Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} The Improbability of Love by Hannah Rothschild HOUSE OF TRELAWNEY. 'If you're in need of a Succession replacement then this tale of a crumbling English dynasty clinging on to the past while coping with the fallout of the 2008 crash is for you. Rothschild is a mischievous narrator and this story is pure pleasure from the word go' Stylist Magazine. Books. House of Trelawney. Latest Novel New money, old money, no money. The Improbability of Love. Shortlisted for The Baileys Women's Prize for fiction. The Search for Nica the Rebellious Rothschild. REVIEWS. Selection for House of Trelawney. ‘. the British haven’t lost is their sense of humor, and Ms. Rothschild provides a large dose of it in this quirky satire.’ The Wall Street Journal. 'With echoes of Evelyn Waugh and Nancy Mitford. Deliciously dark and wickedly funny, with unconventional, sympathetically drawn, mainly broke upper class characters, in beautiful settings. I laughed aloud' The Lady. 'A satirical, clever and multi-layered read.' Women's Own. 'This is a brilliant, witty and clever satire of the British aristocracy, about which it is both affectionate and deadly.' Sydney Morning Herald. 'Rothschild's tale is a lively and entertaining.' Amanda Craig, The Guardian. 'Abit of escapism tinged with schadenfreude, seen here by a sharp eye and seasoned with a tart tongue.' Washington Times. 'Jilly Cooper fans (and who isn't?) will love the unashamedly upmarket settings and posh characters. A romcom to beat the winter blues: funny, sharply- observed and boho-chic glamorous.' Wendy Holden, Daily Mail. 'Part comedy of manners, part serious meditation on money and gender roles, House of Trelawney is both deeply thought-provoking and thoroughly fun.' Bookpage.com. 'Her style has been compared to comic writers such as Waugh and Mitford, which are apt in terms of both style and milieu, but comparisons can also be made to Austen and Dickens, as she shares their ability to create comic characters and to then put those characters in situations that allows the author to make satirical/social commentary.' Thenerddaily.com. 'The madcap nature of the story; the clichés, and clever way they are rendered, make this a thoroughly enjoyable read - or, to use the correct terminology, a jolly good show. Yet the larger issues this satire plays on are equally fascinating.' Niamh Donnelly The Irish Times. 'A satisfying read with plenty of good one liners.' Sunday Telegraph. 'New novel gets British money exactly right.' US Town and Country. 'House of Trelawney' is a gripping saga. Lynn Barber, Daily Telegraph. 'This canny comedy of manners straddles the worlds of high finance and the crumbling aristocracy, branding love, revenge and market meltdown. Waspish yet generous hearted it delights from start to finish.' Mail on Sunday. 'Rothschild teases out green shoots with skill and humour (she won the Wodehouse Everyman Bollinger prize for her novel 'The Improbability of Love'). . a writer of high intelligence and she shakes old tropes into something more akin to John Lanchester's blistering social satire 'Capitalism.' Kate Atkinson, The Times. 'A real page turner. sparklingly acerbic social satire. Funny and absorbing, House of Trelawney is the perfect antidote to a grey, Scottish winter's day.' The Courier. 'Laugh out loud moments.' Harpers Bazaar. 'Rothschild is a witty, stylish storyteller and her overall message feels timely-'Far from making any of them rich, wealth had impoverished them all.' Lucy Atkins, The Sunday Times. 'If you're in need of a Succession replacement then this tale of a crumbling English dynasty clinging on to the past while coping with the fallout of the 2008 crash is for you. Rothschild is a mischievous narrator and this story is pure pleasure from the word go.' Stylist Magazine. 'I have discovered Hannah Rothschild late - her The Improbability of Love was published in 2015. It is the perfect lying-on-the-sofa-with-cake read, being a witty, knowledgeable, sprawling, ingenious insider satire set in the art world. It has art dealers, Russian billionaires, hedgies, sheiks and a-love story. Some of the story is narrated by a painting, but don't let that put you off, it's pure joy from start to finish. Her next novel, House of Trelawney, about the rise and fall of some Cornish poshos, is out in February and I loved that even more.' India Knight, The Sunday Times Magazine. 