Category: Historical fiction
+ Edinburgh, fiction, folklore, gothic, gothic horror, Historical fiction, mythology, review, Scotland, superstition, witchcraft, witches
The Witch, The Seed and The Scalpel by Scott O’Neill
Edinburgh 1841. ‘Reaching out like a hungry white worm it twisted and spiralled, tasting the air. Then, evidently attracted by the flow of warm blood, it squirmed its way under the surface of my skin.‘ Every autumn without fail, a strange seed appears on the chestnut tree that marks the spot where the witch Margaret McKay was murdered. Legend states that anyone who catches … Read More The Witch, The Seed and The Scalpel by Scott O’Neill
+ audio book, audio drama, childhood, family, family drama, fiction, gothic, gothic horror, Gothic mystery, Historical fiction, literature, review, secrets, siblings, sisters, Yorkshire
Mrs England by Stacey Halls
West Yorkshire, 1904. When newly graduated nurse Ruby May takes a position looking after the children of Charles and Lilian England, a wealthy couple from a powerful dynasty of mill owners, she hopes it will be the fresh start she needs. But as she adapts to life at the isolated Hardcastle House, it becomes clear there’s something not quite right about the beautiful, mysterious … Read More Mrs England by Stacey Halls
The Manuscript by Steven L. Wright
A newly married couple from Harrogate purchased a manuscript from an antiquarian bookseller titled, The Universal Language Isn’t Love or Music but Loneliness. Completed in 1940 by unknown author, William Travers, it was one of several items offered at the estate auction of a local family. Reading and discussing the work changed their lives … and their marriage. Waking in hospital Lieutenant William Travers … Read More The Manuscript by Steven L. Wright
The Betrayal of Thomas True by A J West
It is the year 1710, and Thomas True has arrived on old London Bridge with a dangerous secret. One night, lost amongst the squalor of London’s hidden back streets, he finds himself drawn into the outrageous underworld of the molly houses. Meanwhile, carpenter Gabriel Griffin struggles to hide his double life as Lotty, the molly’s stoic guard. When a young man is found murdered, … Read More The Betrayal of Thomas True by A J West
+ crime fiction, dark humour, feel-good, gothic, gothic horror, Gothic mystery, Historical fiction, humour fiction, List, Magical realism, murder mystery, mystery, supernatural, superstition, thriller, Victorian Britain
My Top 10 Books of 2025 – Part Two
Here are my favourite ten books of 2025 Part Two, including audiobooks, as I haven’t listened to enough to have their own post this quarter. Again quite a disparate selection. The Cure by Eve Smith I’m so out of my comfort zone here. Firstly, I don’t usually read speculative fiction, sci-fi or dystopian future novels. And secondly, I don’t think this is entirely fiction, … Read More My Top 10 Books of 2025 – Part Two
Estella’s Fury by Barbara Havelocke Cover Reveal
I’m so excited to be taking part in the cover reveal for Estella’s Fury, the new dark, gothic historical thriller by Barbara Havelocke. Instagram@BarbaraCopperthwaite It’s the sequel to Estella’s Revenge, a twisted tale of dark deeds, which I loved when I reviewed it last year – and this sounds even better! Daughter. Murderer. Saviour.London, 1835. To high society, Estella is the perfect lady. But … Read More Estella’s Fury by Barbara Havelocke Cover Reveal
+ fiction, Historical fiction, journalist, mental illness, murder, obsession, prostitution, revenge, review, secrets, Victorian Britain
Murder At The Lunatic’s Ball by R S Leonard
A Victorian asylum. A woman imprisoned. A deadly secret. England, 1875. London journalist, Harris Mortimer, visits a Hampshire lunatic asylum to investigate society’s treatment of the insane, only to find himself in a fateful encounter with a beautiful woman claiming to be wrongly incarcerated. Horrified by a series of murders, he soon becomes drawn into the strange world of the asylum and begins to … Read More Murder At The Lunatic’s Ball by R S Leonard
+ 1920s, audio book, audio drama, fiction, Historical fiction, London, review, siblings, sisters, WW1
The House at Riverton by Kate Morton
Summer 1924: On the eve of a glittering society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again. Winter 1999: Grace Bradley, 98, one-time housemaid of Riverton Manor, is visited by a young director making a film about the poet’s suicide. Ghosts … Read More The House at Riverton by Kate Morton
The Library of Lost Dollhouses by Elise Hooper
When a young librarian discovers historic dollhouses in a hidden room, she embarks on an unexpected journey that reveals surprising secrets about the lost miniatures. Tildy Barrows, Head Curator of a beautiful archival library in San Francisco, is meticulously dedicated to the century’s worth of inventory housed in her beloved Beaux Art building. She loves the calm and order in the shelves of books … Read More The Library of Lost Dollhouses by Elise Hooper
Boy With Wings by Mark Mustian readalong
Boy With Wings follows the extraordinary journey of Johnny Cruel, a boy born with mysterious appendages on his back. What does it mean to be different? When Johnny Cruel is born with strange appendages on his back in the 1930s South, the locals think he’s a devil. Determined to protect him, his mother fakes his death, and they flee. Thus begins Johnny’s years-long struggle to … Read More Boy With Wings by Mark Mustian readalong
The Last Days of Leda Grey by Essie Fox
A bewitching novel about an enigmatic silent film actress, and the volatile love affair that left her a recluse for over half a century – for fans of Sarah Waters and Tracy Chevalier. During the oppressive heat wave of 1976, a young journalist, Ed Peters, finds an Edwardian photograph in a junk shop in the Brighton Lanes. It shows an alluring dark-haired girl, an … Read More The Last Days of Leda Grey by Essie Fox
+ fiction, gothic, Gothic mystery, Historical fiction, history, Italy, murder, revenge, review, Venice
Dangerous by Essie Fox
Fiction can be fatal… Living in exile in Venice, the disgraced Lord Byron revels in the freedoms of the city. But when he is associated with the deaths of local women, found with wounds to their throats, and then a novel called The Vampyre is published under his name, rumours begin to spread that Byron may be the murderer… #Dangerous X/Twitter @essiefox @OrendaBooks #RandomThingsTours @annecater @RandomTTours #booktwitter Instagram @essie_fox_author @orendabooks @randomthingstours #bookstagram #blogtour … Read More Dangerous by Essie Fox
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