Women the world over suffer restrictions.

It’s ridiculous – a girl steps out, goes dancing, gets her hair cut, decides to spend the summer in Italy and it’s a scandal. A chap does it and no one bats an eyelid.

Often we don't notice the stringent rules to which our culture subjects us.

Some women will do anything for a glass of champagne and a safe bed.

It was as if she was a dream, like London, which he could not entirely grasp and of which he was not worthy. He wanted to be part of it but had forgotten how. It seemed extraordinary and strange that this paragon among women had condescended to travel on his ship. In fact, she’d insisted upon it. Her presence was at once otherworldly and familiar, none of which explained why his brain ceased to function when he was in her company. – On Starlit Seas

There was something about Maria Graham that you could believe in – a slice of home. If not unique in her travelling, she was at least extraordinary. – On Starlit Seas