This book is a triumph - I loved it.

Shepherd-Robinson paints a vivid picture of Georgian London and its clandestine indiscretions. Caroline Corsham, a woman of wealth and sophistication, befriends an Italian noblewoman, Lucia, after introductions made at one of the frequent aristocratic gatherings she attends. Some time later, she finds her friend viciously attacked, and hears her last words - <i>”he knows”</i>.

It soon becomes clear that Lucia was far from a noblewoman, and more of a prostitute, leading the magistrate to lose interest in the case. Caro becomes hellbent on solving the murder, and embroils herself into an investigation which proves devastatingly complicated, and utterly transfixing.

The plot is crafted with precision, the pace perfect. We twist and turn our way through what, at its heart, is a murder mystery, but becomes so much more than that. The skill in engaging her readers here is masterful; one awful thing leads to another until the reader is consumed by the words, plunging through the pages as though falling through a bottomless pit of iniquity.

There’s some wonderful social commentary here on the relationships between women and men, sex as a commodity, poverty, and best of all (my favourite in historical fiction), social scandal. The way in which men of importance were protected, and even revered, is a sorry state of affairs, but one which in many ways is still present today. To be female and to be poor limited these Georgian women, but Shepherd-Robinson makes it clear that even gender alone can limit the most wealthy and important of women.

It can become quite comfortable to view people living in the past as caricatures of their time, but here they’re so tangible, completely fleshed out to refinement. Each of their secrets, each of their flaws, whether they are major characters or not, are laid out like breadcrumbs throughout the pages. None of them perfect, all of them untrustworthy; it was a relief to see we had no heroes or villains here, just real people battling with the constraints of social code.

The whole thing was just a wonder to read. Georgian society, the social commentary, the intricacy of the plot and characters, and the suspenseful feeling of distrust rippling through the pages, all contributed immeasurably to my enjoyment. A masterpiece of historical fiction; one which took me by surprise.

Daughters of Night is a tour de force through Georgian London exploring the seedy underworld of the upper classes. Through the constant twists and turns the protagonist Caro leads the reader on a story that combines mystery, crime and amazing historical detail. As a Londoner I loved how the book bought areas of London to life and gave me an insight into life in Georgian London and the role of women within society.

Its a fast paced novel, that make you want to carry on reading every time you reach the end of the chapter. A must for fans of historical fiction!

My first book by this author but not my last. Caroline Corsham, wife of her absent politician husband enlists the services of a thief taker to find out who has murdered her friend. Not only is this a fascinating mystery with twists and turns but 18th century London is brought to life. This is a fascinating story wound round this period of time with its secret groups, ladies of the night, immoral liaisons, those who should be upholding the law meting out their own justice. A fascinating tale well told.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Laura Shepherd-Robinson/Pan Macmillan for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book as I did Laura's first book Blood & Sugar. They are well researched and the descriptions of the time and people are very vivid. I especially liked the fact that Laura had given Caro a book of her own as in Blood & Sugar I felt she would be an interesting character to hear more about. Her husband Harry was the main protagonist in the first book where he was investigating the brutal death of a slave on a ship in Deptford in 1781, and his thoughts about his struggling marriage made me want to know more about that side of Harry's life.

While Daughters of Night has some of the same characters we were introduced to in Blood & Sugar, it is very much a totally separate story. It gives nothing away about what had previously happened in the first book and both can be read easily on their own.

While Harry is away, Caro gets caught up in the mystery of a murdered prostitute she had befriended thinking she was a lady like herself. Determined to find out what had happened to her when the truth is revealed, she hires the help of a 'thief-taker' and together they delve into the seedy side of London of the late 18th century. This is a clever mystery that takes the reader into the lives of the prostitutes of the time and their own hierarchy. From the seedy pubs and back alleys to the exclusive men's clubs, the life of the 'loose women' of the time is portrayed. But the ladies of the time and their supposed virtue and behaviour is also highlighted by Caro's own personal trouble of being pregnant by her lover and her husband away for too long for her to be able to cover it up as his.

The best historical fiction books use real historical characters to give the story more depth and it is obvious that Laura has done a huge amount of research into this particular time of London's history. Being 550 pages long, it is also a good chunky read to immerse yourself in.

Highly recommended.

I'm now deeply into an historical detective phase, and Laura Shepherd Robinson's first book, "Blood & Sugar" took me deeper still. Its factual covering of the slave trade (topical) together with some well-rounded characters, and perfectly rendered locations made it a glorious read.

"Daughters of Night" is another winner. Taking some of the secondary characters from the first book, it again perfectly renders the 18th century in smells, sounds and sights. We didn't get to know Caro very well in the first book, but this is definitely her book. It concerns another kind of slave-trade - prostitution. And of course, when the police decide it's not a case worth pursuing, Caro makes it her mission to solve the mystery of a murdered prostitute, along with thief-catcher, Mr Child. We get the chance to learn more about characters from Blood & Sugar not properly explored before, and it's a pleasure to see Caro in a new light.

