Essie Fox is the author of The Somnambulist and Elijah's Mermaid, both of which are dark Victorian novels.
Before taking up writing, Essie worked as an illustrator designing greetings cards, gift wrap and decorative ceramics. Before that she worked in a Dickensian office in Bloomsbury's Museum Street, employed as an editorial assistant by the publishers, George Allen & Unwin. So, in a way, it almost feels as if she has come full circle, returning to her very first love, which is the world of books.
Born and raised in Herefordshire, Essie now divides her time between Bow in East London and Windsor.
Hobbe's Folly (2026) Adam Macqueen "Steeped in atmosphere and tension, this darkly enticing Faustian puzzle of a novel builds to a breathtaking conclusion. A must for everyone who loves the sinister works of MR James and HP Lovecraft."
A Fatal Love (2026) Louisa Treger "Louisa Treger is for me a must-read author, and I believe A Fatal Love is her best novel to date.Set in the murky, pseudo-glamour of post war drinking clubs in London, this beguiling account of the betrayal of a woman cursed by her beauty and her class held me rapt from the start. Both thrilling and seductive, and yet so sensitively written ... it will break many hearts. Brava! What an achievement."
The Woman Who Wasn't There (2026) William Hussey "With an engaging and scalpel-sharp wit, William Hussey has created an intriguing blend of mystery, mayhem, and murder. Knowing, wry, and chilling, this is a deliciously dark read."
The Night Stairs (2026) Erin Kelly "Steeped in Catholic guilt and sin, this darkly disturbing novel enmeshes a past of myth and mystery with the hysteria affecting a convent school in the present. Erin Kelly has conjured such a brilliant evocation of psychological tension as she dares us to descend the twisting menace of The Night Stairs."
Hunger and Thirst (2026) Claire Fuller "A truly chilling story ... I was entirely captured in this novel's haunting spell."
A Very Vexing Murder (2026) (Harriet Smith Investigates, book 1) Lucy Andrew "A Very Vexing Murder is utterly charming. A wise, witty, and wily delight."
Spider, Spider (2026) L C Winter "Prepare to be glued to every creeping word of menace in a Victorian world of murder, mystery and madness."
Beasts of the Sea (2025) Iida Turpeinen "Mesmerizing. Near to mythic. This profound and moving novel of lost histories and lives held me captured in its spell."
A Schooling in Murder (2025) Andrew Taylor "An ingenious and intriguing homage to the golden age of crime fiction - A Schooling in Murder is both wryly beguiling and steeped in atmospheric tension. I could not put it down."
The Woman in the Wallpaper (2025) Lora Jones "Lora Jones is a remarkable new talent in the world of historical fiction. An utterly spellbinding novel."
The Mischief Makers (2024) Elisabeth Gifford "Elegant and immersive. A fascinating exploration of the people, the frailties, and the passions that informed du Maurier's own classic novels."
A Woman of Opinion (2024) Sean Lusk "Spellbinding...a remarkable free spirit and brave adventures brought vividly to life."
The Betrayal of Thomas True (2024) A J West "You'll smile, you'll gasp, you'll cry at this Georgian-era thriller awash with mystery and mayhem... and magnificent mollies."
The Secret Photographs (2024) Jacquie Bloese "A compelling Sapphic novel in which subjugated women defy society's expectations . . . Atmospheric, dark, and daring."
Once a Monster (2023) Robert Dinsdale "A labyrinthine delight of a novel . . . Dickensian darkness is infused with ancient myth. Historical writing at its finest . . . ."
Unquiet (2023) E Saxey "A brooding psychological gothic mystery, steeped in the darkest realms of folklore. Literally dripping with grief, desire, and guilt."
The Illusions (2023) Liz Hyder "Filled with wonders in all forms, in real life and in the theatre, this is a story that will mesmerise and cast its spell. I loved it."
Fyneshade (2023) Kate Griffin "A darkly delicious joy of a historical gothic novel. Mature and accomplished storytelling that's utterly compelling. I loved it."
The House of Whispers (2023) Anna Mazzola "Chilling and compelling, with echoes of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca, this is a thrilling mystery with many eerie twists and turns to keep you hooked all through the night."
The Bone Flower (2022) Charles Lambert "An exquisitely eerie and sophisticated Victorian ghost story, with echoes of Poe and M. R. James."
Born of No Woman (2021) Franck Bouysse "One of the most disturbing yet lyrically exquisite novels I’ve read in a long time. The poetic and pastoral beauty of the nineteenth-century French countryside is vividly contrasted with the often-brutal treatment of breeding livestock on the farms—which in its turn mirrors the treatment of the fourteen-year-old Rose when she is sold by her poor father to the master of a manor. Once enslaved in her new home, Rose is tormented and abused, soon forced to contemplate the horrors concealed within some hidden chambers where she discovers the true fate of her master’s absent wife. Brave, sometimes horrific, Born of No Woman is one of the most compelling novels I have read in many years. Infused with lurid elements of the most gothic fairy tales, it explores the darkest realms of human sexuality."
Perfect Kill (2020) (DI Callanach, book 6) Helen Fields "Perfect Kill is a compelling breathless read. Unflinching, brave and so well researched and considered."
The Unforgetting (2020) Rose Black "This haunting Victorian novel weaves a spellbinding web of deluded dreams and dark deceptions."
The Lost Ones (2019) Anita Frank "For fans of Henry James and Susan Hill, this chilling supernatural mystery is written in the classic mould. Intriguing, moving and assured."
Laura Purcell "Menacing, macabre and utterly gripping. Laura Purcell has done it again."
The Doll Factory (2019) Elizabeth Macneal "With strong echoes of John Fowles' The Collector, The Doll Factory is at once a vivid depiction of a morally dubious world, and a page-turning psychological thriller, with a truly compelling villain."
Miss Marley (2018) Vanessa Lafaye "A moving companion piece to the classic A Christmas Carol, with all the traditional echoes of the Dickensian festive season woven through, and with tragedy and joy in equal measure. A delight."
Wrecker (2018) Noel O'Reilly "With echoes of Du Maurier, this compelling Cornish drama weaves a tangled web of fallen faiths, of sins, seductions and deceits."
The Coffin Path (2018) Katherine Clements "Oozing with gothic symbolism, this brooding and beautiful ghost story is guaranteed to haunt your dreamslong after the cover has been closed."
Exquisite (2017) Sarah Stovell "Sarah Stovell writes beautifully. In her latest novel she combines that skill with a thrilling dramatic narrative. Exquisite in every way."
The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley (2017) Hannah Tinti "Exceptional... a tender work of art exposing the universal needs of men to survive, to love, and grieve - whether their fate is cast in stars, or submerged beneath the surface... a sure-fire hit with characters I came to love."
The Ornatrix (2016) Kate Howard "A historical novel in the old fashioned style... deliciously complex and intelligent."
The Sacred River (2013) Wendy Wallace "Exquisitely written. A haunting and mystical story of three women who search for freedom, whether in Victorian England or the tombs of ancient Egypt."
The Sultan's Wife (2012) (Moroccan, book 3) Jane Johnson "Imagine the darkest 'Arabian Tale' combined with Tremain's glorious Restoration."
