Lord Tilbury's blood pressure is rocketing skywards. The Hon. Galahad Threepwood's decision not to publish his scandalous reminiscences will lose him a small fortune. But he's one of the bulldog breed who don't readily admit defeat. Monty Bodkin, abruptly given the boot by Lord Tilbury, has taken up his secretarial duties at Blandings Castle, home of Lord Emsworth and his adored pig, Empress of Blandings. There, it seems the publication - or otherwise - of the memoirs is becoming a "cause celebre". Three camps are forming: those who want the book published, those who want it suppressed and those who, including Monty on one side and Percy Pilbeam, private detective, on the other, who have been sent to steal it. Whichever side they're on it's bound to involve blackmail, theft and the abduction of the Empress . . .

Monty Bodkin's wooing of Gertrude Butterwick on the R.M.S. Atlantic is not progressing as it should. And the cause of all the trouble is Miss Lotus Blossum, the brightest star in Hollywood's firmament. The easy camaraderie of Miss Blossom, coupled with the idea that Monty is the only person who can send the errant Ambrose back to her welcoming arms, is causing Mr Bodkin moments of acute distress.

Written to celebrate the author's ninety-first birthday - a flawless piece of classic comic writing. What happened to Monty Bodkin's love for Hockey International Gertrude Butterwick? His year in Hollywood completed, he leaves behind his heartbroken secretary, Sandy Miller, and arrives in London to claim his Amazon's had. However, teh Bodkin road to happiness is arduous, and pitfalled through and through