'This is a fascinating and fun romp of aristocracy hitting hard times and creatively working through the financial crash of 2008. This modern-day Downton Abbey, full of family dysfunction and love, is just as addictive as the TV series.' Beth Gibbs, Library Journal. 'Curl up and lose yourself in this hugely entertaining satire of a deeply dysfunctional family of aristocrats desperate to save their crumbling Cornwall home.' iNews. 'Snappy and sexy - Hannah Rothschild has written a racy rural satire on the decline of the English aristocracy which captures the spirit of our times. Witty and irreverent - but never without the human touch.' Lionel Barber, Editor Financial Times. 'Evelyn Waugh meets the love child of Richard Curtis and the brilliant Joanna Trollope.' Geordie Greig, Editor Daily Mail. 'Highlight of my holiday reading was a proof of Hannah Rothschild's fabulous forthcoming House of Trelawney. It's even funnier, more moving and more ingenuously plotted than her brilliant Improbability of Love and that is saying something. Completely delicious.' William Dalrymple, Author. Selection for The Improbability of Love. 'A deliciously wicked satire . It's exquisitely written, shimmering with eye-catching detail, whether describing works of art or the dishes on display at an extravagant banquet. Beneath all that, there's a serious debate about the value we put on things - whether it's art or relationships - and the prices we're prepared to pay. A masterpiece.' Daily Mail. 'Impishly wicked, ruthlessly frank, touchingly percipient and sometimes laugh aloud funny to boot. Hannah Rothschild captures the contradiction between art as money and art as the soul of humanity really well.' Rachel Campbell-Johnston, Art Critic for The Times. 'The Improbability of Love is a romp, a joy, and an inspired feast of clever delights. Reading this book is like a raid on a high-end pastry shop – you marvel at the expertise and cunning of the creations, while never wanting the deliciousness to end.' Elizabeth Gilbert. 'Like a Rococo painting, this clever, funny, beguiling and wholly humane romance is a treat worthy of its subject.' The Independent. 'Hannah Rothschild has written a wonderful satirical novel about a rare French Painting.' Andrew Marr, Start the Week. 'The result is compelling reading, driven by the desire to know what happens next and along the way there are some hearty laughs at people's terrible behaviour.' Daphne Guinness, The Sydney Morning Herald. 'Every page is a joy. It's funny, sad, profound. The writing dances. It has panache. It's beautifully structured. It wears its scholarship with a balletic lightness and grace that shadows the Rococo painting at its heart. Its many and varied characters are an exquisite joy. Her range and emotional grasp is wonderful. What more can I say? It's my Book of the Year.' Barbara Trapido. 'It is mischievous, acute, rollicking and admiringly well-structured without being formulaic, Dickensian without being sprawling.' Rachel Johnson. 'Hannah Rothschild is finally coming into her own. Soon to be head of the National Gallery, her novel about the art world is bound to be a bestseller.' Lynn Barber, Sunday Times. 'A witty romp that gently pokes fun at the pretentiousness of arty types.' Good Housekeeping. 'Both the satire of the art world and a romance … It's mischievous, fun and on the money.' Tatler. 'Novel of the week . It all adds up to an ingenious meditation on the true value of art - timely indeed at a moment when paintings and sculpture seem to have become just another currency.' Mail on Sunday. 'A novel that is so pleasurable I've read it twice, and will read it again . Beguiling.' Jackie McGlone, Glasgow Sunday Herald. 'For a first novel, she manages to weave the themes of love, art, and skulduggery, with a huge cast thrown in, with a very sure hand. Light summer reading at its best.' Irish Independent. Selection for The Baroness. 'Riveting, touching and insightful' The Daily Telegraph. 'Rothschild's riveting account of her eccentric great-aunt Nica stands out for its nimble writing and brilliant story' The Independent's 50 Best Summer Reads. 'Hannah Rothschild has done a brilliant job of telling the story, which is by turns moving, shocking and inspiring. Filled with photographs and startling details, it's utterly absorbing.' Elle. Hannah tells this story with care, balancing narrative tension with a desire to lay out all the facts so readers can make up their own minds… wholly gripping.' Rachel Cooke in The Guardian. 