The Four Horsemen by Gregory Dowling

The second book from Gregory Dowling to feature secret agent Alvise Marangon in Eighteenth century Venice is as fast paced and unpredictable as the first. The book opens with intense action as Alvise is chased by some casino bruisers after apparently insulting their boss and is promptly arrested as the brawl spills into St Mark’s Square. Brought before the Missier Grande he is asked to investigate the mysterious death of another agent. A seemingly quiet, bookish man Sior Padoan fell from the roof of his home in what was apparently a tragic accident. Alvise however is certain that the man’s missing diary will provide some clues. There is a connection to a secret society known as The Four Horsemen and Alvise once again must seek help from the bookseller Fabrizio and his beautiful daughter Lucia and his gondolier friend Bepi. Though his investigations are blocked at almost every turn by the city’s Inquisitors and he is caught up in the dark and shadowy world of a scandalous noblewoman, Alvise soon begins to unravel the curious threads that led to poor Sior Padoan’s death. This is fast paced historical crime with great writing, smart plotting and a host of interesting characters bringing Venice to vivid life. Really enjoyable and perfect for fans of Diana Bretherick and Andrew Taylor. 

Madwoman in the Attic #8 Anne Burke

Anne Burke was an Irish writer of Gothic novels. She was one of the first women to write in the Gothic genre. Anne Burke was a governess who after she was left widowed with a young son turned to writing to earn money, although she applied on several occasions to the Royal Literary Fund for relief. Anne Burke's books inspired Anne Radcliffe who was one of the most successful of the Gothic novelists. Anne Burke is considered to be part of the group of key Irish authors who popularised and developed the Gothic style of writing in the late Eighteenth Century and afterwards including Regina Maria Roche and Sydney Owenson
List of works
Ela or The Delusions of the Heart 1787
Emilia de St Aubigne 1788
Adela Northington 1796
The Sorrows of Edith 1796
Elliott or Vicissitudes of Early Life 1800
The Secret Of the Cavern 1805

Madwoman in the Attic #7 Elizabeth Dorothea Cobbe

Elizabeth Lady Tuite was born in Dublin in 1764, the daughter of Colonel Thomas Cobbe and Lady Eliza Beresford. She married Sir Henry Tuite the 8th Baronet in November 1784. She was a poet and a writer for children. She was the great aunt of Frances Power Cobbe and was said to have been a great influence on her. Lady Tuite's husband died in 1805 and she spent much of the rest of her life living in Bath. Lady Tuite's poetry was considered to be in the romantic style. She was one of the set who attended the literary salon of Elizabeth Rawdon; Countess of Moira who was also a relative. Her poetry was included in an anthology "What Sappho would have Said " by Emma Donoghue. She died in 1850.
Further information can be found in A Dictionary of British and American Women Writers 1660-1800 by Janet Todd and The Cambridge Companion to women's Writing in the Romantic Period by Devoney Looser. 

