‘The sharp-witted, courageous heroine is the perfect narrator of the atmospheric, enthralling story that Hare has woven ? a fantastic read’ Harriet Tyce, Sunday Times bestselling author

‘A beautifully drawn cast of characters and a heroine you care about from the very first page. I had to stop myself racing through it because I didn’t want it to end’ Frances Quinn, author of The Smallest Man

****

December, 1765. In the early hours of the morning, Sukey Maynard flees her home – a brothel in Covent Garden. Her maidenhood is about to be auctioned off to the highest bidder, and she is too frightened to stay. But when she is captured and returned to the house of fallen sisters, she has a choice to make – should she stay, or should she run again?

As Sukey accepts her fate, she begins to learn how to navigate this strange new life of hers, and soon realises that there are those who wish her and her sisters harm. But this world that operates in the shadows has its own set of rules, and if Sukey is to survive then she must learn to play the game ?

The exquisite new novel from bestselling author Louise Hare based in 18th century London paints a vivid picture of London’s underbelly and shows how, even in the darkest of times, there is always hope for a better future.

* * * *

Praise for Louise Hare

‘The best of historical fiction gives voice to those excluded from the history books, and Hare does exactly this with great skill and exceptional storytelling. I absolutely loved it!’ Louise Fein, author of People Like Us

‘A shocking, visceral tale that’s also uplifting and empowering. Louise Hare has given voice to the disenfranchised ? Like nothing I’ve read before. I loved it’ Eleni Kyriacou, author of The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou

‘A thought-provoking and compelling tale about freedom, identity and agency’ Nicola Gill, author of Swimming for Beginners

‘Poignant and authentic ? it’s [Hare’s] steady, calm prose and the animating authenticity of her material that make it so hard to resist’ Observer

‘Hopeful and inspiring’ Abi Daré

What was daily life in Nelson’s navy really like, for everyone from the captain down to the rawest recruit? What did they eat? What songs did they sing? What was the schedule of watches? How were the officers and crew paid, and what was the division of prize-money?

These questions and many more are answered in Patrick O’Brian’s elegant narrative, which includes wonderful anecdotal material on the battles and commanders that established Britain’s naval supremacy.

The meticulously researched text and imagery together provide an unparalleled insight into life during wartime in the Napoleonic era, and offer a wonderfully evocative companion to the world of Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin.

Philippa Gregory’s first novel and first in the bestselling Wideacre trilogy. A compelling tale of passion and intrigue set in the eighteenth century. From the author of The Other Boleyn Girl and The Virgin’s Lover.

‘If it was the way of the world that girls left home, then the world would have to change. I would never change.’

Wideacre Hall, set in the heart of the English countryside, is the ancestral home that Beatrice Lacey loves. But as a woman of the eighteenth century she has no right of inheritance. Corrupted by a world that mistreats women, she sets out to corrupt others. Sexual and wilful, she believes that the only way to achieve control over Wideacre is through a series of horrible crimes, and no-one escapes the consequences of her need to possess the land.

Sweeping, passionate, unique: ‘Wideacre’ is the novel which brought Philippa Gregory to bestselling fame and is the first of the trilogy which continued with ‘The Favoured Child’ and concluded with ‘Meridon’.