'very moving… a most beguiling book and tale' Libby Purves on Midweek, BBC Radio 4. 'An eminently readable, well researched biography. It is one-third a history of the Rothschild family, one third a portrait of Nica, and one-third a biography of Monk. Nica comes across as a remarkable woman, strong, feisty and rebellious' Sunday Times. 'Lillian Pizzichini applauds the swinging life of a bebop Bolter' '… absorbing. Nica's self-styled mission was to care for these fragile creatures with the resolve of her immigrant forebears and the love and empathy she passed on to her great-niece' Sunday Telegraph 'It's a gripping yarn that more than proves that life is stranger than fiction.' The Literary Review. 'Eloquently-written labour of love' Daily Mail. '…An intriguing biography, a detective story of sorts… Rothschild sketches a tantalising portrait of an heiress who turned her back on a cloistered life' The Independent. 'Full of interest and warmth' Spectator. 'The colourful life of a jazz philanthropist… A rounded portrait.' Richard Williams in The Guardian. 'Lovingly compiled memoir..' '…This is an honest portrait of an extraordinary life. It's a gripping yarn that more than proves that life is stranger than fiction.' Literary Review. 'It's a tale of mystery, intrigue and exoticism.' Jewish Telegraph. At first glance Thelonious (Monk) and Pannonica (Rothschild) might seem to have nothing in common. Yet as Hannah Rothschild shows in this tender memoir, the symmetries of their lives ran far deeper.' Kathryn Hughes, The Mail on Sunday. 'Richly textured, elegantly told and often as surprising as its subject, Hannah Rothschild's biography of her great-aunt is a moving tribute to a fascinating and original woman' Country Life. 'A colourful, entertaining study of a fearless, fiercely loyal, independent and slightly bonkers adventuress' The Herald. Selection for Mandelson, The Real PM? 'Totally engrossing' Daily Express. 'The end result is something quite remarkable - a fly-on-the-wall documentary in the best traditions of the genre that offers a stripped-down view of politics in its rawest, most compelling form.' Radio Times. 'It's wonderful- its funny, thoroughly researched, intense, clever and beautifully constructed.' Molly Dineen, Today Programme, Radio 4. 'There are so many best bits in this documentary that it is hard to choose between them, though a knockabout routine with Alastair Campbell deserves a special mention. Mandelson is a gift to a film maker but Rothschild has made the best of her material. Beautifully observed, intelligent and subtly subversive, this is a real tour de force.' Jane Shilling, Evening Standard. 'Astonishing Viewing. A jaw droppingly candid view- that takes no prisoners- of a tumultuous period in British politics.' Sharon Lougher, Metro. 'Riveting viewing' Marc Deanie, The Sun. 'It should become one of the classic political documentaries.' Michael Crick. 'When a political documentary works ​The War Room for example ​ it channels the adrenalin which addicts politicians and the sheer thrill of the pure political animal. Hannah Rothschild¹s documentary for BBC¹s Storyville strand is an extraordinary portrait of Britain¹s Peter Mandelson in the run- up to this May¹s general election. Hannah Rothschild¹s documentary has the potential to attract wider audiences than the Westminster village despite its narrow UK focus and sits comfortably in the Storyville roster of excellence (Hoop Dreams, Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired).' Finn Haligan, Screen International. 'A gripping and brilliant film' Rosie Boycott Evening Standard. 'It offers a fascinating view from inside that weird, endgame election – imagine a slow, knackered version of The Thick Of It, without the swearing – and there are brilliant moments: here he is in his pants and socks; here he is with hulking auld enemy, Alastair Campbell, eating soggy sandwiches as they watch the first PM's debate on TV. Best of all, more footage of that foxtrot with a pensioner in Blackpool.' Scotland Herald. 'an engrossing look at the run-up to the general election.' Geoffrey Mcnab The independent. 'an intensely fun film to watch.' Dave Calhoun, Time Out. 