



Published: 18/01/2024

Centring around a young maid in a much-lauded politician's house, Musson's magnificent period novel weaves a dark and thrilling tale of intrigue, power and complicity reminiscent of the finest nineteenth-century gothic novels.
Some houses are haunted by the living.
June, 1878. The body of a boy is pulled from the depths of the River Thames, suspected to be the beloved missing child of the widely admired Liberal MP Ralph Gethin.
Four months earlier. Harriet is a young maid newly employed at Finton Hall. Fleeing the drudgery of an unwanted engagement in the small village where she grew up, Harriet is entranced by the grand country hall; she is entranced too by her glamorous mistress Clara Gethin, whose unearthly singing voice floats through the house. But Clara, though captivating, is erratic. The master of the house is a much-lauded politician, but he is strangely absent. And some of their beautiful belongings seem to tell terrible stories.
Unable to ignore her growing unease, Harriet sets out to discover their secrets. When she uncovers a shocking truth, a chain of events is set in motion that could cost Harriet everything, even her freedom...
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
ISBN: 9780008695071
Number of pages: 336
Weight: 270 g
Dimensions: 240 x 159 x 24 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'A page-turning epistolary novel which takes us on a weaving tale of intrigue, full of heart, that held me completely in its thrall until the very last line. Bravo!' - Susan Stokes-Chapman, number one bestselling author of Pandora
'A dark slice of the sort of gothic nineteenth-century readers were warned against. Thrumming with tension and posing chewy questions about power and complicity, within two pages it had me in its grip and I couldn't bring myself to look away. Uneasy, unsettling, and unputdownable.' - Lianne Dillsworth, author of Theatre of Marvels
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“A Victorian gothic mystery that is tense, dark and rich with insidious undertones.”
What a book! This dark gothic mystery slowly unfolds into one of the most insidious and tense reads of the year. Musson is incredible at evoking a creepy, strange atmosphere which is instantly immersive to the reader... More
“Intrigue and Deceit”
Harriet is young maid newly employed at the home of MP Ralph Gethin. She anxious to make a good impression having moved from her previous employ at the request of Clara Gethin, the MP's wife. She is destined at... More
“Gothic crime”
I was expecting a Gothic haunting tale when I started this book. And in the beginning it feels like it is heading that way with dark corners in libraries and emotionally distant mistresses. How ever the story develops... More
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