The Enchanted Waltz

Prince Metternich of Austria is growing weary of the political machinations of the European nations arguing over the spoils of Napoleon's Empire, especially those of the duplicitous Czar of all the Russias, Alexander I. They are all gathered for the Congress of Vienna in 1815
Presented with an exquisitely beautiful young girl with eyes as piercingly blue as his own Prince Metternich is powerfully reminded of a siren he once loved in his past and accepts Wanda as his Ward.
But he has an ulterior motive – he persuades the naïve Wanda to go undercover in the Court of the Czar to glean information on his real intentions for Europe.
Meanwhile the Czar has his own suspicions of Metternich and arranges for his English friend Richard Melton to take his place, as they have similar physical characteristics.
Richard Melton is an exile from his home in England because he has been accused of duelling and, although he is innocent, no one believes him.
So begins a tortuous tangle of deceit, secrets and subterfuge in which Wanda quickly loses her heart to the man she takes to be the Czar.
But just as the truth eventually comes to light and love for Wanda stirs Richard Melton's heart, his beloved is betrayed and is carried away forcibly in a sleigh bound for the clutches of the wicked Count Araktcheef in Russia – a fate Richard cannot bear to contemplate –

Barbara Cartland was the world's most prolific novelist who wrote an amazing 723 books in her lifetime, of which no less than 644 were romantic novels with worldwide sales of over 1 billion copies and her books were translated into 36 different languages.
As well as romantic novels, she wrote historical biographies, 6 autobiographies, theatrical plays and books of advice on life, love, vitamins and cookery.
She wrote her first book at the age of 21 and it was called Jigsaw. It became an immediate bestseller and sold 100,000 copies in hardback in England and all over Europe in translation.
Between the ages of 77 and 97 she increased her output and wrote an incredible 400 romances as the demand for her romances was so strong all over the world.
She wrote her last book at the age of 97 and it was entitled perhaps prophetically The Way to Heaven.
Her books have always been immensely popular in the United States where in 1976 her current books were at numbers 1 & 2 in the B. Dalton bestsellers list, a feat never achieved before or since by any author.
Barbara Cartland became a legend in her own lifetime and will be best remembered for her wonderful romantic novels so loved by her millions of readers throughout the world, who have always collected her books to read again and again, especially when they feel miserable or depressed.
Her books will always be treasured for their moral message, her pure and innocent heroines, her handsome and dashing heroes, her blissful happy endings and above all for her belief that the power of love is more important than anything else in everyone's life.