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The Unseeing

A twisting tale of family secrets

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The Unseeing

By: Anna Mazzola
Narrated by: Anna Bentinck
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Set in London in 1837, Anna Mazzola's THE UNSEEING is the story of Sarah Gale, a seamstress and mother, sentenced to hang for her role in the murder of Hannah Brown on the eve of her wedding. Perfect for any reader of Sarah Waters or Antonia Hodgson.

'A twisting tale of family secrets and unacknowledged desires. Intricately plotted and extremely convincing in its evocation of the everyday realities of 1830s London, this is a fine first novel' - The Sunday Times

After Sarah petitions for mercy, Edmund Fleetwood is appointed to investigate and consider whether justice has been done. Idealistic, but struggling with his own demons, Edmund is determined to seek out the truth. Yet Sarah refuses to help him, neither lying nor adding anything to the evidence gathered in court. Edmund knows she's hiding something, but needs to discover just why she's maintaining her silence. For how can it be that someone would willingly go to their own death?

(P)2017 Headline Publishing Group Limited©2016 The Short Storyteller Limited Crime Fiction Historical Fiction Fiction Crime Mystery
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Critic reviews

A twisting tale of family secrets and unacknowledged desires. Intricately plotted and extremely convincing in its evocation of the everyday realities of 1830s London, this is a fine first novel
[A] sizzling first novel...the characters - cleverly and sympathetically imagined - are the engine of the story
Tragic, terrifying and authentic
With this intricately woven tale of trust, self-trust and deceit, Anna Mazzola brings a gritty realism to Victorian London. Beautifully written and cleverly plotted, this is a stunning debut, ranked amongst the best (Manda Scott)
I can't remember the last time a book gave me such pure, unalloyed pleasure... I can't imagine reading another new novel, and certainly not a debut, as thrilling and moving as this one for the rest of 2016
Every now and then a debut novel comes along that stands out from the crowd... Mazzola's prose is wonderful and the characters are complex and convincing... If you like your historical crime beautifully written, intelligent and genuinely moving, this is one for you
The Unseeing engulfs you in a heady, addictive fog from the very start
A compelling did she/didn't she that's full of the sights and sounds of Victorian England, this is a winner
The Unseeing is deft, dark and delicious. Anna Mazzola writes brilliantly about Victorian London, a fascinating crime and an intriguing heroine (Janet Ellis, author of THE BUTCHER'S HOOK)
[An] accomplished debut... Mazzola quickly draws the reader in to this intriguing mystery... Mazzola skilfully conjures up a bygone world... If you like historical fiction then you'll love this compelling murder mystery
An intriguing story, and the threat of a miscarriage of justice, as well as the frailties of an imperfect advocate, keep the suspense going
Set in a vividly-imagined Victorian London - from the seamy horrors of Newgate Gaol to the bloated inns of court - this is a wonderful combination of a thrilling mystery and a perfectly depicted period piece. A brilliant debut
Intricately plotted and convincing in its portrait of the gritty, everyday realities of early Victorian London, The Unseeing makes for a darkly pleasurable read
Love, corruption, and retribution define Mazzola's absorbing and unpredictable debut novel... a cleverly written and intricate mystery
Mazzola's writing is brilliant
[An] expertly crafted novel... Crammed with authentic descriptions and characters, and with a fascinating and compulsive plot, this is a thrilling debut
All stars
Most relevant
I cannot agree with other reviewers. This story is very hard going and I almost gave up several times. It could have been written so much better.
The narrator is dreadful making silly voices all the way through.

Boring!

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This is a first-class story, though the revelations at the end are somewhat telegraphed beforehand. I found the narrator unsatisfactory overall, and particularly unconvincing in her gruff-voiced depiction of the main male character. The author deserved better.

An impressive debut

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I listened to this for a bit of lighter literature. I really enjoyed all the twists and turns in the plot. The descriptions of Newgate prison and the happenings there, were very interesting. My daughter had recommended this book and it was well worth the listen.

Plenty of twists and turns.

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I must admit that at first I thought it a bit slow. But it soon got me gripped. Not in an exciting way as a modern murder thriller might, but to just find out what happened! There was a point when I thought it must nearly be at the end, but no, another twist crept in. Thoroughly enjoyed this story. But I'm afraid I DID NOT enjoy the narrator's sad attempts at accent of the working classes/ In fact it totally got on my nerves. To the point that I will avoid anything narrated by her!

Keeps You Gripped

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I found this a bit hard going really. The concept was better than the actually story unfortunately.

interesting

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