'You must cross my palm with silver first, my pretty miss.'
1860s, London. The capital's high society ladies like nothing more than to while away an evening at a private supper party, drinking sweet wine, sharing confidences - and having their fortunes read. But palm-reading is a perilous business: the lines of the left hand can unlock secrets and reveal futures best kept hidden.
When fortune-teller Miss Rose is called to entertain Lady Quayle and her guests at Portland Place, she sees in the palm of shy, cautious Emily a future she is forced to keep to herself. 'A quiet life, my dear' is what she tells the girl. But she spies two little crosses that spell something quite different - fearful, violent death.
As Rose's predictions start coming true, her own fortunes become embroiled in the suspect fates of others and the future suddenly seems a dark and dangerous place. With a plucky heroine and a rollicking story, Sara Stockbridge's second novel is a cauldron of subterfuge and mysticism.
Genre: Historical Mystery
1860s, London. The capital's high society ladies like nothing more than to while away an evening at a private supper party, drinking sweet wine, sharing confidences - and having their fortunes read. But palm-reading is a perilous business: the lines of the left hand can unlock secrets and reveal futures best kept hidden.
When fortune-teller Miss Rose is called to entertain Lady Quayle and her guests at Portland Place, she sees in the palm of shy, cautious Emily a future she is forced to keep to herself. 'A quiet life, my dear' is what she tells the girl. But she spies two little crosses that spell something quite different - fearful, violent death.
As Rose's predictions start coming true, her own fortunes become embroiled in the suspect fates of others and the future suddenly seems a dark and dangerous place. With a plucky heroine and a rollicking story, Sara Stockbridge's second novel is a cauldron of subterfuge and mysticism.
Genre: Historical Mystery
Used availability for Sara Stockbridge's Cross My Palm