The Clockwork Girl
Out Now
‘An atmospheric and constantly surprising thriller’ – THE SUNDAY TIMES
Shortlisted for the Gold and Historical CWA Daggers and nominated for the Dublin Literary Prize.
Paris 1750. In the midst of winter, as birds fall frozen from the sky, Madeleine, a new maid, arrives at the home of a celebrated clockmaker and his clever, unworldly daughter. But rumours are stirring that the clockmaker’s uncanny mechanical creations – bejewelled birds, silver spiders – are more than mere automata. That they might defy the laws of nature, perhaps even at the expense of the living.
Madeleine is hiding a dark past, and a dangerous purpose: to discover the truth of the clockmaker’s experiments and record his every move, in exchange for her own chance of freedom.
Meanwhile, in the streets, children are quietly disappearing. Madeleine comes to fear that she has stumbled upon a greater conspiracy. One which might reach to the heart of Versailles itself.
An intoxicating and darkly immersive story of obsession, illusion and the price of freedom.



Reviews
‘A Gothic masterpiece’
THE EXPRESS
‘Historical fiction with a fantastical twist, done with verve and skill’
IAN RANKIN
‘An atmospheric and constantly surprising thriller’
THE SUNDAY TIMES
‘Captivating’
THE i PAPER
‘Intoxicating…brilliantly original’
HEAT
‘Kept me guessing until the end. An absolute masterpiece’
JENNIFER SAINT
‘A deliciously dark historical novel of thrilling originality’
ESSIE FOX
‘Spellbinding, gripping, immersive and deliciously gothic’
ERIN KELLY
‘Evocative, chilling, compelling’
TAMMY COHEN
‘Breathtakingly good’
ABIR MUKHERJEE
Behind the scenes…

The Inspiration



The Setting & the Characters

The Automata


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