'The genius of this film is that it captures the bits in between to create an unforgettable portrait' Stephen Frears, The Evening Standard. '..this is heaven for political geeks. More than the sheer thrill of having a camera placed at the heart of the government machine - where journalists are seldom allowed to tread - the documentary's main strength is that it is actually rather hilarious. We feel like flies on a tremendously interesting wall.' Peter Wozniak, Politics.co.uk. Harper's Bazaar - November 2010 - Click here to read. Evening Standard - 13 October 2010 - Click here to read. Selection for Hi Society: the Wonderful World of Nicky Haslam. 'Brilliant' Lucian Freud. 'Hannah Rothschild has made a wonderful documentary about him' Lynn Barber, Times. Rothschild's last film was a similar-sounding profile of society decorator Nicky Haslam, glowingly reviewed by one critic as 'funny, camp, melancholy and appalling'. Ephraim Hardcastle, Daily Mail. For the socialite and interior designer Nicky Haslam a surprising number of things turn out to be fun. Having a stalker, for instance: "So chic," he said brightly in Storyville: Hi Society – the Wonderful World of Nicky Haslam. "We should all have one." Or spending three years of his childhood paralysed with polio ("It was rather fun"). Or the hazards of pre-Wolfenden homosexuality ("It was illegal still so that made it much more fun"). He's also got a very long list of things that he thinks are common, including swans, pronouncing the last t in "trait", scented candles, wheat intolerance, loving your parents and queuing at Annabel's. Fortunately, he probably doesn't have to do a lot of the latter because Nicky is to the London scene what the silver lady is on a Rolls-Royce. He attends up to five parties a night to exchange air kisses and squeals of delighted recognition before moving on, ceaselessly driving on through the crowd to where the flash of the paparazzi cameras is brightest. You might pronounce Haslam absurd, a frantically self-renovating social butterfly who should never have made it past the Sixties, but there is something astonishing about his sheer devotion to his chosen cause. For almost all of his 70 years, he has devoted every waking hour to networking, party-going and rubbing shoulders with the wealthy and beautiful. The Independent. His attitude is that nostalgia is worthless, and the only option is to seize the present and advance glamorously into the future. Adam Sweeting, The Arts Desk. It's a study of loneliness. It perfectly illustrates the loneliness of the crowded life. It's as good as Chekhov. Cressida Connelly. Book Giveaway For House of Trelawney. Enter for a chance to win one of 50 paperback copies of Hannah Rothschild's novel House of Trelawney! Enter for a chance to win one of 50 paperback copies of Hannah Rothschild's novel House of Trelawney! . more From the author of The Improbability of Love comes a dazzling novel both satirical and moving, about an eccentric, dysfunctional fami From the author of The Improbability of Love comes a dazzling novel both satirical and moving, about an eccentric, dysfunctional family of English aristocrats and their crumbling stately home, demonstrating how the lives and hopes of women can be shaped by the ties of family and love. For more than seven hundred years, the vast, rambling Trelawney Castle in Cornwall--turrets, follies, a room for every day of the year, four miles of corridors and 500,000 acres--was the magnificent and grand three dimensional calling card of the earls of Trelawney. By 2008, it is in a complete state of ruin due to the dulled ambition and the financial ineptitude of twenty-four earls, two world wars, the Wall Street crash, and inheritance taxes. Still: the heir to all of it, Kitto, his wife, Jane, their three children, their dog, Kitto's ancient parents, and his aunt Tuffy Scott, an entomologist who studies fleas, all manage to live there and (barely) keep it going. Four women dominate the story: Jane; Kitto's sister, Blaze, who left Trelawney and made a killing in finance in London, the wildly beautiful, seductive, and long-ago banished Anastasia and her daughter, Ayesha. When Anastasia sends a letter announcing that her nineteen-year-old daughter, Ayesha, will be coming to stay, the long-estranged Blaze and Jane must band together to take charge of their new visitor--and save the house of Trelawney. But both Blaze and Jane are about to discover that the house itself is really only a very small part of what keeps the family together. . more. Format: Print