A Rose among Thorns

Since Sofie Winter and her son Sebastian were abandoned by his father, money has been tight. Forced to work nights at a sleazy nightclub, she rarely makes it on time to her day job as a telephone operator at the luxurious Atlantic Hotel.







When a co-worker retires, she receives a new assignment that suddenly catapults her into a new and breathtaking world: she is now the assistant to hotel director Simon Wahlberg.








Simon, an experienced, self-made man, built his luxury hotel empire up from scratch and knows all the tricks of his trade. But when Sofie literally stumbles right into his arms, Wahlberg falls head over heels for his pretty employee and she is swept into his glamorous world.







Skeptical at first, Sofie soon also succumbs to the handsome businessman’s rugged charms and his heart of gold. When the two get engaged, high society is appalled, but it’s with proud defiance that the hotel magnate walks his ‘Cinderella’ down the aisle. The tabloids are thrilled by her ascent, but already reporters are raking through Sofie’s not so impeccable past.




During the newlywed couple’s honeymoon in beautiful Venice, the unthinkable happens: Simon Wahlberg collapses from a heart attack on the roof terrace of their hotel, and dies, high above the famous canals of the city.








Now, after precious few weeks of bliss with the man of her dreams, Sofie not only has to cope with her grief, but defend herself against the machinations of her husband’s family, against the press and against a hostile takeover of the hotel – an arduous legacy.







Margarethe, the influential matriarch of the Wahlberg family, and her degenerate son Stefan will stop at nothing to gain back their hold on the family empire. But Sofie has one strong ally - Wolfgang, her husband’s closest adviser, who aids her in implementing Simon’s will and who soon comes to understand why the hotel director loved her so.




But when the father of Sofie’s son suddenly turns up with old documents that call the legality of her marriage to Simon into question, everything they have struggled so hard to defend is in danger of being lost…