The Unseeing

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.

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?

“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

The Unseeing is deft, dark and delicious. Anna Mazzola writes brilliantly about Victorian London, a fascinating crime and an intriguing heroine - Janet Ellis

[A] sizzling first novel...the characters - cleverly and sympathetically imagined - are the engine of the story - - The Times

An intriguing story, and the threat of a miscarriage of justice, as well as the frailties of an imperfect advocate, keep the suspense going - Daily Mail

Anna Mazzola is a criminal justice solicitor, based in London. Whilst THE UNSEEING is her debut, it has won awards including the Brixton Bookjam Debut Novel competition and she came runner up in the 2014 Grazia First Chapter competition judged by Sarah Waters.

London, 1837: The city streets teem with filth and the stench of corruption. The pieces of a woman's dismembered body have begun appearing across the city. Sarah Gale: a seamstress and a mother, convicted for her role in the murder, still protesting her innocence. Edmund Fleetwood: an idealistic lawyer struggling with his own demons, appointed to investigate her petition for mercy. Yet although Sarah has everything to lose, it is Edmund who becomes obsessed with the case, determined to establish why this woman seems so set on walking to the gallows... 'Beautifully written and cleverly plotted, this is a stunning debut, ranked amongst the best' Manda Scott 'Deft, dark and delicious' Janet Ellis, author of THE BUTCHER'S HOOK FICTION

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.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?

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