Ladies and gentlemen,the darkness is complete.
It is the winter of 1893,and in London the snow is falling.
It is falling as Gideon Bliss seeks shelter in a Soho church,where he finds Angie Tatton lying before the altar. His one-time love is at death's door,murmuring about brightness and black air,and about those she calls the Spiriters. In the morning she is gone.
The snow is falling as a seamstress climbs onto a ledge above Mayfair,a mysterious message stitched into her own skin. It is falling as she steadies herself and closes her eyes.
It is falling,too,as her employer,Lord Strythe,vanishes into the night,watched by Octavia Hillingdon,a restless society columnist who longs to uncover a story of real importance.
She and Gideon will soon be drawn into the same mystery,each desperate to save Angie and find out the truth about Lord Strythe. Their paths will cross as the darkness gathers,and will lead them at last to what lies hidden at the house on Vesper Sands.
Publisher: Orion Publishing CoISBN: 9781474601047Number of pages: 384Weight: 260 gDimensions: 196 x 128 x 32 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'A gloriously unorthodox confection,part Wilkie Collins,part Conan Doyle,with a generous handful of police procedural and a splash of Stella Gibbons's Cold Comfort Farm. Both disquietingly eerie and impossible to read without laughing out loud...A cracking good read.'- The Guardian
'The House on Vesper Sands is tremendously good - and tremendously good fun'- The Observer
'The most vivid and compelling portrait of late Victorian London since The Crimson Petal and the White'- Sarah Perry
'Clever and funny and exquisitely disturbing,an utter joy'- Joanna Cannon
'Charles Dickens is whirling enviously in his grave...Brilliantly written,compelling and satisfying in so many ways. It demands to be read by a fire on a cold winter evening (but make sure the doors are locked before you begin). I only wish it had been twice as long.'- The Irish Times
'Witty,immersive,chock full of atmosphere and setting (hello Victorian London),three-dimensional characters,an addictive plot and snappy dialogue,The House On Vesper Sands has everything you want it in a novel. If you're stuck for a book to buy this Christmas,then this could well be it.'- Stylist
'I'm not completely sure what the word'rollicking'means,but I can personally guarantee that The House on Vesper Sands is a rollicking good read. For a novel about grief,estrangement,and the literal stealing of vulnerable young women's souls,this book is a lot more fun than it has any right to be. Paraic O'Donnell's sheer love of his characters is exuberant and infectious; the dialogue crackles with verve and wit,and the plotting is as intricately satisfying as a heavy pocket watch. The setting may be Victorian ,but in modern parlance this novel is an absolute banger'- Jon McGregor
'A hugely entertaining read,spry of pace,funny,beautifully descriptive and satisfyingly sinister. A perfect book to read by winter candlelight'- The Sunday Express
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