There's more than a few red herrings. and some side issues, and this book is as winding and sprawling as "Blood & Sugar". In other words, unputdownable.

If you love Imogen Robertson, Antonia Hodgson or E S Thomson, this is right down your street.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

This story gives us a g,impse into the political history and all classes of society. It's set in London in 1782. Caro Corsham is on the hunt for the killer of her friend who is also a prostitute, Lucy Lawless and two other missing women. Caro hires private investigator Peregrine Child to help her find out what had happened to them.

It took me a little while to get into this book but when I did, I quite enjoyed it. It's full of twist and turns. The characters are well rounded and likeable. The descriptions of London were true to the era. The story is told by Caro and Child's point of view. It's well written. Poverty, hardships and smells are well portrayed. With murders abound, who could you trust.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Pan Macmillan and the author Laura Shepherd-Robinson for my ARC in exchange for an honest review .

What an excellent romp of a tale. An 18th Century murder mystery with all the bawdiness of that time thrown in. What a wealth of characters it has. Caro, whom we have met before in a previous book - doing her sleuthing to find the killer of the poor working girls. With her own secrets that would not be acceptable at that time in history, will she do it or will she end up in danger herself? Who would save her if she did!? A fabulous read and I loved it.

Loved the second book from Laura Shepherd-Robinson and already can’t wait for the next one! Well researched. Liked the character of the tenacious Caro. Thank you netgalley.

A riveting and dangerous story about pursuing justice no matter the cost. I loved the historical elements and seeing the heroine tackle challenge after gruelling challenge to achieve her goals in a gritty world.

Immersive and compulsively readable. The best historical thriller that I have read for years.. The Georgian setting ripe with everyday detail is exquisite; tightly woven into a taught, twisting, nail biting thriller. Our heroine and hero are oh so fallible, frequently unreliable and I feared for them, unsure if they would make it through to the final chapters.. I even got up at the crack of dawn to read the last 100 pages before work as I just couldn't wait. This is the first book I have read by Laura Shepherd-Robinson, and I have gone striaght on to buy her earlier novel Blood & Sugar. An absolute pleasure to discover this author, and one that I will recommend widely to any crime or thriller lover..

An immersive historical read imbued with fascinating details about Georgian London life. Although I found the first half a little slow-going, the pace really picked up in the second half and I was desperate to keep reading by the end.

A deliciously salacious whodunnit, set in Georgian England of 1782. Caroline ‘Caro’ Corsham finds a woman of her acquaintance near death in the Vauxhall Pleasure gardens. The woman, ‘Lucia’ who we later discover is a prostitute named Lucy Loveless, has been murdered, and Caro enlists the help of jaded thief taker Peregrine Child to help her solve the case.

Their inquiry amongst the gentry of London rattles a lot of cages and puts them both in mortal danger.

A great, fast moving thriller, with some memorable characters. My only slight criticism was that the telling of the story became a little too complicated at times. None the less, a gripping read and highly recommended.

This is another tour-de-force from Laura Shepherd-Robinson and I hope there will be a sequel so that we can find out what happens to Caroline and Harry. The plot is complex, with twists and turns to keep you guessing. The historical detail is amazing and must have taken an awful lot of research. Altogether a truly satisfying historical thriller and highly recommended.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Laura Shepherd-Robinson’s well received, well-written and intricately researched debut novel, Blood & Sugar, in which she combined a historical whodunit with a moving study of the appalling slave trade in Georgian England

I was therefore looking forward to her ‘difficult second novel’ and was not disappointed. It appears that the author is planning a series of books but instead of taking the easy route with the continuing adventures of the dashing Captain Henry Corsham, she has confined him to the side-lines and instead brought two minor characters from the first novel into the spotlight as the main protagonists. Firstly, Caro, Henry’s flirtatious wife and secondly Peregrine Child who appeared in the previous novel as a Deptford magistrate but has subsequently lost his job and is now a near-destitute thief-taker (private detective to you and me) in London. Together they team up to hunt the killer of a prostitute whom Caro had befriended and not surprisingly have to deal with a barrage of lies, subterfuges, hidden secrets and a considerable deal of violence.

Having plumbed the depths of the Deptford-based slave trade in her previous book, Ms Shepherd-Robinson now takes us into the underbelly of Georgian London with its brothels, sex parties and a wealthy class willing to pay anything to satisfy their perversions. This doesn’t always make for easy reading, but it is quite clear from the astonishing amount of research which the author has conducted, that she has probably painted a pretty accurate picture of an aspect of Georgian society which doesn’t get a lot of coverage in the history books.

This is quite a long book, but Ms Shepherd-Robinson is such a fine writer that she is able to maintain the pace throughout and the whodunit element keeps you guessing right to the very end. But this book is far more than just another historical thriller. It lifts the lid on some disturbing aspects of Georgian society, in particular the treatment of women and the presence of domestic abuse. It is also a book about secrets – the power that they give people who know about them and the lengths to which people will go to protect them.

