occupation patricia wilson
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a ___MASK35___ state largely located on the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe , with two large archipelagos , the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea and the Canary Islands off the North African Atlantic coast , two cities Ceuta and Melilla in the North African mainland and several small islands in the Alboran Sea near the Moroccan coast . Its mainland is bordered to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea except for a small land boundary with Gibraltar ; to the north and northeast by France , Andorra , and the Bay of Biscay ; and to the west and northwest by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean . It is the only European country to have a border with an African country ( Morocco ) and its African territory accounts for nearly 5 % of its population , mostly in the Canary Islands but also in Ceuta and Melilla . Morocco (', lit . " The West "; '), officially known as the Kingdom of Morocco (', lit . " The Western Kingdom "; '), is a ___MASK35___ country located in the Maghreb region of North Africa . Geographically , Morocco is characterized by a rugged mountainous interior , large tracts of desert , and a lengthy coastline along the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea . A ___MASK35___ state is , in international law , a nonphysical juridical entity that is represented by one centralised government that has sovereignty over a geographic area . International law defines ___MASK35___ states as having a permanent population , defined territory , one government , and the capacity to enter into relations with other ___MASK35___ states . It is also normally understood that a ___MASK35___ state is neither dependent on nor subjected to any other power or state . Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula . It has an area of and shares its northern border with Spain . The Rock of Gibraltar is the ___MASK62___ landmark of the region . At its foot is a densely populated city area , home to over 30 , 000 Gibraltarians and other nationalities . England is a country that is part of the ___MASK30___ . It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west . The Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest . England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south . The country covers five - eighths of the island of Great Britain ( which lies in the North Atlantic ) in its centre and south ; and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly , and the Isle of Wight . Africa is the world ' s second - largest and second - most - populous continent . At about 30 . 3 million km² ( 11 . 7 million square miles ) including adjacent islands , it covers 6 % of Earth ' s total surface area and 20 . 4 % of its total land area . With 1 . 1 billion people as of 2013 , it accounts for about 15 % of the world ' s human population . The continent is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north , both the Suez Canal and the Red Sea along the Sinai Peninsula to the northeast , the Indian Ocean to the southeast , and the Atlantic Ocean to the west . The continent includes Madagascar and various archipelagos . It contains 54 fully recognized ___MASK35___ states ( countries ), nine territories and two " de facto " independent states with limited or no recognition . Historical romance ( also historical novel ) is a broad category of fiction in which the plot takes place in a setting located in the past . Walter Scott helped popularize this genre in the early 19th - century , with works such as " Rob Roy " and " Ivanhoe ". Literary fiction historical romances continue to be published , and a notable recent example is " Wolf Hall " ( 2009 ), a multi - award winning novel by English historical ___MASK93___ Hilary Mantel . It is also a genre of mass - market fiction , which is related to the broader romantic love genre The euro ( sign : €; code : EUR ) is the ___MASK97___ currency of the eurozone , which consists of 19 of the ___MASK7___ states of the European Union : Austria , Belgium , Cyprus , Estonia , Finland , France , Germany , Greece , Ireland , Italy , Latvia , Lithuania , Luxembourg , Malta , the Netherlands , Portugal , Slovakia , Slovenia , and Spain . The currency is also officially used by the institutions of the European Union and four other European countries , as well as unilaterally by two others , and is consequently used daily by some 337 million Europeans . Outside of Europe , a number of overseas territories of EU members also use the euro as their currency . The Iberian Peninsula , also known as Iberia , is located in the southwest corner of Europe . The peninsula is principally divided between Portugal and Spain , comprising most of their territory . It also includes Andorra and a small part of France along the peninsula ' s northeastern edge , as well as Gibraltar on its south coast , a small peninsula which forms an overseas territory of the ___MASK30___ . With an area of approximately , it is the second largest European peninsula , after the Scandinavian . The Isles of Scilly ( or "") are an archipelago off the south western tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain . It is the southernmost location in England and the ___MASK30___ , as well as the most westerly in England . A country is a region that is identified as a distinct national entity in political geography . A country may be an independent ___MASK35___ state or one that is occupied by another state , as a non - ___MASK35___ or formerly ___MASK35___ political division , or a geographic region associated with sets of previously independent or differently associated people with distinct political characteristics . Regardless of the physical geography , in the modern internationally accepted legal definition as defined by the League of Nations in 1937 and reaffirmed by the United Nations in 1945 , a resident of a country is subject to the independent exercise of legal jurisdiction . Andorra , officially the Principality of Andorra , also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra , is a ___MASK35___ landlocked microstate in Southwestern Europe , located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France . Created under a charter in 988 , the present principality was formed in 1278 . It is known as a principality as it is a monarchy headed by two Co - Princes the Roman ___MASK20___ of Urgell in Spain , and