The true story of a notorious Edwardian confidence trickster is revealed in a new book from a Highland publishing firm.
Nothing for Something: The Violet Charlesworth Story, by Mark Bridgeman, tells how a young heiress – beautiful and clever, but also cunning and ruthless – was hunted across the globe with the press in hot pursuit.
At one point she fled to Scotland in secret to hide from her creditors, hoping to convince people she had died in a staged car crash in Wales.
She claimed Scottish ancestry and the book includes some episodes in the Highlands – in Helmsdale, Inverness and the Black Isle.
The Aberfeldy-based author explains how Violet was eventually unearthed in Oban, thanks to a cake, a ripped-up telegram and an enterprising reporter.
“Recounted for the first time and in detail, this is the unbelievable true story of the Edwardian confidence trickster who fooled the world three times,” according to Whittles Publishing, based in Dunbeath, Caithness.
“With country estates, fast cars, furs, fabulous jewels and expensive tastes, she lived life in the fast lane until her lifestyle and her creditors finally caught up with her on a lonely, clifftop road.
“As the search for her body continued, the shocking truth about her life finally emerged.
“In the era of the suffragettes, Violet found another way to beat male-dominated society at its own game.
“Setting the bar for all female con artists to follow, she changed women’s fashion, her exploits entered the lexicon of the English language… She even had a racehorse named after her.
“She ruined lives and reputations, broke promises and shattered dreams but, like all great con artists, left us guessing until the end.”
Nothing for Something: The Violet Charlesworth Story, by Mark Bridgeman, is published by Whittles Publishing at £18.99, softback.
Whittles has also published the softback edition of the acclaimed Daughters of the North, by Inverness writer Jennifer Morag Henderson.
It tells the story of Jean Gordon, best known as the first wife of the notorious Earl of Bothwell, who was involved in many of the adventures of Mary, Queen of Scots.
It is described as “a deeply researched historical biography told as an entertaining story”.
Daughters of the North: Jean Gordon and Mary, Queen of Scots, by Jennifer Morag Henderson, is published by Whittles Publishing at £16.99, softback.