Mrs Pearcey
Camden, 1890. London is a city of gaslight, gossip and grisly headlines.
Hannah Teale is a bright young woman newly engaged to Cosmo, a budding Fleet Street reporter. Her interest in journalism is largely confined to the advice and short stories in her beloved Girl's Own Paper, but when news breaks of a local woman arrested for a brutal double murder - a woman named Mary Pearcey - Hannah is struck by a chilling realisation. She's seen that face before.
As the streets of Camden fill with tabloid journalists jostling for a scoop and gawpers hungry for details, Hannah becomes convinced that her encounter with Mrs Pearcey holds the key to the story behind the headlines. In the guise of preparing for her wedding, Hannah embarks on her own investigation. Startling revelations bring her closer to the real Mary Pearcey - but the deeper she digs, the more the neat edges of her own world begin to fray.
With a trial in full swing, what began as a morbid fascination now feels urgent and personal. The woman bound for the gallows may not be as guilty as the press have branded her - but can Hannah uncover the truth before it's too late? And even if she does, will anyone believe her?
Riveting and immersive, MRS PEARCEY is a powerful reimagining of a true crime story that scandalised Victorian society and a moving exploration of the secrets we keep and the stories we tell.
Reviews
This is a perfect novel – vivid, compelling characters caught up in a riveting mystery, at a historical moment that says so much about our own. Moggach wears her deep knowledge of Victorian London lightly, and the prose exudes warmth and humour. A masterpiece
Gripping, sophisticated, modern, with an enviable lightness of touch: this is a fantastic novel. I can't think of anyone who wouldn't love it.
I inhaled MRS PEARCEY. What an incredible book. Gripping and creepy and compulsive, yet deeply touching . . . brilliant.
Startlingly original.
Vivid, gripping and moving, MRS PEARCEY provides the thrill of true crime and a comment on our appetite for that genre.
Rich, beautifully written, unsettling and, above all, real . . . a triumphant addition to the growing collection of novels that explore and enhance our understanding of real crimes.
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