Billed as a modern-day Moonfleet for grown-ups, much of Winchelsea certainly delivers if a modern feminist take on the traditional swashbuckling tale is your thing. It comes in three parts, prefaced by a (rather pointless, to my mind) postmodern warning from the narrator Goody Brown that, although it is her dictation and her final cut, the story has been written by a man and the reader should bear that in mind.

The first two books are an enjoyable, if slightly predictable, tale of rival factions of smugglers operating under the noses of the revenue men in the town of Winchelsea on the Sussex coast. Goody Brown is seventeen years old at the start, a tall, unconventional young woman who has been adopted by the town doctor who moonlights as a smuggler, and his French wife, after her birth mother drowned herself. An early episode sets the scene for the brutality underlying the smugglers' exploits - with her mother and father, she is dragged out of bed by smugglers she has known and trusted since her childhood, made to walk to a steep cliff, and forced to bear witness as her father is summarily thrown off for siphoning off smuggled goods for himself. Her mother's tongue is cut out, and she herself is spared only because nobody knows the subterranean tunnels and surrounding marshes as well as she does and the smuggler gang needs her services.

Goody has an adopted brother twice her age, who is an escaped slave although little is made of his back story. Together, they set about plotting a slow-burning revenge for their father's treatment, and Goody finds out why he had risked his life to steal from his fellow smugglers. Along the way, while not becoming a bodice-ripper in the conventional sense, there is much to titillate. Too much in fact, I felt - we have near-incest twice, inter-racial relationships, same-sex attraction, orgies and non-binary sexual identities, alongside the smugglers' casual violence.

The third part of the tale switches abruptly to the story of the doomed Jacobite rebellion of 1745, and a lot of history is packed into this section - I had to turn to Wikipedia to get some context. I found it less interesting than the smuggler section, but it provides a mechanism for Goody's return to Winchelsea, her final revenge on the smugglers who, at this point, have completely terrorised the town, and her rather unusual happy ever after.

As a tall tale, this rollicks along at a cracking pace. But I felt it tried to pack too much in, and at times it borders on being sensationalist. It's Gentleman Jack with added smugglers and war, and altogether a bit much. It is a quick read but not a very satisfying one.

This is an enjoyable read full of pirates, smugglers, romance and bloody murder. It’s also a journey of discovery for our main lady, Goody.

The scene sitting is excellent, and I really liked Goody as a character- though I did feel bad for all of the trials she had to go through.

I found this quite thought provoking, as I believe it is reasonably historically accurate.

An enjoyable read!

My thanks to Netgalley and Canongate Books for the copy in exchange for an honest review

This is a book with mixed emotions
It is a story of piracy, it is a story of love on so many different levels and it is a history lesson into the background and failure of the Jacobite rebellion.
Mixed into it tendencies of lesbianism and understanding ones gender.
Goody is a wonderful and brave heroine or hero.
To some the changing of the narrator may be a little off putting but I felt it was relevant to the story.

Let yourself be swept away by this swashbuckling tale of love, murder, deceit and political shenanigans set in mid 18th century England, where wild pirates, ruthless smugglers and Jacobite conspirators will take you on a riveting and adrenaline-fueled fictional journey full of sparkling dialogues and exquisitely drawn characters.

Fiendishly plotted from start to finish, this magnificent tapestry of Hanoverian England definitely deserves to be enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Canongate for this terrific ARC

This is a wonderful story. I can honestly say it was difficult put down and I didn't want it to end. It is a tale of smuggling and smugglers, secrets, plots and counterplots. The characters, especially Goody Brown herself are vivid and strong. She is a marvellous protagonist, determined and forthright yet never overbearing and very likeable. After a tense and emotional beginning the story evolves into a dramatic adventure, rich in historical detail with twists and turns. Seeking vengeance for their father's death Goody and her adoptive brother ally themselves with a smugglers' gang. But as events unfold, she learns uncomfortable truths about herself and their own allegiance to Charles Stuart, the Young Pretender causes friction in the ranks. From run-ins with the red coats to the battle of Culloden Moor, this is a gripping and addictive read. Mainly set in and around the Cinque ports, the titular town of Winchelsea plays a starring role. An unforgettable story that I can highly recommend and anyone who can get a game of cricket into an historical novel of smuggling and Jacobite rebellion has my vote.

I stopped reading at about 21% - I really struggled to engage with the story, the characters, or the writing, and I just had no interest in picking it up. Even the prologue wasn't a great start, with basically a disclaimer saying that because the author's a man he might not be able to write women properly.