Madwoman in the Attic #5 Marguerite Power, Countess of Blessington

Marguerite Power was born at Knockbrit, Clonmel, Co Tipperary in 1789. She was the daughter of Ellen Sheehy and Edmund Power who owned a small amount of land. According to her first biographer her father known as 'Buck' Power was a gambler and drinker and Maguerite had an unhappy childhood as the family were constantly in debt. Her father traded Marguerite in payment for gambling debts to Captain Maurice St Leger Farmer, so at 15 Marguerite went from unhappy child to unhappy bride. Her husband starved, beat and imprisoned his wife. The law at the time would offer her no protection and Marguerite's only option was to separate from her husband. When he was posted to India by the army she refused to go with him and instead  moved to London. She was immediately a cause for scandal as she was a 'separated woman' but still a teenager. However her good looks and sparking wit made her extremely popular as a society hostess. Marguerite began an affair with Charles John Gardiner, First Earl of Blessington while both of them were still married but his wife died in 1814 and Farmer died in debtor's prison in 1817 so the pair married in 1818. Blessington was a wealthy and indulgent husband and Marguerite was generous to a fault insisting on helping out a number of relatives in Ireland and England. In 1822 the Blessingtons set out on a Grand Tour. Marguerite was well known in literary circles and struck up a friendship with Byron at Genoa. She later wrote Conversations with Lord Byron. (1834) At Naples she met Irish writer Richard Robert Madden who later wrote her biography (1855). While they were travelling on the continent John invited the dashing Count D'Orsay who had been part of their London circle to join them. With all of them living together and indulging in a life of extravagance it was probably inevitable that D'Orsay and Marguerite began an affair but with a young and healthy husband Marguerite knew that it could be years before they could be together so she devised a plan. She persuaded her husband to arrange a match between his daughter Harriet from his first marriage to D'Orsay so that they could continue to spend time together without any gossip. Ironically just a few months after the marriage in 1829 Blessington suffered a sudden stroke and died  in Paris. He left Marguerite plenty of money, jewels and estates and she establishment her household back in London persuading D'Orsay and Harriet to live with her, after just three years though Harriet walked out exposing her husband and step mother to scandal. Typically D'Orsay was accepted quickly back into society but Marguerite was not. Marguerite turned to writing to support herself and her literary salons were revived. Her home Gore House is now the site of the Albert Hall and writers who visited her included Charles Dickens and Benjamin Disraeli. Marguerite wrote novels; The Repealers or Grace Cassidy (1834), The Governess (1839),  Strathern (1845), The Fatal Error (1847) and travel books The Idler in France (1839) The Idler in Italy (1841) as well as contributing to newspapers and periodicals, she was one of the first writers to have her work serialised in The Sunday Times. Astute in her own business dealings but not in her private life Marguerite and D'Orsay had to leave London to escape their creditors in 1849. Just a few weeks later Marguerite was dead, like her husband before her she suffered a massive stroke in Paris. She is buried at St Germain. 

Madwomen in the Attic #4 Elizabeth Griffith

Elizabeth Griffith was born in Wales in 1727 to Thomas Griffith a well known Dublin actor-manager and his Yorkshire wife Jane Foxcroft, however she was raised in Ireland and educated by her father. She read both English and French and her father encouraged her to recite verse, no doubt anticipating a life on the stage. Her father died in 1744 and by 1749 Elizabeth is listed as an actress in Thomas Sheridan's company (husband of Frances Sheridan) Sometime in the early 1750s Elizabeth secretly married Richard Griffith and in 1753 they moved to London and she began performing at Covent Garden. When her husband's business failed Elizabeth turned to writing; publishing her courtship letters and following those with poetry and drama. She also translated a number of works from French. She achieved enough success that she could seek employment with the famed David Garrick for whom she wrote The School for Rakes in 1769 and though other plays followed they were less successful. Elizabeth soon turned to novel writing and the fashionable epistolary novel. She toned down her characters in her novels as she received criticism for her forthright female characters in her plays and conscious of the need to provide for her family she tailored her work to the market. She published her first novel in the same year as her husband The Delicate Distress (1769) was followed by The History of Lady Barton (1771) and The Story of Lady Juliana Harley (1776) These novels feature characters who are preyed upon by violent men conforming to the trend for sentimental novels at the time, the tone is quite moralistic and as a consequence her books dated very quickly and rapidly went out of fashion. Griffith however continued what she saw as her more serious work editing works by women dramatists such as Aphra Behn and Eliza Haywood and translating French work such as Voltaire and the Princess of Cleeves by Marie-Madeleine, Comtesse de La Fayette. She also wrote Literary Criticism and her The Morality of Shakespeare's Drama Illustrated (1775) is especially significant as she was one of the first scholars to discuss Shakespeare's legacy and importance.

Although she often received a harsh critical reception Elizabeth Griffith was widely respected in the literary circles of her day, her admirers included Fanny Burney, Joshua Reynolds, James Boswell and Edmund Burke. Griffith has often been dismissed as a sentimental novelist but she made a sizeable contribution to the literary world of her day. She was a member of the Blue Stocking Society; an intellectual salon consisting of mostly female members and organised by Elizabeth Montagu.

