From the international bestselling author of the Hardacre Family Saga A powerful tale about wealthy nineteenth century Scottish Highlanders, and their family regiment. War, secrets and betrayal cast a shadow over the Maclarens from the battlefield to the drawing-room. Young Andrew Maclaren, a brave yet sensitive soldier, faces the danger of conflicts in India and China. He must choose between the regiment he serves and the woman he loves. Willie Bruce, Andrew's childhood friend and fellow soldier, discovers loyalty is not always rewarded. Maud Westburn, beautiful but damaged, is the woman who loves them both. Will this love tear a family, and a regiment, apart? A sweeping saga about passion and honour, and the senseless brutality of war.

The next generation of Maclarens and Bruces experience war and passion, in this gripping sequel to The Maclarens. In Scotland and London, history is destined to repeat itself, with more family secrets, and a forbidden love. Meanwhile, in South Africa, the Boer War brings home the senseless brutality of war, and changes some lives forever. A breathtaking family saga. As the children of Willie and Maud Bruce, and Andrew and Emma Maclaren grow up, they come to know the harshness of life on the battlefront, and the hypocrisy of Victorian high society.

Against the background of the British Empire at the height of its power and extent, C.L. Skelton presents the rich and tempestuous story of the intermixed fortunes of two families, the Maclarens and the Bruces. Colonel Andrew Maclaren has relinquished command of Maclaren's Highlanders and retired to his estate in Scotland, and Willie Bruce, risen from the ranks, has taken over. His son Donald is tested early in his career by one of the most brutal assignments that can fall to any soldier, and his military career is fated to end with a recommendation for the highest medal the Crown can bestow. Yet a key to the intermingled fortunes of the two families is Naomi Bruce, the illegitimate daughter of Willie's wife, Maud. She is to be a decisive influence both at home in Britain and in the midst of a great battle in Africa. Ian and Robert Maclaren as well as Donald and Gordon Bruce are as much the sons of the Regiment as of their fathers' their lives and deeds evoke the splendor of Britain's power and the sacrifice required to maintain it. Beside them stand the women who give this story its extraordinary human dimension. The Regiment is the second work in The Regiment Quartet, which is a saga of love and war from the Indian Mutiny through the Second World War. Critics have already acclaimed the author as "a worthy successor to John Galsworthy" and his work "...a magnificent family saga in the tradition of R.L. Delderfield."

The Magnificent Maclarens March to War... The year is 1914: the last summer of innocence before the outbreak of the Great War. It is a time for frivolity and for flirting. For Naomi Bruce there is a chance to plot and scheme; for Rebecca Galloway a chance to win a man's heart; for the Maclarens - family, clan and regiment - a last chance to savour the joys of summer in the Scottish Highlands. But when the storm of war breaks over Europe, many plans have to be abandoned, or made anew, because Scotland's proudest regiment is marching off to do battle... Beloved Soldiers is the triumphant climax of an epic saga which traces the fortunes of a family and a regiment - a novel of love, passion, bravery and sacrifice.