As per my review policy, I do not leave reviews for books I DNF. This review is for NetGalley purposes only.

Firstly, thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Canongate for supplying the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

On the south coast of England, there lies a town called Winchelsea. In the year 1742 smuggling is rife, and there are dangerous groups seeking to control the goods and the profits coming through the nearby Cinque Ports.
We meet Goody, a girl of 16, who witnesses the brutal murder of her father and the disfigurement of her mother, at the hands of one such group. Forced now to fill her father's shoes, helping the smugglers through the tunnels beneath the town, she and her adoptive brother seek revenge on the men that tore their family apart.

This book is split into three parts. The first one tells Goody's story in her own words, as she enters the dangerous world of smugglers, and embarks on adventures on both sides of the Channel. She grows and changes but her development feels beliavable. Whilst a little slow to start, this section is enjoyable and kept me interested, although I confess a bias to tales of pirates and sailing. There is some interesting LGBT+ representation, which, whilst inkeeping of the time period, felt compassionate.
The relationships between Goody and her adoptive mother and brother are complex and well constructed. Her mother, although a supporting character, is not pushed to the side, and is clear she has a complex inner life that is not forgotten about as the book goes on. Whilst some of the developments with the brother are uncomfortable, they didn't spoil the book for me, although it might for some others.

Where I struggled was when I got to about two thrids of the way through the book, and it takes an extreme right turn for the second part. Now we meet an entirely new character, and see Goody through his eyes, as she goes off to join the Jacobite rebellion and Bonny Prince Charlie, which her deceased father held so much faith in.
As a stand alone section it was decently written, but the whole part seemed to rush through a big period of time, and the relationship between Goody and the newcomer felt slightly disingenuous at worst and shallow at best.

The third section takes another wild change of direction and tells the next part of Goody's story though via a supporting character we met earlier in the book.

Both of these later sections do the overall book a disservice. If these had been split out and expanded (especially the scottish sections), they could have easily filled a second novel, and allowed more time to genuinely explore Goody's later life.

Overall, I would say it is reasonably enjoyable book, that keeps you interested, but I wich they had written it as two instead of one.

Highly enjoyable adventure yarn - moonfleet with more explicit sex and violence and a modern take on the expectations of gender and identity in the 18th century. Told from a few perspectives - The main narrator, goody, and a couple of other men in their life - we see the excitement and attraction of the smuggling life, but also the horror and violence meted out. Later sections take a fresh perspective, getting involved in other events and military campaigns, whilst still keeping a narrative link to the main story. The language takes a wee while to get used to but once you’re attuned to the occasional dialect it’s fully absorbing. Recommended

Smugglers, corruption, a sexually ambiguous, cross dressing heroine and swashbuckling adventures abound in this story set on the Sussex coast during the turbulent eighteenth century. This sounded right up my street, and certainly the plot itself is fast paced and exciting. However, I didn't ever feel any attachment to any of the characters. Goody herself is woefully under-developed; not even when she discovers who her father is, did I ever feel as though I knew her, or understood her motives or life choices. This is heightened by two new narrative voices being introduced towards the end of the book, which additionally felt incredibly rushed. Peripheral characters were only used to propel the plot forward, and I felt that this was a lost opportunity, I would have liked to learn more about some of them, or even understand how they felt towards Goody.

It's an ok read, but unfortunately didn't resonate with me as much as I had anticipated.

I would like to thank the publishers and NetGalley for the advanced copy in return for an honest review.

Bit mixed. I enjoyed the excitement of the smuggling (being in Staithes and Whitby at the time probably added to that) and liked the complex character of Goody. The book started to lose my interest a bit while it bounced around between narrarors but it sort of came together at the end. Not my favourite book of the year but still glad I read it.

In this novel, we're transported to the 18th century and the Sussex coastline and a powerful story of smuggling
When her adoptive Father who supports the Jacobite cause is brutally murdered and her mother maimed for life Goody Brown and her brother join forces with a rival smuggling gang to avenge his death.
Following another tragedy we,as the reader, then travel to the court of Prince Charlie and take up arms for the jacobite rising. There are 4 parts to this story, only 2 of which written from Goody's perspective. I didnt feel this detracted from the story as it was interesting to read from the other protagonists perspective
I enjoyed this novel, I liked the characters and the settings.
I would like to thank Netgalley, Alex Preston and Canongate publishers for the opportunity to read this advanced copy. I am under no obligation to leave my honest review

The book has potential but it doesn't quite live up to expectations.. The story is primarily about the life of Goody Brown and her involvement with smugglers and the Jacobite Rebellion. It is written from 2 different perspective which muddles the story rather than clarify it. Without giving any plot away, someone is murdered in Goody's presence and the gang chase her with the intention of killing her. She manages to escape and continues to live at home, but the gang leave her alone. There are several instances where the plot elements don't ring true.
Having pointed out the negatives, it is an acceptable read and many will enjoy it much more than I. I did enjoy the description of the Winchelsea area.

