The Specimen

A phenomenal new voice in Vic-lit, for fans of "Fingersmith," "The Observations," and "The Crimson Petal and the White"

The year is 1866. Edward Scales was a businessman, a butterfly collector, and a respectable man. He was the man Gwen Carrick fell in love with seven years before. Now he is dead and Gwen is on trial for his murder. From country house drawing rooms to the rainforests of Brazil, this assured debut explores the price one independent young woman might pay for wanting an unorthodox life. Set in a Victorian world battling between the forces of spiritualism and Darwinism, polite society and the call of clandestine love, Gwen and Edward's tale is a gripping melodrama, a romance, and a murder mystery that will compel readers to its final thrilling page.