Don't miss Stacey Halls' incredible new novel THE HOUSEHOLD - available to buy now!
The captivating Sunday Times bestseller from the author of The Familiars.
Two women, bound by a child, and a secret that will change everything . . .
London, 1754. Six years after leaving her illegitimate daughter Clara at London's Foundling Hospital, Bess Bright returns to reclaim the child she has never known. Dreading the worst, that Clara has died in care, Bess is astonished to be told she has already claimed her. Her life is turned upside down as she tries to find out who has taken her little girl - and why.
Less than a mile from Bess's lodgings in the city, in a quiet, gloomy townhouse on the edge of London, a young widow has not left the house in a decade. When her close friend - an ambitious young doctor at the Foundling Hospital - persuades her to hire a nursemaid for her daughter, she is hesitant to welcome someone new into her home and her life. But her past is threatening to catch up with her and tear her carefully constructed world apart.
From the bestselling author of The Familiars comes this captivating story of mothers and daughters, class and power, and love against the greatest of odds . . .
'The new Hilary Mantel' COSMOPOLITAN
'Stacey Halls is a writer of great originality, great imagination and great sense of place. Atmospheric, intelligent, accessible, every novel is worth reading, then reading again and again' KATE MOSSE
Another gripping, immersive, intelligent work of historical fiction from the bestselling author of The Familiars' KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE, author of THE MERCIES
A moving, atmospheric chiller' INDEPENDENT
'A breathtaking achievement' SUNDAY EXPRESS
'Enjoyable and atmospheric' THE TIMES
'Historical drama at its very best' MY WEEKLY
**THE HOUSEHOLD, the brand new novel from Stacey Halls, is available to pre-order now**
*Sunday Times bestseller February and September 2020*
*Winner of Women's Prize for Fiction x Good Housekeeping Futures award - Good Housekeeping 14 Oct 2022* Stacey Halls was born in Lancashire and worked as a journalist before her debut The Familiars was published in 2019. The Familiars was the bestselling debut hardback novel of 2019, won a Betty Trask Award and was shortlisted for the British Book Awards Debut Book of the Year. Her novels The Foundling and Mrs England were also acclaimed Sunday Times bestsellers. Mrs England was further longlisted for the Portico Prize, the Walter Scott Prize and won the Women's Prize Futures Award. From the bestselling author of The Familiars, and set against the vibrant backdrop of Georgian London, The Foundling explores families, secrets, class, equality, power and the meaning of motherhood. Stacey's debut novel The Familiars was a NUMBER 2 Sunday Times bestseller and the bestselling hardback debut of 2019. The Foundling was inspired by The Foundling Hospital in Bloomsbury and 'The Shrimp Girl' painting by William Hogarth. The author Stacey Halls grew up in Lancashire. She is a journalist who now works as Deputy Chief Sub Editor at the Sun's Fabulous magazine. This is historical reading group fiction for fans of The Muse, The Essex Serpent and The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock. If you loved The Familiars, then you won't be disappointed by The Foundling. A gripping and moving read. Pacy, highly atmospheric and tantalisingly gripping from the very first page. The strands of tense and devastating maternal conflict are acutely observed and beautifully sustained throughout the book. Stacey really has created warm and memorable characters, drawn with great sympathy and understanding, who deliver a taut and riveting read. With rich storytelling and a compelling narrative, The Foundling is subtle, satisfying and intensely moving; a fabulous example of great historical fiction. It was a privilege to read The Foundling. I really couldn't stop turning the pages as Stacey's beautiful writing drew a compelling
