"Centred on a pair of rival spirit mediums in 1873, this divinely entertaining debut sizzles with ambition, secrets, the souring of reputations and audacious revenge."
From the wordplay of its title, to its riveting revelations, Lucy Barker’s The Other Side of Mrs Wood whisks readers into the enthralling world of rival spirit mediums, a realm that throngs with secrets, duplicitous chancers, ambition, falls from grace, and revenge. And all this is underpinned by a truism that has resonance beyond the world of mediums: “Illusion is everything. Once the belief in you has gone, there’s nothing anyone can do.”
The setting is Notting Hill, 1873, and widowed Mrs Wood is a medium of considerable repute who prides herself on having fine-tuned powers of perception. Currently experiencing some cash-flow issues, she discerns notable potential in a certain Miss Finch, who becomes her protégé. Though talented, Mrs Wood notes that Miss Finch is naïve to the conventions of high society, somewhat “loose-lipped”, and lacking in crucial discretion.
Nonetheless, Miss Finch charms Magnus Clore, editor of the Spiritual Times. When he hails Miss Finch to be a “pretty face with a true gift”, Mrs Wood is inundated with requests from patrons, acquaintances and fellow mediums seeking a slice of the pie just as she needs more income. Huzzah! And so Mrs Wood plans a spectacular - and potentially lucrative - gathering for a client’s birthday.
But balancing respectability, showwomanship and believability is no mean feat, and then there’s the haunting question: how has Miss Finch come by certain knowledge that might threaten Mrs Wood’s reputation?
Suspicions lead to an almighty showdown, a fall from grace, humiliating slices of humble pie and revenge, all of which adds up to a wryly funny, sharply observed, entertaining novel that runs readers through a gamut of human follies, among them greed, pride, wanton ambition and duplicity.
| Primary Genre | Historical Fiction |
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