‘A gruesome, provocative, stylish fairytale’ Kaliane Bradley, internationally bestselling author of The Ministry of Time ‘Magnificent and devastating’ Alan Moore, author of Watchman ‘As mesmerizing as it is surreal, a haunting gothic tapestry’ Lucy Rose, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Lamb ‘I loved it’ Julia Armfield, author of Our Wives Under The Sea ‘Will win awards’ Observer ‘A worthy entrant into the contemporary gothic hall of fame’ Financial Times Marguerite Périgord is locked in the attic of her family home, a towering Chelsea house overlooking the stinking Thames. For company she has a sewing machine, Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management and a carrion crow who has come to nest in the rafters. Restless, she spends her waning energies on the fascinations of her own body, memorising Mrs Beeton’s advice and longing for her life outside. Cécile Périgord has confined her daughter Marguerite for her own good. Cécile is concerned that Marguerite’s engagement to a much