rom-com. Fans of Jojo Moyes, Marian Keyes, Dolly Alderton and Jane Fallon will simply adore this hilarious read, full of unforgettable characters and pure laugh-out-loud moments... 'Joyful and mischievous' -- Jojo Moyes 'Fun, sexy and unputdownable' -- Marian Keyes 'A delight from start to finish' -- Daily Mail 'Escape into an alternative universe in which all is right with the world' -- Guardian 'Delightful' -- ***** Reader review 'This is in my top 5 reads of all time' -- ***** Reader review 'Once you start reading find it hard to put down' -- ***** Reader review 'Absolutely brilliant, a book not to be put down until THE END!!' -- ***** Reader review ************************************************************* As a librarian, Imogen read a lot of books, but none of them covered what she was to experience on the Riviera. Her holiday with tennis ace, Nicky, and the whole glamorous coterie surrounding Nicky, was a revelation - and so, ultimately, was she. A wild Yorkshire rose among the thorny model girls, Cable and Yvonne, with a rare asset that they'd mislaid years ago... But the path of a jet-set virgin in that lovely, wicked world was a hard one. Imogen began to wonder if virtue really was its own reward...
In 'Forsaking All Others', Julia Nicholson is blissfully happy. She's married to the wonderful David, they have a gorgeous home and a ginger kitten called Kitchen, and she wouldn't change a thing. Until a chance encounter with the devastatingly attractive film director, Richard de Lisle, shows her what she never knew she was missing. In 'Temporary Set-Back', for Jenny, the only good thing about working at fusty publishers Mildew & Rambridge is the delectable editor Rupert Rambridge. Jenny is desperate for him to notice her - if only he'd pay her a fraction of the attention that handsome but sleazy Mr Curtis does. The chance to temp for Mr Rambridge's usual secretary might just see her daydreams become reality - but does she really know the type of man she's dealing with? Part of the Storycuts series, these two short stories were previously published in the collection Lisa & Co.
A celebration of the mongrel. The mongrel occupies a special place in our hearts and homes. Jilly Cooper collected stories from hundreds of owners to write this engaging and affectionate tribute. She presents a delightful account of the lives and natures of a vast assortment of dogs of doubtful parentage: a fascinating, moving and entertaining chronicle of their exploits and accomplishments, their bravery, devotion and wisdom. Jilly's special method of classification enables you to tell instantly if your pet is a Woolly Whitejaw, a Borderline Collie, a Bertrand Russell or a Lancashire Hot Pet. At last, our mongrels have achieved the recognition they have so long deserved...
Men, according to legend, want only one thing, are deceivers ever, are not interested in gossip, like a cosy armful, need two eggs, and seldom wash behind their ears.' Whatever their grading, Super Man or Slob, Jilly submits all men to remorseless scrutiny. In public and in private, home, office or bed, none escapes her beady eye - from painters to politicians, guardsmen to gigolos, stockbrokers to sex-fiends, this is Jilly Cooper's brilliantly funny guide to the male sex.
Christmas is looming: - Will your mother-in-law present you with yet another hideous jersey this year? - How are you going to cope with Granny's peke or the undesirable in-laws? - Has the row about where to spend the holiday already started, and it's only August? Jilly Cooper has the answer to everything. Whether you should seek refuge in the cooking sherry or suggest a wholesome family walk, Jilly offers advice in the way that only Jilly can.
Thank you for visiting our website. Would you like to provide feedback on how we could improve your experience?
This site does not use any third party cookies with one exception — it uses cookies from Google to deliver its services and to analyze traffic.Learn More.