book. Availability: 50 copies available, 4083 people requesting. Giveaway dates: Apr 16 - May 10, 2021. Countries available: U.S. About Hannah Rothschild. Hannah Rothschild is the author of House of Trelawney; The Baroness: The Search for Nica, the Rebellious Rothschild; and The Improbability of Love which was shortlisted for the Bailley's prize for womens' fiction and won the PG Wodehouse, Everyman, Bollinger prize for best comic novel in 2016. Her feature length BBC/HBO documentaries have appeared at such festivals as Telluride and Tribeca. She's w Hannah Rothschild is the author of House of Trelawney; The Baroness: The Search for Nica, the Rebellious Rothschild; and The Improbability of Love which was shortlisted for the Bailley's prize for womens' fiction and won the PG Wodehouse, Everyman, Bollinger prize for best comic novel in 2016. Her feature length BBC/HBO documentaries have appeared at such festivals as Telluride and Tribeca. She's written for Vanity Fair, Vogue, The Independent, Elle, Bazaar, T and C, The Times, The Telegraph, the NYT and others. She's a vice president of the Hay Literary Festival, a former trustee of the Tate Gallery, and was the first woman chair of the National Gallery in London. In 2018 she was made a Commander of The British Empire for services to literature and philanthropy. Luxury Quotes. “Mary was like a caged tiger in the first days of her captivity. Keen, alert, and watchful, she listened tensely each dawn for the key that unlocked her door. After breakfast she watched the road for messengers, pacing back and forth like a confined feline. But no messengers ever came. Elizabeth had abandoned her. Or forgotten her. And the days passed. Little by little, the Queen of Scots grew accustomed to her captivity. She no longer heard the key in the lock, or the footsteps outside her door. More often than not it was the maid's cheerful voice that woke her, along with the hand on Mary's shoulder and the delicious smells wafting from the breakfast tray.” ― Margaret George, Mary Queen of Scotland and The Isles. HANNAH ROTHSCHILD: The witty author from an enduring family dynasty. It is one of the most famous family names in the world, the name Rothschild. The story of this enduring dynasty is one of great wealth and privilege at first glance. It is also a family that suffered persecution and prejudice as they helped shape history over the centuries, particularly in the UK and Europe. And here, in the 21st Century comes Hannah Rothschild, a successful film and documentary maker and biographer who has turned her hand to fiction, where she attracts comparisons with Evelyn Waugh and Nancy Mitford. Gentle satire of the English class system. These comparisons are deserved. She is a skilful writer with an excellent vocabulary and a fine comedic touch. In House of Trelawney, her gentle satire of the English class system focuses on the rigid ties and inflexible traditions of English aristocracy, the same class that once frostily resisted the Rothschild family’s entry into British society, not least because they were Jewish. Hannah’s novel is entirely without malice, rather it is playful and witty, but its deeper messages are unmistakable. Like Nancy Mitford’s work, it is funny, insightful and deft. Like Jilly Cooper, to whom she is also compared, she well understands the world of class and privilege in which her work is set. Hannah’s fictional English bluebloods are sinking into penury in their vast, crumbling 800-year-old family seat, Trelawney Castle. Misguided ventures and extravagances by successive Earls have ravaged the family coffers, the liveried servants are long gone and the depressed wife of the current Earl faces a daily battle to simply feed her family – there is only so much you can do with frozen mince. The strong chains of tradition. But the strong chains of tradition bind tight, and the very trappings of what was once great privilege are now a trap. It has been the story of many formerly wealthy and powerful families in Britain, although the Rothschild’s history largely differs. While much is publicly known of the famously discreet Rothschild family story – and really, it is a very long study – their Scottish connections are not often highlighted. Hannah Mary Rothschild, the author, is named for Hannah Primrose de Rothschild (1851-1890), later the Countess of Rosebery, the only daughter of Baron Mayer de Rothschild and his wife, Juliana. When