The Knowing

'If you love Sarah Waters and dark historical fiction, you will no doubt be hooked.' — Diva magazine

'Vivid, visceral and utterly immersive. Extraordinary' — Liz Hyder

In the slums of 19th-century New York, a tattooed mystic fights for her life. Her survival hangs on the turn of a tarot card.

Powerful, intoxicating and full of suspense. The Knowing is a darkly spellbinding novel about a girl fighting for her survival in the decaying criminal underworlds.

Whilst working as a living canvas for an abusive tattoo artist, Flora meets Minnie, an enigmatic circus performer who offers her love and refuge in an opulent townhouse, home to the menacing Mr Chester Merton. Flora earns her keep reading tarot cards for his guests whilst struggling to harness her gift, the Knowing — an ability to summon the dead. Caught in a dark love triangle between Minnie and Chester, Flora begins to unravel the secrets inside their house. Then at her first public seance, Flora hears the spirit of a murdered boy prostitute and exposes his killer, setting off a train of events which put her life at risk.

The Knowing is a stunning debut inspired by real historical characters including Maud Wagner, one of the first known female tattoo artists, New York gang the Dead Rabbits, and characters from PT Barnum's circus.

Something Powerful Is Coming.

'Dark, atmospheric and compulsive, The Knowing is a bewitching book that kept me up reading late into the night'

-- Sophie Keetch

'If you love Sarah Waters and dark historical fiction, you will no doubt be hooked.'

Diva Magazine

'Vivid, visceral and utterly immersive. Extraordinary'

-- Liz Hyder

'You can smell the spit and sawdust rising from the pages of this atmospheric gothic novel.'

Red Magazine

Emma is a queer playwright living in Manchester with a focus on telling untold feminist narratives. Her latest play, PURE, was featured in Turn On festival at Hope Mill Theatre Manchester and she was the recipient of the Artist Development grant. She has written an essay published in Tarantino and Theology with Gray Matter Books, and her book Ineffable Love: Christian Themes in Good Omens was published by Darton Longman & Todd.

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