Susan Howatch

Charles Ashworth, the Bishop of Starbridge, is a stalwart defender of the faith. However, his own faith is put to the test when his beloved wife dies. He is caught in a maze of grief and denial, and becomes estranged from his children, his colleagues, and his parishioners.

In 1963 the provincial English town of Starbridge is challenged by a new social and sexual freedom.

Neville, at age forty one, faces personal and professional ruin as his obsession with society's darling, Dido, becomes a web of deceit and threatens the picture-perfect world he has created.

Tells the story of Nicholas Darrow, who about to enter the priesthood, must face the truth of his past as well as his relationship with his father.