This book is actually a mess… Too slow. Such a disappointment because I was looking forward to this book. #winchelsea #netgalley

The book comprises of three connected stories by different narrators.

The main narrative is of smuggling and lawless privateers set around Winchelsea, Rye and the Romney marsh in 1742. The narrator is a young girl, Goody, who takes on the roll of Cellarman in the contraband-filled tunnels under Winchelsea, after her father is murdered by the gang for creaming off some of the loot. Along with her adopted brother Francis, a rescued slave bound for the plantations, she tries to avoid falling on the wrong side of the untrusting, vying smuggler gangs or the revenue men.
Vivid and detailed descriptions of the landscape means that those that don’t know the area can picture it well. Those that do are easily transported to these timeless places.

There is a thread connected to support for the deposed Prince Charlie and helping him to regain his throne, which causes a sudden change in the narrative after 3/4 of the book. We move to a different narrator and experience the battle of Culloden, which felt very disconnected initially but the link is revealed later on.
The third book returns to the Kent Weald and we hear about the Hawkhurst gang and how it terrorised the surrounding area and how Goudhurst locals banded together to form a militia to fight them, based on a true event.

I found the character of Goody intriguing and equally frustrating as I read.
Are they intentionally a trans character or did they dress and pass themselves off as a man in order to participate in adventures? In the first book she explores her sexuality with both women and men but we are not sure whether she feels more comfortable when passing as a male.
Because of the shift in narrator in the second and third books we do not get to hear their inner voice, to know their thoughts, until the epilogue at the end where Goody confirms they felt most comfortable neither as a man nor a woman; so today they would identify as non- binary.

William Stuart, who Goody becomes as a man, is a real male historical character, who led the Battle of Goudhurst. I am okay with colour and gender blind casting in theatre and film but I’m not sure how I felt about crossing this line.

The author is very skilled in descriptive language and I felt transported to a bygone era of lawlessness in Kent and East Sussex.

I was gripped by the beginning of this book. Goody Brown is rescued from her drowning mother's arms by Ezekiel Brown and brought up by his family along with a half brother, a one time slave who jumped ship and was also rescue by Ezekiel. When Goody is sixteen her father is murdered by men she thought were their friends. To avenge his death she and her brother join forces with a rival band of smugglers, men who are prepared to risk their own lives and those of others for financial reward.
Goody discovers however, that her father and subsequently her brother, have an ulterior motive. They are Jacobite supporters, planning the restoration of the 'King Across the Sea'', the son of James VII of Scotland. and are diverting funds to the cause.
The start of the book is told as by Goody herself and is fast paced and full of details about the smuggling, using lyrical language and very evocative of the time. But then, about two thirds through the book we switch to another narrator, who is unknown to us, and although telling Goody's story, does so without her insights and observations.
Having got to grips with this narrator the narrative changes again to yet another - this time known to us - for more detail and finally switches back to Goody for the final chapter. I found the new narrators could not maintain my interest in the story, nor could they keep up the momentum begun by Goody.
Without revealing too much the book deals with several important issues regarding women and their role in society both in the 1740's when the book is set and now.
The language is rich and interesting and the setting is well described and vivid, evoking a great sense of place. The action is exciting. All in all if the author had managed to maintain the early chapters of the book all the way through it would easily have been five stars from me, but I was sadly let down by the second and third parts, so have only given it four stars.
I will however, look out for other works by this author.
With many thanks to Netgalley and Canongate Books and the author for a chance to read an arc in return for an honest review.