that Hannah inherited her father’s fortune in 1874, she became the richest woman in Britain. She married the Earl of Rosebery in 1878 which gave her a title, an entrée to society all her money could not. But more interesting is Hannah’s apparent social reform instincts. Dalmeny House outside Edinburgh has been home to the Earls of Rosebery since 1662, and it was here the Earl and Countess would come for the grouse. Hannah had more to occupy her though. A particular interest was the welfare of women. A pioneering woman. She was president of the Scottish Home Industries Association, encouraging women, particularly young widows, to work with plaid and other needlework at home to supplement the family income. Queen Victoria also appointed Hannah president of the Queen Victoria Jubilee Institute for Nurses (nowadays the Queen’s Nursing Institute Scotland) and this was the early beginnings of the district nurse system. She also established schools on her vast estates and supported oral instruction for what were then called the deaf and dumb, ensuring them a form of education. Hannah, who died of typhoid fever at Dalmeny House at the age of 39, is also credited with being the driving force behind her husband’s ambitions which were, according to legend, to marry Hannah de Rothschild, own a Derby winner and become prime minister. He achieved all three, holding the latter office (briefly) after Hannah’s death. The 21st Century Hannah Rothschild. Hannah Mary Rothschild, however, has made a remarkable career using her own skills and abilities. The daughter of Nathaniel Charles (Jacob) Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, and his wife, Serena, she is the eldest of their four children and today, among other things, runs arms of the family business. Besides that, her documentary films include profiles on the painters Frank Auerbach and Walter Sickert, the BBC series Relative Values and The Great Picture Chase. She also produced The Jazz Baroness (2008) for the BBC and HBO, about her great-aunt Pannonica (Nica) de Koenigswarter (she has also written a biography on her) and Hi Society (2009). But she really broke through the glass ceiling when she was appointed chair of London’s National Gallery in 2015. We’re talking – on Zoom – about women’s place in the world. Articulate, curious and interested, Hannah believes social, political and business equality for women has “come a long way and it’s got a long way to go. Is it 50-50? No, and it should be. It’s exciting to see women breaking the glass ceiling,” she adds. One of the things I’m proudest of is our board was diverse, we started at 30 percent women, we eventually got to a 50-50 split; it was far healthier and more collegiate. It’s not tokenism. Her National Gallery appointment did that, I suggest. Her answers are thoughtful. “I was the first female to chair the National Gallery in its 200- year history,” she acknowledges, “and one of the first women to chair a major institution. “One of the things I’m proudest of, is our board was diverse, we started at 30 percent women, we eventually got to a 50-50 split; it was far healthier and more collegiate. It’s not tokenism, it’s better for everybody if you have a more diverse group of people. Take Holland for instance. In Holland you have to have 50 percent gender equality, that’s the law now. I do believe unfortunately we have to mandate things, I think if we want change we have to. It makes change happen more quickly.” Set as it is in the rigid traditions of the past, House of Trelawney also hits the future running, with the 2008 crash a parallel narrative. The idea for the book came because she wanted to write about family and longstanding friendships – enduring friendship between women is central to the plot – as well as traditional resistance to change. And she wanted to write about high finance. Disparate as all this sounds, it comes together. And yes, it is writing about what you know. “I work in the family business, in finance. I serve as a non-executive director on a trust…I grew up in that milieu. I speak the language, if you like. Colourful characters, margin calls and shorting stocks. “It’s quite difficult to write about something like that,” she adds. “It’s quite technical and boring, and I was nervous about making mistakes.” The characters she creates around this world are colourful enough – variously beautiful, odious and flawed – to enliven shorting