This was an absolutely cracking read set during the period
of the English Civil War. It had
robbery, treachery, danger and romance and had me turning the pages at speed to
find out what was going to happen next.
The story starts in 1648 with Lady Katherine Ferrers en
route to her arranged marriage to Thomas Fanshawe when she is held up by a highwayman, thankfully
he doesn’t take the lucky silvered heart that hangs around her neck. I could feel Katherine’s fear and could almost
smell the rotten breath of her assailant through the brilliantly crafted words. When fleeing from the robbery scene,
Katherine leaves her wedding dress lying in the mud. This means that she has to get married in a
borrowed red gown, a colour that Rachel, her maid and friend, worries is
unlucky.
Katherine soon finds herself trapped in a loveless marriage to a man she
hardly knows; she has been married for her fortune which is quickly plundered
in support of the king. During this time
of uncertainty in England’s history, Cromwell’s men can arrive at any moment
demanding payment for Parliament and Katherine finds her coffers running
low. She rolls her sleeves up and helps
with the house while her husband is away in London, frequently dreaming of
Markyate Cell, her ancestral home. It is
during a clandestine visit to Markyate Cell that she encounters a bloodied
stranger, the highwayman Rafe Chaplin.
Katherine joins forces with Rafe to obtain funds in order to keep her household
running and ultimately becomes known as the infamous highwaywoman, The Wicked
Lady.
I adore historical novels such as this; there are just
enough facts based on real people and events to make you forget it is a work of
fiction. Katherine, Rafe and Rachel’s
stories kept me on the edge of my seat at times and there were a few twists
along the way to the tragic ending. I
loved the way that the story began with Katherine desperate to keep her
precious necklace during the robbery and ending with the reappearance of the
necklace in the epilogue set 26 years later in 1674. Living close
to the Northumbrian coast myself, I was also delighted at the mention of Craster in
Northumberland and like to think that Katherine eventually found her way there
or somewhere similar.
An absolute masterpiece, I was hooked from the first page and couldn't put it down! Without hesitation I have added Katherine’s
debut novel, The Crimson Ribbon, to my must read list.
I received this book from the publisher via Bookbridgr in exchange for an honest review.
I received this book from the publisher via Bookbridgr in exchange for an honest review.
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