This brought back happy memories of holidays in this area, staying at a campsite at Petts Corner, near Fairlight woods, exploring Hastings, Rye, Hythe, Dungeness and Dymchurch, and learning through guide books about the smuggling gangs that were rampant in these areas.
Set in 1740’s , this really explores the theme of smugglers and the wider political issues of the day. There are three main thrusts to this book,
1) Goody Brown is adopted as a baby by Ezekiel and his wife Alma. He is a doctor, who helps the smugglers to hide items in his underground caves, in return for a share of the swag. When he is murdered by the gang for taking too much, Goody wants to avenge his death.
2) Goody joins a rival gang, and becomes a useful member of the team. She has the keys to the caves, and thanks to her adoptive brother, has learnt to shoot guns, sword fight ,ride a horse and can help sail a boat. She bides her time and keeps busy planning her revenge.
3) Goody becomes involved in the Jacobite rebellion and the cause of ‘ The King Across The Sea ‘, and the action then moves to Culloden and the Scottish landscape, also bringing back fond memories of similar trips for myself.
This is a novel that is very well researched, there are many obscure words, Google was kept very busy in certain chapters!!
It was also slightly confusing in parts and not an easy book to get the measure of, you really have to persevere with the exploits of Goody, but it is well worth it. It is wordy and slow paced, and by the end , both the reader and Goody are not sure of what is happening. There are hints of lesbian themes, and a closer attachment than considered decent to an adopted brother, but it feels necessary and relevant.
I learnt so many new facts about the political atmosphere of those times, why we lost America , due to Jenkins ear, and how essential smuggling was to society in those areas.
A five star read. Will use this as a reference next time I am on holiday in those places.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Cannongate publishers for my digital copy, in exchange for my honest , unsolicited review.
I will leave a review to Goodreads and Amazon later.

"Winchelsea" by Alex Preston reminded me of Moonfleet with more history and politics. The main part of the story, part 1, is the story of Goody Brown and her life as a smuggler, set mainly in Winchelsea. She sets out to have her revenge on her father's murderer and joins a rival gang, which support Charles II who is wanting to return from France to the UK. The characters and plot really draw you in. I do feel as the shorter parts 2 - 4 kind of lost their way a bit but the epilogue then brought it back together.

This book is a bit of a mess.

It starts off being told from Goody's perspective and I will say the first 30% is fairly gripping. You are right into the action for sure but once 'revenge' for the Father's murder has been delivered the next middle section of the book feels overly long and winding. I really struggled to get through it because there didn't feel like anything much to keep me reading but eventually it livens up again only to then experience reading whiplash when suddenly at 75% of the way through book it is suddenly being told from another characters point of view and worst of all a character we have never encountered before. Goody's experiences, thoughts, etc are gone. We have no idea what she is thinking any more and I found myself not caring

Then we switch to another narrator for the ending portion.. At least this was a character we are familiar with from fairly early on in the book but suddenly it feels like now the book is about him and no longer really about Goody at all.

There is a wrapping up at the end were Goody is allowed a final say in her story but by now we don't really know who she is any more or how she feels about anything that has happened to her.

I saw someone mention Daphne Du Maurier in reference to this book but that is nonsense. This book has nothing of the style or grit that Du Maurier does. yes there is smuggling and pirates but that is the only connection you make between this book and Daphne's work.

The only thing this book really does well is write about Winchelsea, Rye and Romney Marsh. It really does capture the landscape of that beautiful part of the UK coastline well and if you are familiar with it, as I am which is why I picked this book, you will enjoy that aspect of the book as it transports to their landscape and the rich history of those places. It is for this that I have given it 3 stars otherwise I would have only given it 2.

An interesting look at smuggling in the past from a female point of view and while I wasn't enamoured of the story I can really appreciate the time and research that went into this book so I think it can be awarded an excellent five stars

Winchelsea recounts the adventures of Goody Brown―smuggler, pirate, lover, avenger, redeemer―in three parts. A feminist tale with lesbian overtones the novel illuminates Goody’s struggle with gender identification. It is a darkly gothic, compelling read which will have readers immersed in old Britain, when wreckers and smugglers menaced the shores.
After her adopted father’s murder at the hands of local smugglers, Goody seeks revenge by joining a rival gang. There she revels in her new self, steeped in violence, murder and mayhem, all of which set her blood pumping. When one conflict with the Revenue men results in a friend being badly injured, Goody knows she may have taken a step too far. Loosely woven around the Jacobite rebellion of the mid-1740s, Goody’s transformation brings her full circle, through vengeance and bloody retribution, home to protect those she loves. We are privy to a dangerous journey, not only her adventures, but her internal journey of self-discovery―where she came from and who she really is, which poses the question “can criminality be inherited?”.
Enticing archaic terminology - kopstoots, hamble-shanked, huzzlecap, wrenked, yelloching, gallimaufry, whemmeling, concinnation, perduration – adds to the atmosphere of a highly innovative, unusual piece of gritty historical fiction.