Mistress of Pallas
On a Far Wild Shore (U.S. and paperback title)

Published by St Martin's Press and Piatkus, 1986

In 1889, young, beautiful, and newly widowed, Elizabeth Troy travels to her late husband's Cornish estate, hoping to find comfort among its fertile hills and valleys. But she is shocked to discover the vast, decaying acreage of Pallas is now her sole responsibility – and that Morwenna Troy, her sister-in-law, is her implacable enemy.

• Chatterley meets Manderley — Washington Post
• Macdonald inherited all of R.F. Delderfield's fans. His sagas set in England are a joy to read — Columba - Midwest Review of Books
• A highly readable, wonderfully emotional, and perfectly satyisfying fare for the sumptuous-saga lover — Rave Reviews
• Routine, predictable, and humdrum romance, with too much complicated 19th-century English legal maneuvering, and at least one too many charming Cornish peasants — Kirkus
• A cut above the usual historical fiction — Chattanooga Times
• Salted with Cornish wit, wisdom, legend, and tradition. A very good read — The Good Book Guide
• A novel rich in Cornish flavour — The West Briton
• He is every bit as bad as Dickens – Martin Seymour-Smith

Jacket artist
not credited

A Notorious Woman

Published by St Martin's Press and Piatkus, 1988

In 1847 the young, orphaned Johanna Rosewarne is treated as little better than a servant by her uncle and aunt. But when she catches the eye of the suitor intended for the daughter of the house, they cast her out with nothing. 700-odd action-packed pages later, all's well again.

• A compelling tale, offering an interesting insight into Cornish life a century ago — Cornish Packet
• These adventures of the beguiling Ms Rosewarne will keep a fair few enthralled during ... this summer — Manchester Evening News
• Ably blends cogent social commentary with romance ... With its emphasis on moral propriety, tart repartee, and the all-important social milieu, this book echoes 19th century fiction, but its protrayal of the degradation and oppression of women has contemporary relevance — Publishers Weekly
• The writing has pace ... by an author who clearly loves the Cornish countryside — Plymouth Sunday Independent
• Macdonald is as long-winded as ever, but his readers should find reason to stay with him–or with Jo, a character they'll take a shine to — Kirkus
• ... will sweep you into the world of lovers' secrets and titillate you with the deep passions lying beneath a calm surface — Rave Reviews
• True to form, Macdonald has penned another gloriously impassioned adventure ... Splendid historical fiction from a master of the genre — Margaret Flanagan in Booklist
• He is every bit as bad as Dickens – Martin Seymour-Smith

Jacket artist
not credited

An Innocent Woman

Published by St Martin's Press and Piatkus, 1989

When young heiress Jane Hervey arrives in Cornwall in 1861 she is completely ignorant of the double standards that governed Victorian public and private life. This is the story of her unwitting discovery of the facts of life – and love – and how it changes everything and everyone in her circle.

• A carefully wrought novel of character. Macdonald pens a delicate, almost dreamy tale of a woman who is determined to find her own way while still maintaining an accepted place in a society that keeps “respectable” women on a tight rein — Publishers Weekly
• Admirers of Macdonald's portly, likable historical romances [will find this] a solid romance, rich in delightful young women, a bitter-sweet humor, scenes of Cornish coasts, gossipy drawing rooms and boudoirs, and an enchanting heroine — Kirkus
• He is every bit as bad as Dickens – Martin Seymour-Smith

Jacket artist
John Heseltine

A Woman Alone

Published by St Martin's Press and Piatkus, 1990

Village girl Roseanne Kitto is destined to be farmer Mark Bodilly's wife – until a chance encounter with Stephen Morvah, the squire's son, presents her with a dilemma. Eventually she makes the socially scandalous (in the 1870s) decision to live alone – a “sin” she compounds by adopting a baby boy after his mother is murdered.

• By far the best of his West Country sagas ... a highly unusual profile of a woman of those times — Eastern Evening News
• Macdonald succeeds wonderfully in capturing the feeling of Cornish village life, including its broad, rich humour. The legion of Winston Graham's Poldark fans will find, if they have not already done so, that Malcolm Ross is a worthy successor — The West Briton
• Misunderstandings bred by jealousy and an attempted kidnapping further animate [this] robust romance, which handily evokes the natural landscape of Cornwall and the dialect and class distinctions of its inhabitants — Publishers Weekly
• He is every bit as bad as Dickens – Martin Seymour-Smith

Jacket artist
Colin Backhouse

A Woman Possessed

Published by St Martin's Press and Piatkus,1992

They all thought Laura had got over her childhood love for ne'er-do-well Maurice Pettifer when she married solid, dependable Giles Curnow. They all thought Maurice died in South Africa, too – until, one evening in 1902, he turns up again, rich, unmarried, and determined to buy the neighbouring property to the Curnows.

• Although this talky saga often drags, Macdonald nonetheless depicts turn-of-the-century Cornwall convincingly — Publishers Weekly
• The theme [of a threatened happy marriage] has been tackled before but seldom so well — Liverpool Daily Post
• More of Macdonald's wise/unwise, chatty, jaunty women–a pair this time–and their equally entertaining men, again holding forth in the environs of a Cornish village... As with others in this series: a treat for those enjoying the copious gab of long-winded ladies bent on loving and liberation. Busy, sputtering, noisy fun — Kirkus
• Probably the best yet as he brings his characters to life. He manages to combine the enthusiasm of a natural storyteller with delicacy as he decribes the scenes of a family's life torn apart — Western Morning News
• Another fine romantic saga of Victorian Cornish life — Publishing News
• A truly captivating romantic Cornish saga — Western Evening Herald
• Malcolm Ross is an outstanding writer. He has the ability to involve his readers wholeheartedly in the drama, so that we really care about the characters and their fate. He moves the story along in such a way that interest never flags, but he never sacrifices the more subtle nuances in their absorbing relationships — Plymouth Sunday Independent
• He is every bit as bad as Dickens – Martin Seymour-Smith

Jacket artist
Colin Backhouse