the show woman
LONGLISTED FOR THE 2026 HISTORICAL WRITERS’ ASSOCIATION DEBUT CROWN!
Published by Hodder & Stoughton May 2025
‘Gorgeously written’ Jennie Godfrey
‘Compulsive, heartbreaking’ Clare Lesie Hall
A Stylist top ten debut of 2025
‘One of the best literary debuts of the year’ The Scotsman
FOUR WOMEN. A MILLION DREAMS.
Scotland, 1910. Born into the world of the circus, Lena now stands at a crossroads. With the sudden death of her father, she faces a stark choice: get married or get a job. The fairgrounds are no place for a woman to go it alone.
Until flame-haired Violet, known to all as 'the greatest trapeze artist that ever lived', suggests they do exactly that. With her outspoken ways and her refusal to marry, Violet is as much an outcast as Lena. What do they have to lose?
Recruiting new performers including bareback horse-rider Rosie and acrobat Carmen, the four women take charge of their own show, their own finances and their own destinies.
But the fairgrounds are a dangerous place: misogyny is rife, violence a continual threat, and buried secrets are beginning to threaten all they hold dear. Together, they must forge their own path to freedom.
FOR THEY ARE THE SHOW WOMEN. AND THE SHOW MUST GO ON.
the pleasure palace
NOW AVAILABLE TO REQUEST ON NETGALLEY!
Publishing with Hodder & Stoughton, 28 January 2027
‘Sarah Waters meets The Handmaid’s Tale’ Fiza Saeed-McLynn
‘A sexy, clever page turner’ Amanda Geard
‘A totally arresting novel with the heartbeat of a thriller’ Alex Hay
On a remote island in the Scottish Hebrides sits a castle of gleaming red sandstone. By day, it is the picture of elegance. But when night falls, its secrets are revealed . . .
When London showgirl Emerald is invited to spend a weekend on a remote Scottish island by Lord Lyndon Gunn, a mysterious and wealthy Scottish bachelor, she thinks 'why not'. Life in the theatre means little can shock her.
She is quickly dazzled by her lavish surroundings - gilt-panelled ballrooms, hothouses filled with hummingbirds and orchids, no shortage of the finest Champagnes.
Yet it is not long before Emerald - who has secrets of her own - realises things are not quite as they seem. Why are the servants blindfolded when the sun goes down? Who is the mysterious older American woman who behaves like the lady of the castle? And are the rumours of a hushed-up scandal true?
It will take all of Emerald's guile to get to the bottom of what exactly happens in Lord Gunn's basement - his so-called pleasure palace - and what she eventually finds has the potential to unleash consequences that will echo down the generations. Unless, that is, she finds a way to stop it.
By turns dark and seductive, thrilling and clever, The Pleasure Palace is a mesmerising read, and an homage to the women throughout history who have always fought to take control of their own destiny.
