Crimson and Bone: a dark and gripping tale of love and obsession

A dark, gripping story of love and obsession from bestselling author Marina Fiorato, perfect for fans of THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE.

London, 1853. Annie Stride has nothing left to live for - she is a penniless prostitute, newly evicted from her home and pregnant. On the night she plans to cast herself from Waterloo Bridge into the icy waters of the Thames, her life is saved by Francis Maybrick Gill, a talented pre-Raphaelite painter - and her world is changed forever.

Francis takes Annie as his artist's muse, elevating her from fallen woman to society's darling. With her otherworldly beauty now the toast of London, her dark past is left far behind.

But Annie's lavish new life is not all is seems - and there are some who won't let her forget where she came from...

“Marina Fiorato's latest novel will delight her ever increasing number of fans”

A rich jewel of a story, full of colour, desire and danger. I was transfixed. - Julie Cohen

A beautifully-crafted novel..., by turns opulent and visceral. The encroaching sense of menace was perfectly paced, as was the slow reveal of the shocking truth underpinning the story. I adored it. - Clare Harvey

- Dilly Court

Praise for Marina Fiorato:

Wonderful . . . hard to put down. A truly imaginative piece, both touching and delightful. - Jenny Agutter

Delightful... Our heroine is feisty, the captain is dashing and the plot rollicks along. Great fun. - Times

Richly detailed and evocative . . . an unforgettable historical love story. Beautifully written and worth losing yourself in. - Candis Magazine

In Marina Fiorato's beautifully imagined novel, these two witty, fierce characters once again get to take centre stage . . . Not only does she fill out the details of the protagonists' lives, transforming them into characters with backgrounds, histories and contexts, but she creates meaningful and inventive narratives that inform the play . . . this book is a real pleasure. - We Love this Book/Bookseller

Entertaining and witty - Daily Mail

Marina Fiorato is half-Venetian. She was born in Manchester and raised in the Yorkshire Dales. She is a history graduate of Oxford University and the University of Venice, where she read for a master's degree in Shakespeare. After university she studied art and worked in the film and music industries, creating visuals for U2, The Rolling Stones and the Queen musical We Will Rock You. Her novels Daughter of Siena and Beatrice & Benedick were shortlisted for the Romantic Novelists' Association Historial Fiction Award. Marina was married on the Grand Canal and lives in north London with her husband, son and daughter. You can find out more about Marina and her writing at and follow her on Twitter @marinafiorato

A dark, gripping story of love and obsession from bestselling author Marina Fiorato, perfect for fans of THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE. London, 1853. Annie Stride has nothing left to live for - she is a penniless prostitute, newly evicted from her home and pregnant. On the night she plans to cast herself from Waterloo Bridge into the icy waters of the Thames, her life is saved by Francis Maybrick Gill, a talented pre-Raphaelite painter - and her world is changed forever.Francis takes Annie as his artist's muse, elevating her from fallen woman to society's darling. With her otherworldly beauty now the toast of London, her dark past is left far behind. But Annie's lavish new life is not all is seems - and there are some who won't let her forget where she came from...

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