The Annapolis Diet

Fitzie, so called because his adoptive mother believes he may be the illegitimate son of the Prince of Wales, is the fulcrum of this often engrossing historical novel set in a Cotswold village on the brink of change. The product of a passionate encounter between Miriam, daughter of the aristocratic Lessores, and Patrick Davy, gamekeeper on her parents' estate, Fitzie is raised by Patrick and his wife, Martha. The mystery of Fitzie's parentage titillates the village; his putative princely connection becomes a buzzword that opens doors and eventually lifts the Davy family out of the servant class. After his return from WW I, Patrick takes advantage of the postwar social upheaval to become a prosperous businessman with socialist leanings. Fitzie, surrounded by unusual women, becomes the family head after Patrick's death. Macdonald ( Honor and Obey ), who lives in Ireland, is master of the sweeping, intergenerational love story. (Feb.)