Elizabeth Griffith is pictured here (seated right) with other Bluestockings in this 1778 painting by Richard Samuel. Elizabeth Griffith's son joined the East India Company and became a wealthy man,  in 1786 Elizabeth and her husband settled at Millicent House at Clane in County Kildare with their son and Elizabeth died there in 1793. 

Madwomen in the Attic #3 Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan)

Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan) was born on December 25th in Dublin in the early 1780s. She was always rather elusive about the exact year of her birth. Her father was actor-manager Robert Mac Owen who changed his name to Owenson. although he was Irish, Owenson spent much of his youth in London and so he met and married an English girl Jane Hill before the two travelled to Dublin to settle permanently. Robert Owenson set up a theatrical company in Dublin and Sydney and her sister Olivia spent a great deal of time there. Sydney was mostly educated at home with her sister, they lived on Dame Street in her early childhood but after her mother's death in 1789 her and her sister were sent to private schools around Dublin and then moved to Sligo were their father was working as an actor. There was some financial problems for the family and when Sydney was in her teens she had to accept work as a governess with the Featherstone family of Bracklyn Castle. Sydney blossomed at this point as she had an opportunity to show off her skills; she could sing, dance and play the harp. It was there that Sydney began to write. She published a volume of poetry and a collection of verses for Irish melodies in the early 1800s. She then decided to write a novel, she was an admirer of Fanny Burney and she published St Clair (1804) and The Novice of St Dominick (1806) with much success. It was her third novel however The Wild Irish Girl (1806)  which made her a household name. This book displayed Sydney's passion for Ireland and her patriotic fervour. She used her celebrity to extoll the virtues of Ireland's traditions and history. The Missionary; An Indian Tale followed and numbered Percy Bysshe Shelley amongst its admirers. She also wrote an opera and some proposals on Women's education. Sydney joined the household of John Hamilton 1st Marquess Abercorn and married the family's surgeon Sir Thomas Charles Morgan in 1812. O'Donnell (1814) is widely considered her best work and was praised by Sir Walter Scott. Books on France and Italy were praised by Byron for their authenticity but harshly reviewed elsewhere. Sydney was adept at capturing the ordinary life of the poor and she returned to examining Irish life with Absenteeism (1825) and The O'Briens and The O'Flahertys(1827).
Sydney was awarded a pension by Lord Melbourne for her services to literature, the first women ever to receive such an award. She again asserted her feminist views in Woman and her Master (1840). She began work on her memoirs with Geraldine Jewsbury but they were unfinished at her death in 1859. In 1839 the Morgan's moved to London and Sydney was buried in Brompton Cemetery.
A prolific writer, as well as novels, poetry and non fiction she produced numerous tracts and pamphlets.
A lively and entertaining member of numerous literary circles she was never afraid to poke fun and many of those who reviewed her harshly were caricatured in her fiction.
There is a bust of Sydney in The Victoria and Albert Museum and there is a plaque on Kildare Street in Dublin marking one of her homes.

Madwomen in the Attic #2 Regina Maria Roche

Regina Maria Roche (née Dalton) was born in Waterford in 1764 before the family moved to Dublin where she grew up. Little is known about her early life other than that she was the daughter of Captain Blundel Dalton and she is quoted as claiming that books were a passion from a young age and that she had begun to write stories as soon as she could hold a pen. Her first two novels were published in her twenties The Vicar of Landsdowne (1789) and The Maid of Hamlet (1793). Her marriage in 1794 to Ambrose Roche led to a move to England and although her previous books had had some success it was the next book that made her a household name. Children of the Abbey a Gothic Romance published in 1796 was an instant hit. The book went through several editions and was translated into French and Spanish. The book appeared at the height of the Gothic novel trend and Roche quickly followed up with Clermont (1798) a novel with a much darker tone and containing all the trappings we have come to associate with Gothic fiction; a mysterious Countess, an attack by ruffians, a gloomy crypt, a forced marriage. Another huge hit Clermont was one of the seven Gothic novels that the heroine of Northanger Abbey Catherine Morland is told to read by Isabella Thorpe. Another novel followed in 1800 The Nocturnal Visit  but after this the Roches suffered serious financial setback as they were cheated out of an inheritance in Ireland by a dishonest solicitor; an unfortunate mirror of events in Children of the Abbey in which siblings Amanda and Oscar Fitzalan are cheated out of their inheritance Dunreath Abbey by a scheming relative. Regina Maria Roche returned to Ireland in the 1820s after her husband's death. She wrote another eleven novels most of them were picturesque tales of the Irish countryside but none of them reached the heights of success of Clermont and Children of the Abbey. She died in 1845 at the age of 81 in relative obscurity but was remembered fondly in a number of obituaries.

