The Deception

Mannerling is the former home of the Beverleys, and it possesses a strange and malevolent spirit. In the first book, the father of the Beverley girls literally kills himself attempting to keep the house in the family, but the girls still lose their family home. The house possesses its previous owners and somehow makes them believe that nothing is more important than living in Mannerling. Those that have lived there once must return, at any cost. Despite warnings from her older sisters (who both attempted to regain Mannerling, at the cost of their own happiness) Abigail Beverley is the third daughter to try to reclaim Mannerling. She plans to marry the new owner, despite his wretched reputation. Fortunately, Miss Trumble, the infallible governess, and the handsome Lord Burfield teach Abigail the true meaning of love, and she, like her two older sisters, discovers there is more to life than Mannerling.