the ___MASK46___ of France . The Celtic Sea (; ) is the area of the Atlantic Ocean off the south coast of Ireland bounded to the east by ___MASK31___ George ' s Channel ; other limits include the Bristol Channel , the English Channel , and the Bay of Biscay , as well as adjacent portions of Wales , Cornwall , Devon , and Brittany . The southern and western boundaries are delimited by the continental shelf , which drops away sharply . The Isles of Scilly are an archipelago of small islands in the sea . The romance novel or romantic novel discussed in this article is the mass - market literary genre . Novels of this type of genre fiction place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people , and must have an " emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending ." There are many subgenres of the romance novel including fantasy , historical romance , paranormal fiction , and science fiction . Walter Scott defined the literary fiction form of romance as " a fictitious narrative in prose or verse ; the interest of which turns upon marvellous and uncommon incidents ". France , officially the French Republic , is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories . The European , or metropolitan , area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea , and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean . Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic , Pacific and Indian oceans . France spans and had a total population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017 . It is a unitary semi - presidential republic with the capital in Paris , the country ' s largest city and main cultural and ___MASK23___ centre . Other major urban centres include Marseille , Lyon , Lille , Nice , Toulouse and Bordeaux . Wales is a country that is part of the ___MASK30___ and the island of Great Britain . It is bordered by England to the east , the Irish Sea to the north and west , and the Bristol Channel to the south . It had a population in 2011 of 3 , 063 , 456 and has a total area of . Wales has over of coastline and is largely mountainous , with its higher peaks in the north and central areas , including Snowdon , its highest summit . The country lies within the north temperate zone and has a changeable , maritime climate . Scotland ( Scots : ) is a country that is part of the ___MASK30___ and covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain . It shares a border with England to the south , and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean , with the North Sea to the east and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the south - west . In addition to the mainland , the country is made up of more than 790 islands , including the Northern Isles and the Hebrides . A republic ( from ) is a ___MASK35___ state , country , or government which is organized with a form of government in which power resides in elected individuals representing the citizen body and government leaders exercise power according to the rule of law . In modern times , the definition of a republic commonly refers to a government which excludes a ___MASK70___ . Currently , 147 of the world ' s 206 ___MASK35___ states use the word " republic " as part of their official names ; not all of these are republics in the sense of having elected governments , nor do all nations with elected governments use the word " republic " in their names . Borders are geographic boundaries of political entities or legal jurisdictions , such as governments , ___MASK35___ states , federated states , and other subnational entities . Some borders  such as a state ' s internal administrative border , or inter - state borders within the Schengen Area  are often open and completely unguarded . Other borders are partially or fully controlled , and may be crossed legally only at designated border checkpoints and border zones may be controlled . Mostly contentious , borders may even foster the setting up of buffer zones . A difference has also been established in academic scholarship between border and frontier , the latter denoting a state of mind rather than state boundaries . The ___MASK30___ of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , commonly known as the ___MASK30___ ( UK ) or Britain , is a ___MASK35___ country in western Europe . Lying off the north - western coast of the European mainland , it includes the island of Great Britain ( the name of which is also loosely applied to the whole country ), the north - eastern part of the island of Ireland , and many smaller islands . Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that shares a land border with another ___MASK35___ statethe Republic of Ireland . Apart from this land border , the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean , with the North Sea to its east , the English Channel to its south and the Celtic Sea to its south - south - west , giving it the 12th - longest coastline in the world . The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland . With an area of , the UK is the 78th - largest ___MASK35___ state in the world and the 11th - largest in Europe . It is also the 21st - most populous country , with an estimated 65 . 1 million inhabitants . Together , this makes it the fourth most densely populated country in the European Union . The term cult usually refers to a social group defined by their ___MASK83___ , spiritual , or philosophical beliefs , or common interest in a particular personality , object or goal . The term itself is controversial and has divergent definitions in popular culture and in academia and has been an ongoing source of contention among scholars across several fields of study . In the sociological classifications of ___MASK83___ movements , a cult is a social group with socially deviant or novel beliefs and practices , although this is often unclear . Other researchers present a less - organized picture of cults on the basis that cults arise spontaneously around novel beliefs and practices . The word " cult " has always been controversial because it is ( in a pejorative sense ) considered a subjective term , used as an " ad hominem " attack against groups with differing doctrines or practices . Cults range in size from local groups with a few members to international organizations with millions . Patricia Wilson ( born 1929 ) was a popular writer of 53 romance novels for the Mills & Boon publisher from 1986 to 2004 . She places her novels primarily in England , Spain or France .