The Pleasures of Men

by KateWilliams (Author), KateWilliams (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2012

  $3.25

  Kate Williams' first novel, The Pleasures of Men, is a gothic thriller with a splash of brutal murder.Spitalfields, 1840.A murderer nicknamed The Man of Crows.A heroine with a mysterious past and a vivid imagination.Catherine Sorgeiul lives with her Uncle in a rambling house in London's East End. When a murderer strikes, ripping open the chests of young girls and stuffing hair into their mouths to resemble a crow's beak, Catherine is fascinated, and devours news of his exploits. As the murders cause panic throughout the city, she comes to believe she can channel the voices of his victims and that they will lead her to The Man himself. But she's already far closer than she realises - and lurking behind the lies she's been told about her past are secrets more deadly and devastating than anything her imagination can conjure.Dark and compelling, The Pleasures of Men marks Kate Williams as a stunning new voice in historical fiction.'Wonderfully imaginative and gripping' The Times'Intense, intelligent and hugely entertaining' Guardian'Intoxicating and disturbing ... Shows a soaring talent let loose' Independent on Sunday'Fans of Sarah Waters will love this' Good Housekeeping'A spine-tingling and seductive thriller' Woman & HomeKate Williams is an academic and historian who specialises in social history. Her first two historical biographies, England's Mistress, and Becoming Queen, were widely acclaimed and the Independent called her 'one of our finest young historians.' She discusses history regularly on TV and radio, including Newsnight, BBC Breakfast, The One Show and the Today Programme, covered the Royal Wedding for the BBC and presented a Timewatch programme on Queen Victoria. She is the social historian on Restoration Home with Caroline Quentin. Kate has a DPhil from Oxford and two MAs from London, and teaches on the MA in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway.

• Used

  Paperback
  2012

  $3.25

  Spitalfields, 1840. Catherine Sorgeiul lives with her Uncle in a rambling house in London's East End. She has few companions and little to occupy the days beyond her own colourful imagination. But then a murderer strikes, ripping open the chests of young girls and stuffing hair into their mouths to resemble a beak, leading the press to christen him The Man of Crows. And as Catherine hungrily devours the news, she finds she can channel the voices of the dead ... and comes to believe she will eventually channel The Man of Crows himself.But the murders continue to panic the city and Catherine gradually realizes she is snared in a deadly trap, where nothing is as it first appears ... and lurking behind the lies Catherine has been told are secrets more deadly and devastating than anything her imagination can conjure.With an elegant style and thrilling plot, The Pleasures of Men reveals the dark, beating heart of corrupt London during Queen Victoria's reign.