December 1901: With London Society in a frenzy of anticipation for the coronation of the new king, Edward VII, the Earl and Countess of Dilberne are caught up in lavish preparations. Yet Lady Isobel still has ample time to fret, and no wonder with a new heir on the way, an elopement, family tragedy, a runaway niece, and a gaggle of fraudulent spiritualists to contend with... With her trademark joie de vivre, Fay Weldon once again draws her readers into the lives and loves of the aristocratic Dilberne family, as they embrace not only a new century, but a new generation – a generation with somewhat radical views... “Weldon at her most spellbinding.” ― Spectator “A splendidly fun romp” ―The Times “Hugely enjoyable” ― Tatler After hard times and odd jobs as a lone parent, Fay Weldon became one of the top advertising copywriters of her generation. She moved to TV drama (writing the pilot episode of the iconic series Upstairs Downstairs ) then turned to novels – including the classic The Life and Loves of a She Devil and the Booker-shortlisted Praxis . Fay was made a CBE for services to literature and taught Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. Long Live the King Book II of the Love & Inheritance Trilogy By Fay Weldon Head of Zeus Ltd Copyright © 2013 Fay Weldon All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-78185-060-2 Contents Cover, Welcome Page, December – 1901, Adela Annoys Her Father, A Letter to the Countess from the Duchess, Oh What Care I for Your Goosefeather Bed?, The Gathering Storm, The Invitations Arrive, Breakfast at Yatbury Rectory, A Deed Once Done, Whose Fault?, Rosina Complains to Minnie, Ivy's Sweetheart, An All-Consuming Fire, The Rescue of Adela, A Journey to Wells, His Lordship Fights Back, Adela Settles In, Adela in the Moat Room, The Dilbernes' Christmas, Christmas at Dilberne Court, George and Ivy's Christmas, 'I Woke,' Said the Queen, 'I Worried.', On Boxing Day, The Collect for the Day:, Breakfast at Belgrave Square, The Funeral, Minnie's Alarm, A Clash of Admirers, January – 1902, The Search for Lost Invitation Cards, Adela Manages, February – 1902, A New Career for George, A Prime Minister in Waiting, March – 1902, Who is Fairest of Us All?, A Trip to Bath, Minnie's Condition, His Lordship Passes By, April – 1902, Frank's Wooing of Adela, Ivy and Frank at Doreen's, A Late Breakfast, The Abduction of Adela, New Horizons, Isobel and Consuelo Seek Common Cause, Mrs Baum Waits, Panic and Confusion, May – 1902, Earning a Living, A Meeting of the I.D.K. Club, Next Year in Jerusalem, A Struggle with Belief, A Night at the Savoy, Carlotta Turns Seventeen, June – 1902, The Coronation Looms, Lady Isobel Waits, A Queen is Dressed, The Best-Laid Plans of Mice and Men, A Room Set Aside, The King is Dead – Long Live the King!, Happy Ever After: A Postscript, Preview, About this Book, Reviews, About this Trilogy, About the Author, An Invitation from the Publisher, Copyright, CHAPTER 1 December – 1901 Adela Annoys Her Father 'Will we be going to the Coronation, Father?' asked Adela, in all innocence. She should not have. He was now in a bad mood. Adela was hungry. She waited for her father to start his breakfast: no one could begin before he did. The last food she'd had was at six the previous evening. Supper had been a bowl of chicken soup (its fourth appearance at the table) and some bread and cheese, from which Ivy the maid had been obliged to scrape away so much mould there was precious little cheese left. The Rectory at Yatbury was an abstemious household, dedicated more to the pleasures of the spirit than the flesh. 'We certainly will not,' her father said. 'I daresay your uncle and his brood will prance around in ermine robes with sealskin spots, but I will not be there to witness it, nor will any member of my household.' He spoke of his elder brother Robert, the eighth Earl of Dilberne, whom he hated. 'But Father —' said Adela. Better if she had kept quiet. Her mother Elise, a princess of the Gotha-Zwiebrücken-Saxon line, known locally as the Hon. Rev.'s wife, kicked Adela under the table with the heel of a boot, scuffed and worn, but still capable of delivering a painful blow to the shins. 'And I'll have no further mention of this absurd business, Adela, until the whole event is over. The country is still at war and income tax has risen to one shilling in the pound and likely to go up tuppence more. And why? To pay not for the war but for a party. A pointless party for a monarch who is already accepted in law and by the people, in a vulgar display of purloined wealth,' said Edwin. He was the Rector of the small parish of Yatbury, just south-east of the City of Bath in Somerset, and in speaking thus he spoke for many. 'That wealth has been stolen for the most part by piracy; gold, diamonds and minerals wrenched from the native soil of unhappy peoples by virtue of secret treaties, then enforc