Parlava, Girona, Costa Brava, Spain. This large village house is built from local stone and has far-reaching views across the surrounding countryside towards the sea beyond. It has an antique wooden front door, an old stone bread oven, and a grand, vaulted hall with a wooden mezzanine level that is used as a library. 12 beds, 8 baths, 2 receps, kitchen, billiards room, dining terrace, swimming pool, vegetable garden, 1.07 acres. €3.8m Cluttons 020-7408 1010.
The Dower House, Sandway, Maidstone, Kent. A 1950s country house with a 2-bed Georgian cottage and outbuildings set in gardens that include a lake with an island. It retains its original carved limewood fireplaces and 18th-century mahogany doors, and has a library that includes a concealed door hidden behind shelves of antique books. 4 beds, 3 baths, 2 receps, conservatory, walled garden, woodland, 13.24 acres. £1.65m Savills 01580-720161.
Villa la Meta, Fiesole, Florence, Tuscany, Italy. This grand villa was built in 1908 and is set on a hillside overlooking Florence. It has a library with carved wooden bookshelves, a large entrance hall with a carved stone staircase, ornate decorative ceilings, and period fireplaces. 12 beds, 15 baths, 4 receps, small annexe, orangery, three-storey farmhouse, gardens, parkland, 2.47 acres. €10m Knight Frank 020-7629 8171.
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The Old Manor House, Marazion, Cornwall. A Grade II-listed, waterside property built in 1775 with far-reaching views of the coastline and St Michael's Mount. The house retains its original Victorian tiled floors, open fireplaces and wood panelling, and it has a library with a marble fireplace and bespoke, fitted bookcases. 7 beds, 6 baths, breakfast kitchen, 2 receps, games room, indoor pool, conservatory, enclosed courtyard, gardens. £2.5m Strutt & Parker 01392-215631.
Little St Michaels, West Heath, Surrey. An 1880s former school built in a Gothic style and surrounded by National Trust land. A minstrels' gallery serves as a library with full-height bookshelves, accessed by a wrought-iron spiral staircase. 5 beds, 3 baths, dining room, living room, indoor pool complex, 1 acre. £2.295m Jackson-Stops 01883-712375.
A villa in Lisbon, Portugal. A palatial 1950s property designed by architect Fernando Silva. It comprises two villas linked by a colonnade and has a stone staircase and a library with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. 12 beds, 15 baths, receps, gardens, 1.07 acres. €13m Fine & Country +351 214 643 636.
Hay Carr, Bay Horse, Lancashire. A renovated, 1750s house set in 54.09 acres of grounds close to the Forest of Bowland. It has a modern extension accessed through a glazed walkway that leads to a library and a palm house. 5 beds, 5 baths, 2 receps, orangery, two 1-bed flats, 2-bed lodge, 2-bed cottage, summer house, tennis court, kitchen garden, formal gardens, paddocks, woodland. £3.95m Strutt & Parker 01423-561274.
Bunny Hall, Nottingham. A Grade I-listed, 18th-century hall with a castellated tower and a library with bespoke cabinetry that overlooks the gardens. It has period fireplaces, shuttered windows, and comes with two flats and an indoor leisure complex. 7 beds, 6 baths, 4 receps, orangery, 14.5 acres. £3.75m Savills 0115-934 8020.
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