Clemont and  Children of the Abbey are available from Valancourt Books.

http://www.valancourtbooks.com/clermont-1798.html

http://www.valancourtbooks.com/the-children-of-the-abbey-1796.html

The Silk Weaver Blog Tour

The Silk Weaver is Liz Trenow's fourth novel and it draws on her family's history in the silk trade. Set in a time of scientific discovery and social upheaval the novel features a heroine with a passion for art and nature. The daughter of a country vicar Anna has had a peaceful, quiet life in Suffolk but as the book opens she is bound for London to begin a new life with her aunt, uncle and cousins; a family of London silk merchants. Anna knows that the purpose of her coming to London is so that she can make a successful marriage to support her aging father and younger sister. However it is the young French silk weaver she meets on her first day in London that interests Anna. Soon Anna is thrust into a world of beautiful dresses and strict social rules but it is a world which is rapidly changing as workers riot and protest and fashions and fortunes change. However Anna also discovers that in this changing world she can make her own way using her artistic talent, with her friend Charlotte as an inspiration and a guide. Liz Trenow's novel is a wonderful window into the past full of detail, passion and great storytelling. Inspired by real people such as the silk designer Anna Maria Garthwaite and real events such as the successive waves of French Hugenot immigrants arriving in London and the 'cutters riots' of the 1760s. This is a book not to be missed particularly for fans of Daisy Goodwin, Debra Daley, Laurie Graham, Lucinda Riley and Kate Riordan.

I asked Liz to share some details about her inspiration and research. This is what she told me

"When I was researching the history of my family’s silk weaving business, which started in Spitalfields, East London, in the early 1700s (and is still weaving today in Sudbury, Suffolk) I discovered that the first address was in Wilkes Street. Just a few yards away is the house where the eminent silk designer Anna Maria Garthwaite lived at around the same time. It was so exciting to imagine that she would have known and worked with my ancestors.

Anna Maria was one of the most celebrated textile designers of the eighteenth century, her silks were worn by royalty and nearly a thousand of her designs are in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Yet no-one knows how she learned her craft or how an unmarried middle-aged woman managed to develop such a successful business in a male dominated industry. It is this mystery that sparked the idea for the novel."

Find out more about Liz and her books at her website https://liztrenow.com/

The Silk Weaver is published on January 26th by Pan Macmillan priced £7.99 and the blog tour continues until January 29th. See Details below. Thanks so much to Alice Dewing at Pan Macmillan for a copy of the book.

