"Mylord et Mylady" by Brada is a novel written in the late 19th century. It reads as a witty, satirical comedy of manners about fashionable London society—its vanities, press-fueled notoriety, and transactional romances. Beginning with the dazzling Lady Gwendoline Vancouver and her circle, then widening to a worldly widow, a jealous prince, a rising marquis, and a celebrated actress, the book sketches intersecting intrigues among aristocrats and parvenus.The opening of the novel follows Lady Gwendoline Vancouver, a stylish, competitive beauty who covets a place in a chic illustrated weekly and toys with admirers to needle its editor, Victor Rowe. She baits the modest Tommy Lorrett into her orbit to reach Rowe, outshines her sister-rival Lady Treppy, and coolly rebuffs Rowe’s plea to publish her portrait—only for the paper to run it anyway. A new section shows Gwen slipping into a clandestine affair with Cis Pen; a street collision nearly exposes her to her husband Eustace, who is himself seen with the dancer Mabel Deare, but Gwen nimbly manufactures an alibi and, amid brewing gossip, agrees to visit her wealthy in-laws—securing funds, favor, and firmer control at home. The focus then shifts to Madame Vesey, a charming widow who engineers a triumph at the Rushes’ salon with an “oriental” dance, publicly choosing Lord Tyars over the enamored Prince of Cinq-Ports and winning a proposal. Finally, the scene turns to timid baronet Sir Marmaduke Orris and his assertive wife Bertha:…
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