Book Synopsis:

Inspired by an infamous real-life case, The Mourning Necklace is the unforgettable feminist historical novel from the Women’s Prize-longlisted author of The Maiden, Kate Foster.

They said I would swing for the crime, and I did . . .

1724. In a tavern just outside Edinburgh, Maggie Dickson’s family drown their sorrows, mourning her death yet relieved she is gone. Shame haunts them. Hanged for the murder of her newborn child, passers-by avert their eyes from her cheap coffin on its rickety cart.

But as her family pray her soul rests in peace, a figure appears at the door.

It is Maggie. She is alive.

Bruised and dazed, Maggie has little time for her family’s questions. All that matters to her is answering this one: will they hang her twice?

Book Review:

The Mourning Necklace is a gripping, absorbing and poignant read which I really enjoyed.

The story follows the real life events of Maggie Dickson, a fish hawker who lived in the early 18th century and managed to survive being hung. Maggie is a very sympathetic character who I enjoyed learning more about. She works hard to overcome the problems she faces purely by being a woman. I loved her strength in the face of diversity and that she tried to do the right thing even when facing death.

The author does a great job setting the scene so that the reader feels transported to the time as if they are watching events unfold. It was very poignant learning more about how powerless the law made women which meant they didn’t even have control over their own bodies. I really felt for Maggie and all she goes through, particularly as I’ve lost a baby myself so I could relate to all she must have been feeling.

Overall I really enjoyed this fabulous read which I’ll definitely be recommending to others. The story has a great pace to it and there always seemed to be something happening to keep me reading. The dual timeline aspect of before and after the hanging was very intriguing as it allowed the reader to learn more about Maggie’s life. This helps the reader build an emotional attachment to Maggie which makes the later events harder to deal with.

Huge thanks to the lovely Chloe from Pan Macmillan for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.

If you’re a fan of absorbing historical fiction featuring historical characters you might not have known about them I highly recommend this book.

About The Author:

Kate Foster worked as a national newspaper journalist for more than twenty years before becoming an author. Growing up in Edinburgh, she became fascinated by its history and often uses it as inspiration for her stories. Her previous novels include The Maiden, which won the Bloody Scotland Crime Debut of the Year and was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, and The King’s Witches. The Mourning Necklace is her third novel. She lives in Edinburgh with her two children.

Eek I was incredibly excited to receive a copy of The Society Of The Objects by Gareth Brown today. I was a huge fan of his debut novel, The Book Of Doors, so I can’t wait to read this one soon.

Huge thanks to the amazing Ollie Martin for sending this to me it’s really appreciated.

Out August 2025.

Find out more about the book below ⬇️

Book Synopsis:

The world of unknowable objects – magical items that most people have no idea possess powers – has been quiet for decades . . .

But three current members of a secret society have remained watchful, meeting every six months in the basement of a bookshop in London. They are pledged to protect their archive of magical items hidden away, safe from the outside world – and keep the world safe from them. But when Frank Simpson, the longest-standing member of the Society of Unknowable Objects, hears of a new artefact coming to light in Hong Kong, he sends the Society’s newest member, author Magda Sparks, to investigate.

Within hours of arriving in Hong Kong, Magda is facing death and danger, confronted by a professional killer who seems to know all about unknowable objects, specifically one that was stolen from him a decade before. Magda is forced to flee, using an artefact that not even the rest of the Society knows about.

Returning to London, Magda learns hers is not the only secret being kept from the other two members. And that the most pernicious secret is about the nature of the Society’s mission. Her discoveries will lead her on a perilous journey, across the Atlantic to the deep south of the United States – not in pursuit of an unknowable object, but an unknowable person: the killer she first faced in Hong Kong. In doing so, Magda begins to understand that there are even more in the world who are chasing these magical items, and that her own family’s legacy is tied up in keeping all these secrets under wraps.

Magic has always been too powerful to reveal to the world. But Magda will learn there might be something even more powerful: the truth.

About The Author:

Gareth Brown wanted to be a writer from a very young age, and he completed his first novel as a teenager. That novel wasn’t very good and he’s been working on his writing ever since. For the last twenty years he has worked in the UK Civil Service and the NHS while writing in his spare time.

When not working or writing, Gareth loves travelling, especially the whirlwind first few hours in a new city and long road trips through beautiful landscapes. He enjoys barbecues, patisseries, playing pool, and falling asleep in front of the television like an old man.

Gareth lives with his wife and two excitable Skye terriers near Edinburgh in Scotland.