Madwomen in the Attic #1 Frances Sheridan

Most of what we know about the early life of  Frances Sheridan (née Chamberlaine) comes from Memoirs of the Life and writings of Mrs Frances Sheridan which was written by her granddaughter Alicia LeFanu and published in 1824. Frances was born in Dublin in 1724, her mother died when she was a baby and she was raised by her father; an Anglican minister under a strict and repressive regime. Her father did not believe in educating girls, but luckily Frances had some liberal minded brothers who taught her Latin, Botany and Literature and by her mid teens Frances had begun writing fiction herself, 'Eugenia and Adelaide' was written on paper stolen from the housekeeper's account books. Frances also attended the theatre with her brothers and it was there that she met actor and manager of the Smock-Alley theatre Thomas Sheridan. They married in 1747. Soon she was writing plays of her own. Marriage to Thomas brought Frances into literary circles including Dr Johnson, Sarah Fielding and Samuel Richardson whom Frances greatly admired and they became good friends. Frances showed him the manuscript of 'Eugenia and Adelaide'  he encouraged her to seek publication and although it was rejected Frances continued to write. During the 1750s Frances gave birth to six children and grew increasingly frail while her husband's theatre suffered terrible financial blows and eventually failed,  they were left with an enormous debt and Thomas sought work in London, money was still incredibly tight and Frances hoped that Memoirs of Miss Sidney Bidulph would help to support the family financially. Published in 1761 Memoirs of Miss Sidney Bidulph was a huge success, praised by the critics and soon after it was translated into French and German. Frances followed the success of her novel with a play The Discovery staged at Drury Lane, starring her husband and David Garrick but financial problems dogged them and they fled their creditors settling in Blois in France were Frances wrote A Trip to Bath and Nourjahad the first of a planned series. The Sheridans were planning to return to Ireland  in 1766 when Frances became suddenly ill and died, aged just 42. The two completed novels were published posthumously the following year. Frances' son Richard Brinsley Sheridan became a celebrated playwright but a careful study of his work and his mother's will show that he was not only inspired by her but in some cases transposed ideas and characters unchanged from her work. There were other writers in the family; daughters Elizabeth and Alicia, granddaughter Alicia and of course great-grandson Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu the popular Victorian gothic novelist. Frances was both critically acclaimed and and a popular bestseller in her day and her books were a huge influence on the generation that followed; including Fanny Burney, Maria Edgeworth and Jane Austen but as fashions in fiction changed as the 19th Century approached her work fell into obscurity.



Memoirs of Miss Sidney Bidulph is published by Oxford Classics.

Find out more about Frances and many other forgotten women writers in Mothers of the Novel by Dale Spender.

Picture credit National Library of Ireland

Upcoming Blog Tour

I'm delighted to be taking part in the Blog tour for The Silk Weaver by Liz Trenow, thanks to her publishers Pan Macmillan. My review will be live on Sunday 22nd January along with some comments from Liz herself on her research and inspiration. You can check out the rest of the blog tour online through the sites listed below. The Silk Weaver is published next Thursday 26th January.

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken

An enchanting story of a young violin prodigy sent violently hurtling back in time to 1776 at the whim of a cruel and controlling family of time travellers. Etta must find a coveted astrolabe while her mother is held prisoner by the Ironwood family. She is aided in her frantic race against time by Nicholas Carter, a young sailor also entangled with the Ironwood family. This is a romantic, action packed page turner perfect for fans of fantasy and historical fiction.

This is the first in a series and I can't wait for the second book. 

Perfect for fans of Outlander and Sarah J Maas.

I reviewed this book for the Inis Reading Guide 2016 published by Children's Books Ireland 

An Almond for a Parrot by Wray Delaney

An Almond For a Parrot is the spectacular adult debut from award winning children's author Sally Gardner and be warned it is very much a book for adults. The novel is the tale of the life, loves and romantic and sexual awakening of Tully Truegood.
Following in the footsteps of eighteenth century heroines like Moll Flanders and Fanny Hill, Tully's story begins in 1756 in Newgate Prison where Tully awaits trial for murder. Through a series of recipes and recollections Tully recounts her journey from a neglected childhood with her drunken father to a life of luxury as the mistress of a Lord.
Treated as little more than a servant by her father, who gambled and drank away what little money they had after her mother's death, the only kindness Tully receives is from a indifferent gin-soaked cook. Her father trades Tully like a commodity; at 12 she is a bride in a "Fleet Marriage" at 16 she is the payment for a gambling debt. Tully enjoys fleeting happiness when her father brings home a new wife; as she has the kindness of a mother and a chance at learning, as well as new gowns and shoes but it is all too soon snatched away. When Tully finally makes her escape from her father's house it is the first time she has ever set foot outside and she is dazzled and thus begins her progress through the highs and lows of the decadent London of the eighteenth century.
With a powerful physic ability and a beautiful face Tully is soon the most celebrated courtesan of her age, before a shadowy figure from her past emerges to challenge her safety and position.
This is an incredible page turner full of immaculate period detail and peopled with great characters. A writer to watch.  If you are a fan of Debra Daley, Laurie Graham or Sarah Waters then you will love this book.
Publishing next Thursday; 3rd November and coming from new imprint HQ; part of Harper Collins this is a book that should not be missed. An Almond for a Parrot has already been listed in Buzz Feeds 24 most anticipated books of the Autumn and you can expect to hear a lot more buzz about it as publication approaches.
Thanks so much to Sophie Calder at Harper Collins for a copy of the book.

