London, 1835. Nineteen-year-old Kate Hogarth falls in love with the young journalist Charles Dickens. In the early days of their marriage, Charles is infatuated with his bride and Kate delights in her new life, the balm to her husband's irrepressible spirit. But as he finds fame as a novelist and the family rise through the ranks of Victorian society, Kate becomes increasingly aware of his frustration that real people cannot be manipulated as easily as his characters.

Meanwhile, in the East End slums, a young orphan named Anne Brown has lost everything, but is determined to make her way in the world. A chance encounter with the Dickens family transports her to the heart of the household, opening up a world of privilege, travel and remarkable company. But her newfound freedom has come at a cost she cannot always ignore.

As the years go by and the family expands, the cracks in the Dickens's marriage deepen. Kate seeks comfort and companionship in her trusted servant, but whilst Anne has come to care deeply for Mrs Dickens, her loyalties are tested to breaking point as Charles takes control of their future . . .

Vibrant, witty and deeply moving, Mrs Dickens traces a long marriage in all its tenderness, grief, romance and fury. It illuminates the life of a complex, forgotten woman whose voice often went unheard, but whose story deserves to be told.

'A beautiful, heartbreaking, immersive novel, which brings a woman's silenced story back to vivid, irrepressible life ' Roisìn O'Donnell

SELECTED FOR THE BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB | WINNER OF THE MSLEXIA NOVEL COMPETITION

‘Beautifully written . . . I raced through it’ HILARY MANTEL

‘A wonderfully powerful and haunting novel with a hugely gripping plot’ DEBORAH MOGGACH

1759, Ipswich. Sisters Peggy and Molly Gainsborough are the best of friends and do everything together. They spy on their father as he paints, they rankle their mother as she manages the books, they tear barefoot through the muddy fields that surround their home. But there is another reason they are inseparable: from a young age, Molly has had a tendency to forget who she is, to fall into confusion, and Peggy knows instinctively that no one must find out.

When the family move to Bath, Thomas Gainsborough finds fame as a portrait artist, while his daughters are thrown into the whirl of polite society. Here, the merits of marriage and codes of behaviour are crystal clear, and secrets much harder to keep. As Peggy goes to greater lengths to protect her sister, she finds herself falling in love, and their precarious situation is soon thrown catastrophically off-course. The discovery of a betrayal forces her to question all she has done for Molly – and whether any one person can truly change the fate of another . . .

Inspired by true events and told with irresistible vibrancy and wit, Emily Howes’ award-winning debut is a captivating and deeply moving novel about art, sisterhood and the price we pay for love.

‘Vividly imagined and exquisitely brought to the page’ RACHEL JOYCE

‘A rich evocation of secrets, art, sisterhood and class’ i PAPER

SELECTED FOR THE BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB | WINNER OF THE MSLEXIA NOVEL COMPETITION

‘Beautifully written . . . I raced through it’ HILARY MANTEL

‘A wonderfully powerful and haunting novel with a hugely gripping plot’ DEBORAH MOGGACH

1759, Ipswich. Sisters Peggy and Molly Gainsborough are the best of friends and do everything together. They spy on their father as he paints, they rankle their mother as she manages the books, they tear barefoot through the muddy fields that surround their home. But there is another reason they are inseparable: from a young age, Molly has had a tendency to forget who she is, to fall into confusion, and Peggy knows instinctively that no one must find out.

When the family move to Bath, Thomas Gainsborough finds fame as a portrait artist, while his daughters are thrown into the whirl of polite society. Here, the merits of marriage and codes of behaviour are crystal clear, and secrets much harder to keep. As Peggy goes to greater lengths to protect her sister, she finds herself falling in love, and their precarious situation is soon thrown catastrophically off-course. The discovery of a betrayal forces her to question all she has done for Molly – and whether any one person can truly change the fate of another . . .

Inspired by true events and told with irresistible vibrancy and wit, Emily Howes’ award-winning debut is a captivating and deeply moving novel about art, sisterhood and the price we pay for love.

‘Vividly imagined and exquisitely brought to the page’ RACHEL JOYCE

‘A rich evocation of secrets, art, sisterhood and class’ i PAPER