1640s, Kate Ferrers is forced to marry a man who steals her fortune until she resorts to highway robbery to save her home. Present day, Charlie is trying to rebuild his life after being dumped by his girlfriend. But his new home is haunted by a ghostly presence…
The Wicked Lady is a dual timeline novel set during the English Civil War and the present day in Hertfordshire, UK.
Poor Kate is just a teenager when she is told she will marry a man she barely knows. Thomas is a Royalist and only wants her fortune which he quickly spends by giving to his king. Next he insists that Kate sell her childhood home and she begs him to reconsider. The only way she can make enough money to satisfy him is to commit highway robbery and put her life in danger. Charlie has been dumped so heads off for a fresh start renovating a house with his uncle. Along with one of his neighbours, he begins to sense a ghostly presence and together they research the area and discover the legend of the Wicked Lady before trying to separate the facts from the fiction.
The writing style is easy to read and the descriptions and dialogue allowed me to become immersed in both timelines. The author has done a lot of research about the history and geography of the region to bring the plot to life. I much preferred Kate’s parts of the book due to my love of history as well as the character’s inner strength against the adversity she faces. The spooky elements added an extra dimension to the plot and I enjoyed the romances in both timelines. I felt that the ending of the book didn’t resolve the ghost thread to my satisfaction.
The Wicked Lady is an enjoyable dual timeline novel and I loved the strong lead female character and historical aspects.
The Wicked Lady
‘Incredibly atmospheric, haunting and poignant.’ Nicola Cornick
1648 – Hertfordshire
Thirteen-year-old Katherine Ferrers is in despair at being betrothed to arch-Royalist Thomas Fanshawe whose family are hellbent on plundering her family’s fortune to champion the exiled Charles. As her unhappy marriage stretches before her, her only comfort is her beloved childhood home The Cell. But as the years pass and Kate grows restless, a new passion, a new love and a dangerous calling threaten to upend everything she’s ever known.
Present Day – Hertfordshire
Charlie Wolfe jumps at the chance to help his uncle renovate a tumbledown cottage overlooking Nomansland Common. Number One Constable’s Cottages was once the home of the man charged with ridding the common of the highwaymen who terrorised travellers. But it’s the story of The Wicked Lady, the notorious female highway robber, that captures Charlie’s imagination, and some long winters’ nights he’s sure he can the hoofbeats of her horse echoing across time.
What drove this mystery woman to risk everything for a life of crime, and why is she still restless, wandering the common in grief? It seems only Charlie can finally uncover the secret Katherine Ferrers has kept for hundreds of years; a secret of a terrible betrayal and a tragic love that was never meant to end this way…
USA Today bestselling author Judy Leigh writing as Elena Collins, brings you this spellbinding and heartbreaking timeslip novel, uncovering the intriguing story of another brave woman that history forgot. Perfect for fans of Barbara Erskine, Nicola Cornick, Diana Gabaldon and Louise Douglas.
Elena Collins is the pseudonym for Judy Leigh. Judy Leigh is the bestselling author of Five French Hens , A Grand Old Time and The Age of Misadventure and the doyenne of the ‘it’s never too late’ genre of women’s fiction. She has lived all over the UK from Liverpool to Cornwall, but currently resides in Somerset.
1 comment