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Authors: Jilly Cooper

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Pandora

BOOK: Pandora
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About the Book

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.

During a fireworks party, the painting is stolen. The hunt to retrieve it takes the reader on a thrilling journey to Vienna, Geneva, Paris, New York and London. After a nail-biting court case and a record-smashing Old Masters sale at Sotheby's, passionate love triumphs and Pandora is restored to her rightful home.

Jilly Cooper

 

PANDORA

 

This eBook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

Epub ISBN: 9781409032212

Version 1.0

www.randomhouse.co.uk

  

TRANSWORLD PUBLISHERS

61–63 Uxbridge Road, London W5 5SA

a division of The Random House Group Ltd

www.booksattransworld.co.uk

PANDORA

A CORGI BOOK : 9780552156400

First published in Great Britain

in 2002 by Bantam Press

a division of Transworld Publishers

Corgi edition published 2003

Corgi edition reissued 2007

Copyright © Jilly Cooper 2002

Jilly Cooper has asserted her right under the Copyright,

Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author

of this work.

This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of

historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or

dead, is purely coincidental.

A CIP catalogue record for this book

is available from the British Library

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not,

by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out

or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent

in any form of binding or cover other than that in which

it is published and without a similar condition including this

condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser

Addresses for Random House Group Ltd companies outside

the UK can be found at:
www.randomhouse.co.uk

The Random House Group Ltd Reg. No. 954009

2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1

Table of Contents

Cover

About the Book

Title

Copyright

About the Author

Also by Jilly Cooper

Dedication

Map

The Legend of Pandora’s Box

Cast of Characters

The Animals

Prologue

Part 1

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Part 2

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Chapter 70

Chapter 71

Chapter 72

Chapter 73

Chapter 74

Chapter 75

Chapter 76

Chapter 77

Chapter 78

Chapter 79

Chapter 80

Chapter 81

Chapter 82

Epilogue

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Jilly Cooper is a journalist, writer and media superstar. The author of many number one bestselling novels, she lives in Gloucestershire with her husband Leo, her rescue greyhound Feather and her black cat Feral.

She was appointed OBE in 2004 for services to literature, and in 2009 was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Letters by the University of Gloucestershire for her contribution to literature and services to the County.

Find out more about Jilly Cooper at her website
www.jillycooper.co.uk

 

By Jilly Cooper

FICTION

RIDERS

RIVALS

POLO

THE MAN WHO MADE HUSBANDS JEALOUS

APPASSIONATA

SCORE!

PANDORA

WICKED!

JUMP!

NON-FICTION

ANIMALS IN WAR

CLASS

HOW TO SURVIVE CHRISTMAS

HOTFOOT TO ZABRISKIE POINT
(with Patrick Lichfield)

INTELLIGENT AND LOYAL

JOLLY MARSUPIAL

JOLLY SUPER

JOLLY SUPERLATIVE

JOLLY SUPER TOO

SUPER COOPER

SUPER JILLY

SUPER MEN AND SUPER WOMEN

THE COMMON YEARS

TURN RIGHT AT THE SPOTTED DOG

WORK AND WEDLOCK

ANGELS RUSH IN

ARAMINTA’S WEDDING

CHILDREN’S BOOKS

LITTLE MABEL

LITTLE MABEL’S GREAT ESCAPE

LITTLE MABEL SAVES THE DAY

LITTLE MABEL WINS

ROMANCE

BELLA

EMILY

HARRIET

IMOGEN

LISA
&
CO

OCTAVIA

PRUDENCE

ANTHOLOGIES

THE BRITISH IN LOVE

VIOLETS AND VINEGAR

To Mark Barty-King, a hero in every way,

with huge love and gratitude

THE LEGEND OF

PANDORA’S BOX

There are many variations on the legend of Pandora but I have used the one that begins with a heroic mortal called Prometheus boldly storming Mount Olympus, the home of the Gods. As if on an SAS mission, he stole fire, which had hitherto been the preserve of the Gods. This audacity outraged Jupiter, their King, not least because he feared that mortals might now have a means of overthrowing him.

As retribution, he therefore instructed his Gods and Goddesses to create the most beautiful mortal ever seen: a woman called Pandora, which means ‘all-gifted’. Jupiter then ordered his messenger, Mercury, to deliver this exquisite creature to the door of Prometheus’s brother, Epimetheus. A susceptible young man, Epimetheus ignored his brother’s warning not to accept any presents from the Gods and promptly asked the lovely Pandora to marry him. His only condition was that she should never open the oak chest in the corner of the room.

BOOK: Pandora
7.22Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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