“Nobody does epic romance like Santa Montefiore." —Jojo Moyes * "One of the most engrossing reads of my year." —Elin Hilderbrand From the #1 internationally bestselling author, her first book set in America, the "lyrical, achingly beautiful" ( Booklist ) story of a mother and daughter searching for love and happiness, unaware of the secrets that bind them. England, 1932: Grace Hamblin is growing up on the beautiful estate of the Marquiss and Marchioness of Penselwood. The beekeeper’s daughter, she knows her place and her future—that is until her father dies and leaves her alone. Her childhood friend Freddie has recently become her lover, and she is thankful when they are able to marry and take over her father’s duties. But there is another man whom she just can’t shake from her thoughts… Massachusetts, 1973: Grace’s daughter, Trixie Valentine, is in love with an unsuitable boy. Jasper Duncliffe is wild and romantic, and in a band that might be going somewhere. But when his brother dies and he is called home to England, Jasper promises to come back for Trixie one day, if only she will wait for him. Thinking Trixie is surely abandoned, Grace tries to reach out to her daughter, but Trixie brushes off her mother’s advice and comfort, sure Jasper’s love for her was real… Both mother and daughter are searching for love and happiness, unaware of the secrets that bind them. To find what they most truly desire they must confront the secrets of the past, and unravel the lies told long ago. Set on a fictional island off the coast of Massachusetts with charming architecture, beautiful landscape, and quirky islanders, The Beekeeper’s Daughter is “a multigenerational banquet of love…one of the most engrossing reads of my year” ( New York Times bestselling author Elin Hilderbrand). "A multigenerational banquet of love: falling in, falling out, rediscovering, rekindling. The Beekeeper’s Daughter features sophisticated, irresistible backdrops and brilliantly drawn characters that made it one of the most engrossing reads of my year." -- Elin Hilderbrand, author of The Matchmaker "An epic romance...exquisite...the fictional island of Tekanasset and its colorful residents come to life with each turn of the page." ― Associated Press “Nobody does epic romance like Santa Montefiore. Everything she writes, she writes from the heart.” -- Jojo Moyes, author of The One Plus One "Lyrical. . .achingly beautiful. . .keep the tissue box handy." ― Booklist “Santa Montefiore is a superb storyteller…. Her plots are sensual, sensitive and complex: her characters are unforgettable life forces: her love stories are desperate yet uplifting. One laughs as much as one cries.” -- Plum Sykes, author of The Debutante Divorcee "Santa Montefiore is a wonder." -- Adriana Trigiani Escapism of the highest order." ― Booklist Santa Montefiore is the number one bestselling author of more than thirty novels and has sold over eight million copies worldwide. Her books have been translated into twenty-five languages, and she won a Romantic Novelists’ Association Award for The Temptation of Gracie in 2019, which is currently in development for film. Born in England in 1970, she grew up in Hampshire and now lives in London with her husband, writer Simon Sebag Montefiore, their daughter Lilochka, son Sasha, and dog Simba. Shadows in the Moonlight is the first novel of a planned trilogy following the character Pixie Tate. Visit her at SantaMontefiore.co.uk and connect with her on Facebook @SantaMontefioreBooks or on Instagram @SantaMontefioreOfficial. The Beekeeper's Daughter Chapter 1 Tekanasset Island, Massachusetts, 1973 Of all the weathered gray-shingled buildings on Tekanasset Island, Crab Cove Golf Club is one of the prettiest. Built in the late nineteenth century by a couple of friends from Boston who shared the sentiment that an island without a golf course is an island deficient in the only thing that truly matters, it dominates the western coastline with an uninterrupted view of the ocean. To the right, a candy-cane red-and-white lighthouse stands on a grassy hill, used more for birdwatchers nowadays than sailors lost at sea; and to the left, yellow beaches and grassy sand dunes undulate like waves, carrying on their crests thick clusters of wild rose. A softer variety of climbing rose adorns the walls of the clubhouse, and dusty pink hydrangeas are planted in a border that runs all the way around the periphery, blossoming into a profusion of fat, flowery balls. The effect is so charming that it is impossible not to be touched by it. And rising above it all, on the gray slate roof, the American flag flutters in the salty wind that sweeps in off the sea. Reachable only by small plane or boat, the island of Tekanasset is cut off from the rest of the country, so that while the Industrial Revolution changed the face of America, it missed Tekanasset altogether, leaving the quaint, Quaker-­inspired buildings and cobbled s