Ascension by Gregory Dowling

Gregory Dowling’s fifth novel; his first foray into historical territory, is set in mid 18^th Century Venice and introduces a charming protagonist in the form of cicerone or tour guide Alvise Marangon. Having grown up mostly in England Alvise makes guiding British tourists his specialty but he gets more than he bargained for when he offers to guide the young Mr. Boscombe and his tutor Mr. Shackleford.

Soon Alvise is entangled in the city’s criminal underbelly finding himself arrested, robbed, beaten up and finally persuaded to join the city’s secret network of spies to uncover a criminal threat that goes to highest levels of Venice’s aristocratic society.

This is a wonderful page turner with a fabulous cast of characters from the gambling dens to the theatres, the booksellers to the taverns, the courtesans to the gondoliers. Alvise is able to use his innate sense of theatre and charm to move fluidly between all the classes and this also makes him a perfect spy.

Dowling’s storytelling is superb and the sights, sounds and smells of 18^th Century Venice are brilliantly realised. Although the plot is resolved the book has the feel of the first in a series so I hope there will be a return for Alvise. This book would be ideal for fans of Diana Bretherick and Robin Blake.

Published by Polygon 2015.

This review originally appeared in Historical Novels Review Magazine

A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab

US Cover                           UK Cover

This was one of my most anticipated sequels of 2016 and it did not disappoint. In fact I thought it was actually better than the first book. This book sees Lila really come into her own travelling with a pirate band throughout the kingdom she has the opportunity to prove herself and make new friends and it becomes increasingly obvious that despite her "outlaw" status she has a great deal more freedom than Kell. Meanwhile Kell along with the rest of Red London is preparing for the Element Games a sort of Olympic games for magic. However despite his defeat of the Dane twins and Holland's apparent death it seems that Black London is not finished with Kell yet. The storytelling is whip-crack smart as expected from Victoria Schwab and in this instalment we get even more world building and new and interesting characters are introduced. I would urge you to read the first book in this series A Darker Shade of Magic as A Gathering of Shadows follows on where that book left off.

UK Cover

A Darker Shade of Magic introduces Kell, one of the last of those who can travel between the different versions of London that overlap each other and that can only be accessed by a traveler using blood magic. Kell is a native of Red London where magic is used everyday, he frequently travels to the much duller Grey London where George III is the reigning monarch and magic has been forgotten and the much more dangerous White London ruled by the vicious Dane Twins, White London also has a traveler; Holland but can they trust each other?

While Victoria Schwab is a successful author of Young Adult novels she makes the leap to Fantasy for adults easily and these books have a great deal of appeal for teens also. I highly recommend this series if you are a fan of Deborah Harkness, Laini Taylor, Genevieve Cogman or the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch. 

Thanks so much to Titan Books for sending me review copies of these two titles. Both books are available in paperback and the final book in the series will be published in February 2017. 

The Revelations of Carey Ravine by Debra Daley

Following last year's stunning Turning the Stones, The Revelations of Carey Ravine returns to Georgian England this time to the bustling city of London where Carey and her beloved husband Nash aim to make their mark and some money among the high society. Everything in the couple's home is rented, so that they can appear wealthy while their debts are mounting. Nash is convinced that every new scheme will be the one to lift them out of their middle class origins and into the noveau riche nobility. Carey meanwhile is translating French erotica and dreams of greater literary endeavour. When Carey is visited by an old friend of Nash's from his time in India she is intrigued, her father disappeared many years before in India and while Nash dismisses any connection to her father out of hand Carey begins an investigation of her own which reveals corruption and scandal at the highest level which will have devastating consequences for her own life.
This is a wonderful novel with an utterly brilliant and believable cast of characters and deft and skillful plotting. I was hooked on Carey's story and on Carey herself so utterly of her time and yet in many ways so thoroughly modern. Debra Daley is a real hidden gem in historical fiction who deserves greater attention. If you are a fan of Laurie Graham, Katherine Clements or enjoyed Janet Ellis's The Butcher's Hook then this book is for you.

