With All My Heart — Margaret Campbell Barnes

The passionate and gripping love story of dashing Charles II and loyal Catherine of Braganza.

The timid, young, convent-bred Portuguese princess who came to Restoration England to be the bride of Charles II seemed a pathetic pawn in the sophisticated game of statesmanship.

Attended by a vigilant army of ladies-in-waiting and painfully naïve, virtuous Catherine was desperate to make her marriage a success, but life was not easy for the foreign bride.

Her husband's father had been executed by his own subjects, Charles was considered a heretic, and his amorous success with women was the subject of gossip.

The marriage seemed doomed and for Catherine of Braganza it was a frightening venture, offering only a slender chance of happiness.

Tormented by the knowledge that her husband had a mistress and had loved others before her, Catherine was torn, struggling to control her fiery temper and play the doting wife.

But she proved to be a woman of passionate integrity, and from the moment she set eyes on the darkly handsome King Charles she continued to love him utterly.

Eventually she managed to hold her own with dignity and courage even when challenged by the ensnaring beauty and ruthless ambition of women like Lady Castlemaine.

Charles, who was unaccustomed to such intense loyalty, loved Catherine in all her fiery innocence.

As her strength and understanding grew, she withstood the rivalry of dazzling courtesans, fanatical accusations about her religious beliefs and the strain of failing to produce an heir.

And eventually, she discovered how secure, after all, were the foundations of her ill-fated marriage, realising that the cunning nature of women like Lady Castlemaine could never come between the love of her and her husband.

When her own future was in danger, Catherine found a defender in Charles.

Only then did she understand the wise words of her beloved donna Maria Penalva, the elderly and blind woman who had guided her through the tumultuous early stages of her marriage.

With All My Heart is a beautifully written historical novel focusing on Charles II and his Queen.

Praise for Margaret Campbell Barnes

'Margaret Campbell Barnes has added brilliant hues to a picture which never lacked in color.' - Vancouver (BC) Daily Province

‘Immensely entertaining and absorbing.' - Chicago Tribune

'Turns a brilliant light on one of the lustiest and one of the most dramatic periods of English history.' - Philadelphia Inquirer

'Barnes has a way with words and I love some of her descriptions of the time and place.' - So Many Precious Books, So Little Time

‘Campbell Barnes' writing and story telling shine.' - The Literate Housewife

Margaret Campbell Barnes was one of the most popular historical novelists of her time. She wrote over a dozen novels and over two million copies of her books were sold. While little is known of her personal life, her books had a wide readership in her time and are experiencing a resurge of popularity today.