If I had one minor quibble, I felt that that there were just a few too many twists and turns towards the conclusion but in no way did that detract from a very fine second novel. I suspect that the author has at least one more book in the series up her sleeve, and it will be fascinating to see where she takes these characters and what further aspects of Georgian society she can unravel.

This book is thoroughly recommended and my thanks to Netgalley and the publishers, Pan Macmillan for an ERC in return for an honest review

Disclaimer: Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy of this book. I have been sent a copy of this book for review purposes. This has not influenced or affected my opinions in this review.

Daughters of Night was a tricky read for me and it took me a while to get into. I did enjoy it overall and I thought the plot was great. I loved the way I truly felt transported into Georgian London, but I did find that the element of mystery was fairly difficult to connect to. I did love the way the characters were powerful and well fleshed out. If you’re a fan of historical fiction, you will really enjoy this. Also, if you enjoyed Laura Shepherd-Robinson’s previous novel, Blood & Sugar, you will love this.

*3 stars*

A complex mystery set in Georgian London, shedding light on the beau monde and its entwined relationship with prostitution. As Caroline Corsham and the thief taker Child search London for the murderer of a high class prostitute, Laura Shepherd-Robinson takes us to the darkest, poorest corners of the city as well as the richest households. She draws a vivid, compelling portrait of the society, and its attitudes to money, class and women. The plot became a little convoluted for me about two thirds of the way through, with maybe a few too many complications before we reach the denouement. However, it picks up pace again towards the end and the characters are so well drawn that it makes for a good read.

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for letting me read this book. Oh wow! What a book I absolutely loved it, I had found this on a scroll, I had just picked up blood and sugar a couple of weeks before receiving this ARC and I absolutely loved that so I was so happy to receive this, and yet again it didn’t disappoint me, it kept me guessing right until the end and the plot twist! Wow this author is amazing and the writing is just superb. 5 stars all round.

A really juicy whodunnit, which I'm thoroughly recommending.

Caro Corsham, a society lady, finds a dead body - the body of a prostitute she'd been on her way to meet for other reasons. With the law showing no interest in investigating the death of such a woman, Caro takes matters into her own hands.

Packed with a cast of feisty people and lots of goings-on, this is a long and intricately woven mystery. Lots of twists and turns, lots of characters to love, others to hate, this is also an exploration of 18th century London in all its colours. A great read.

This is the sequel to Blood And Sugar, which I read when it was released in paperback earlier this year.

This book far surpasses the first in everything; writing style, plot, characters and world building. I’d never read a truer grittier Georgian london. And what I loved most about this was that it felt very feminist.

Caro, the wife of our previous MC, is well to do and fighting this deeply misogynistic and patriarchal society to find the killer of a woman she thought of as a friend - it doesn’t matter to her that she was a prostitute. She was a person who deserves justice. Whenever someone mentions “she’s just a dead whore” Caro will immediately corrects them and says “she’s a dead woman and I want answers.”

I didn’t see the plot twist or connect the dots any quicker than the characters and that to me makes for an incredibly engaging and well written book.

Trigger warnings for rape, assault, domestic violence, suicide, abortions, miscarriages, and sex with minors.

W hat a book, such an engrossing read, an absolute delight, full of strong characters, set in 18th century London, it spares no detail of the lower side and classes of the capital city. This is the follow on book to Blood and Sugar, which I missed, but will put on my reading list immediately.
Caro Corsham is the central character. The book begins with her husband in France, and Caro is pregnant , but her husband is not the father. That is how many grand families in this United Kingdom originated, a hushed up pregnancy, a trip abroad to have the baby, and then probably adopt, depending upon the need for an heir. Women were required to be decorous and skilled in managing the household and servants, heaven forfend that women had a brain! Caro is in trouble, when her husband gets home, she will be divorced, thrown out of the family home, and be penniless and never see her child again. Many women in desperation, turn to prostitution, but Caro contacts one of these fallen women to obtain an abortifacient, but when she finds this women in Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, she is dying from stab wounds. The law don’t want to investigate, so Caro employs a thief taker, Peregrine Child, to investigate the matter. They both become involved in conspiracies that could ultimately threaten the throne of England. Along the way, they encounter masked masquerades, virgin auctions, and the lowest side of London. There is a great deal of detective work, chases, and many murders before all is cleared up.
Caro is a remarkable woman. She is likeable, and lively, honest in her dealings with the prostitutes and very determined to catch those who killed her friend. She is loyal, stubborn and a good judge of character in both the world of grand balls and brothels.
This book has very intricate plots that confuse and confound the reader. It is a fast paced read, with a lovely variety of characters. A marvellous introduction to the shady side of Georgian society, and the callous disregard for life. Poverty and all its accompanying smells and hardships are well portrayed. Murders abound, life is cheap and when you don’t always know what you are eating, never mind who you can trust, makes you glad, your ancestors survived such horrors.
A five star read, that is richly deserved. I will leave a review on Netgalley. Looking forward to more in this series.