stocks and margin calls. Her first novel, The Improbability of Love, was shortlisted for the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction and won the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse prize for best comic novel in 2015. Set in the world of art dealerships and galleries – another world she knows – it too has haves and have nots, new money and old. I personally don’t think titles and entitlement are that healthy. My family has a title but we don’t sit in the House of Lords, we believe – or I do anyway – in meritocracy. Given her fictional teasing of the aristocracy’s inability to adapt, how does she think it will adapt to a changed future? “Traditionally the aristocratic class came from landowning gentry, you would have that class who were ennobled for favours to king and country,” she reflects. “You are always going to have a kind of aristocracy, wherever you are. “I personally don’t think titles and entitlement are that healthy. My family has a title but we don’t sit in the House of Lords, we believe – or I do anyway – in meritocracy. Education is the only chance we have to combat issues, and social justice should mean equal opportunities.” The Rothschild family has endured antisemitism and even imprisonment by Nazis. How does she think racism and prejudice could be combatted? “It has to start with education,” she says firmly. Like so many things, she has thought about this a lot. She reads widely and she listens to many points of view. “Prejudice starts in your nuclear family. That’s your first exposure. And then education, education, education – the more education, the more you eliminate it. I know that may sound platitudinous, but as human beings… we are all still human beings. It doesn’t matter what race or colour we are.” Having said that, she believes the greatest threat we face is climate change and she hopes some innovations from the Covid-19 global lockdown could bring about good. “I have read a lot about previous pandemics, like the Spanish Flu, and as a whole people actually want to go back to how it was before. I think people really just want the new normal to be the old normal…. But now we advantages like Zoom – we’ve not had that before. For me the biggest threat to the world is climate change. I’d love to get on a plane and go on holiday, we all would, but we’ll think about travel in the future. “I wouldn’t dream of getting on a plane when I can Zoom. For me the biggest threat to the world is climate change. I’d love to get on a plane and go on holiday, we all would, but we’ll think about travel in the future, and I think we’ll travel less. I think we’ll restructure our working lives too, we won’t be in the office every day, it will have benefits for families.” Scotland remains one of her favourite places and she travels here extensively. “It’s so hard not to love it. It’s romantic, it’s beautiful, I love the people.” She thinks the V&A Dundee is “extraordinary, amazing” and she has had two children at Edinburgh University, a city she vows to keep visiting. Finally, back to Trelawney, which took four or five years – and 17 drafts – to write. She started writing with an image of a woman dead-heading roses in an overgrown garden. “I don’t write prescriptively, I don’t know where the plot is going. It’s tremendously inefficient, I can’t tell you, but it’s a fun way to write.” After a book is written she will put it away in a drawer for as long as she can stand it, before going through a more layered redrafting and editing process. She is addicted to writing, she says. “I have a day job in our family businesses, so I work from 9-5. I treat writing like a love affair. I sneak out to coffee shops, I’ll take it on a train… And then if I am on a deadline, if it’s time for the last proof, then I get very disciplined, I’ll wake up at 5am and work till 8am before it’s time to go to work. They take a long time, books. It’s a bit like childbirth, if you knew how long and painful it was, after the first time you’d never do it again.” For the record, I believe Hannah Rothschild has three children, and another complete book in a drawer. House of Trelawney by Hannah Rothschild (Bloomsbury) is now available in paperback. For more see hannahrothschild.com. Help support quality local journalism … become a digital subscriber to The Courier. For as little as £5.99 a month you can access all of our content, including Premium articles .