Thank you to Olivia Mead for a review copy. The Revelations of Carey Ravine is published by Heron Books and available in hardback now. 

The Butcher's Hook by Janet Ellis

Janet Ellis has written a startling and original historical novel inThe Butcher’s Hook. The smart, astute and fascinating heroine and mesmerising narrative belie the fact that this is a debut. Anne Jacob is a middle-class girl in the middle of the 18^thcentury, hungry for books and for knowledge, but a betrayal at the hands of her tutor leads her to explore other avenues of learning and realise the limits of her world. Following the loss of her beloved baby brother, Anne detaches herself from emotion until she meets Fub, the butcher’s boy, and in him she finally finds purpose and passion.

Determined to make a life for herself separate from her parents and the plans they have made for her, Anne will go to any lengths to maintain her newfound happiness, no matter how dark the path she must tread. The book highlights the restrictive limits set on women in the Georgian era and the psychological damage such restriction could lead to, and it is also an immersive portrait of London: its sights, smells, tastes and sounds. While Anne is at the centre of the narrative, we also see her mother, worn out by countless pregnancies and grief; the maids Jane and Grace, limited by their position but ever watchful; and the men who control the women around them with a word, a smile or a frown. The book is also a wonderful portrait of the intensity of first love and the madness of that intensity. Highly recommended. Published by Two Roads Books.

This review can also be viewed at the the HNS website Here

Sorcerer To the Crown by Zen Cho

Sorcerer to the Crown is the debut novel from Malaysian born and London based author Zen Cho and is a must for fans of Susanna Clarke and Jane Austen blending as it does elements of regency romance and urban fantasy. Zacharias Wythe was freed from slavery and adopted by Sir Stephen Wythe and raised as a gentleman magician. Now with Sir Stephen’s untimely death clouded with suspicion many in the society of Unnatural Philosophers are working against Zacharias to oppose his appointment as Sorcerer Royal believing that his dark skin makes him unworthy to lead them. Meanwhile Prunella Gentleman is a talented sorceress desperate to practise her gift and break out of the confines of the school for Gentlewitches where she has grown up not quite a servant not quite a lady, her dark skin and uncertain parentage ensuring she doesn’t belong anywhere. Well aware of the rules of society Prunella is determined to use them and break them to suit her own ends and when she makes a magical discovery that could make her fortune she uses the visit of the Sorcerer Royal as an opportunity to escape. Zen Cho has assembled a large cast of characters with this book, the first of a planned trilogy and the action is fun and furious. The plot may seem light-hearted but the themes Cho deals with; racism, sexism, class divisions, imperialism, slavery, are dealt with in a clever and candid way. Thoroughly enjoyable. 

Available in hardback and trade paperback now from Pan Books the paperback is published in July.

This review originally appeared on We Love This Book check it out HERE

The Scrivener

The Scrivener is the third book in Robin Blake’s fantastic mystery series featuring Preston Coroner Titus Cragg and his good friend Dr Luke Fidelis. Although this book is part of a series it can easily be read as a stand alone as enough explanation of the back story is provided to pique the reader’s curiosity without causing any confusion. The date is 1742 and Preston is preparing for the Preston Guild a celebration held every twenty years and overseen by the town mayor; currently Ephraim Grimshaw. Cragg and Grimshaw are old adversaries it would seem and when Cragg discovers the town pawnbroker and would-be banker Philip Pimbo slumped over his desk with a bullet in his head Grimshaw immediately panics assuming that Pimbo had made bad investments and committed suicide. Cragg is not so sure and with the aid of Dr Fidelis they investigate Pimbo’s business and personal life, his connection to a shady Liverpool Scrivener, a missing civil war treasure trove and the Guinea trade in human slavery. This book is filled with a wonderful cast of characters; good, bad and everything in between and is an utterly enjoyable romp through Georgian society; high and low. Witty, mysterious and very well told, Cragg and Fidelis are the Holmes and Watson of their era. Perfect for fans of Lloyd Shepherd.

Originally published in HNR 73 HERE