Jago consciously wrote about the scandal from the point of view of the women involved and she has also referred to it as a sort of seventeenth century Thelma and Louise. An extraordinary story … The court case of the century … Amazing - talkRADIO You may also be interested in. The story is compelling and Jago uses a lot of literary devices throughout the story to engage the reader and hold that engagement. A big thank-you to Lucy Jago, Bloomsbury Publishing, and NetGalley for arc in exchange for my honest review. a sumptuous feast of plotting and intrigue' Mail on Sunday 'A complete joy' Bettany Hughes 'Gloriously immersive' Guardian ------------------------------------------------- Frances Howard has beauty and a powerful family - and is the most unhappy creature in the world.

Anne has gained a notoriety for her fashionable yellow starch lace and has a fine eye for dressing women for court. She lays bare the corruption of the Jacobean court, her sharp prose illuminating its dark corners and the complexities of her subject matter ― Lunate. Published by Bloomsbury, and Flatiron Books in the USA and available to purchase through these retailers. Accessible and absorbing novel that fleshes out the true story of two women accused of the murder of Sir Thomas Overbury in 1613.

Anne thrums with life all the way through to her tragic, gruesome end, while Frankie is calculating and alluring . Photograph: Bodleian Libraries View image in fullscreen Poet and courtier Thomas Overbury was already in the Tower of London when he died, apparently of natural causes. In a Net for Small Fishes, Lucy Jago paints a credible account of the actual events surrounding the death and trial over Sir Thomas Overbury but places the two women at the centre of the story and addresses an imaginatively unique perspective they faced. Based on a true story of seventeenth-century scandal, Jago’s evocative first novel is redolent of the intrigue and machinations of James I’s court, as two very different women attempt to find favour and make their way through a political viper’s nest.

but at its core, a net for small fishes is a story of the power of female friendships and how no one is too small to make a difference in another’s life.

The storyline demonstrates how both women try to be independent mistresses of their own destiny within a male dominated society determined to use any methods to keep them in their ordained place. Can't say enough good things about this book and I know it will remain a top historical fiction read for me by year's end. It’s also a tribute to the skill of her narrative style and use of language that, despite knowing the eventual outcome, tension is maintained until the end.

I encourage book clubs to consider this one as a selection as there's so many points of discussion here. Howard is in an abusive marriage and wishes to get an annulment and marry her lover Robert Carr, a favourite of the King. Jager doesn't ever milk the melodrama and there is plenty of light along with the darkness - there's genuine love, strong friendships. These, though, are small gripes compared with the many things there are to love in this scintillating novel that plunges you head-first into a darkly compelling chapter of British history.

Anne and Frankie dare to seek a little happiness for themselves in this extravagant, savage hunting ground. Anne sets about dressing Frankie powerfully to enhance her presence in court and to encourage the Earl of Essex to notice her and hopefully give her a much desired heir. Their thoughts and feelings are well described and your heart breaks for Frances’ horrific treatment and is an insightful analysis of a doomed relationship. Then Overbury enters the affair, threatening to destroy the fragile happiness that Frankie and Anne have built around them.