A perfect combination of both the past and the present. A cast of intriguing characters, and a wonderfully paced storyline.

A cute cosy romance with a dash of spooky mystery.

Told from two POV’s. Kathrine, 1600’s, married at 14 to a man who just wants her money.

Charlie, modern day, renovating a house near the commons and has spooky sightings of a mysterious rider.

I liked this tale is actually based off real folklore. It was cute, romantic and kinda spooky.

Realistically I would I liked an entire book about Kathrine. The ending was sad and unsatisfying, I just didn’t really connect with the characters and the dialogue was a bit cheesy for my tastes. Cute little cosy romance though

I normally am not one to enjoy timeslip/multiple time period books, but I actually really enjoyed this one.

Female highwaymen are such an interesting part of history, so I love that this was included. Overall I did prefer Katherine over Charlie, but both characters were really well done,

I will definitely be reading more by this author in the future.

Skipping synopsis because I don't care. This book is slow and confusing. I really gave it my best shot, but it's just awful. The criss-crossing timelines are mad confusing. The characters are annoying and I just don't like any of them. I shouldn't have to get more than 30% into a book before I understand what is happening.

I received a copy of the book for a free and unbiased opinion.
I love reading about woman pirates, so a book about a female Highwayman is just up my street. The book, set in two periods of time, follows two people disappointed in love and they try to forge a new path from themselves. Charlie’s and Katherine’s story does dovetail together by the end when Charlie discovers Katherine’s secret.
The story is well written, and I loved the Katherine’s story, in fact I think her life and her struggles as a married noblewoman with no rights would a be a book in it’s own right- I did find myself skim reading Charlie’s chapters especially when his problems seems trivial compared to Katherine’s fight to survive in a world built for men.
I had no idea this was based on a real woman and the author’s note made interesting reading. The author captures Katherine’s despair at being trapped in a loveless marriage with a husband who is draining her fortune and her descent into lawlessness is sympathetically described.
Perfect for Fans of
Historical fiction and women highwayman

I very much like the author and her stories.. This story was similar to her other stories and I liked the basic idea. The characters are well developed and the historical setting is captivating. I was somehow missing the connection to the modern characters, but it didn’t diminished the fun of the story. I will certainly read the other stories by the author

I read this ages ago and somehow forgot to write my review.

This was a good read, spanning two time periods. I loved both of them, but I was especially drawn to the historical fiction.

Katherine was such a likeable character and you felt for her every step of the way. She was an actual highway robber in the 17th century, and her story has been given some great nuance here by the author. I really enjoy how it was fleshed out and the atmosphere that was created and how that was then bled over into the present.

This is a perfect book to read in the fall!

One of the things I liked best about The Wicked Lady was the alternating Point Of View between that of Katherine Ferrers (1648 Hertfordshire) and present day Charlie living in Katherine’s old “stomping grounds”.

Katherine had quite a fortune, but her parents died and she was betrothed to a man who used her fortune to support the exiled King Charles.

Anyway the mix between historical fiction and present day ghost story was perfectly balanced. Really enjoyable and it seemed that the author did a lot of research to support The Wicked Lady.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books who approved my request to read the advance review copy of The Wicked Lady in exchange for an honest review. Publication date is July 31, 2024

1640s, Kate Ferrers is forced to marry a man who steals her fortune until she resorts to highway robbery to save her home. Present day, Charlie is trying to rebuild his life after being dumped by his girlfriend. But his new home is haunted by a ghostly presence...
The Wicked Lady is a dual timeline novel set during the English Civil War and the present day in Hertfordshire, UK.
Poor Kate is just a teenager when she is told she will marry a man she barely knows. Thomas is a Royalist and only wants her fortune which he quickly spends by giving to his king. Next he insists that Kate sell her childhood home and she begs him to reconsider. The only way she can make enough money to satisfy him is to commit highway robbery and put her life in danger. Charlie has been dumped so heads off for a fresh start renovating a house with his uncle. Along with one of his neighbours, he begins to sense a ghostly presence and together they research the area and discover the legend of the Wicked Lady before trying to separate the facts from the fiction.
The writing style is easy to read and the descriptions and dialogue allowed me to become immersed in both timelines. The author has done a lot of research about the history and geography of the region to bring the plot to life. I much preferred Kate's parts of the book due to my love of history as well as the character's inner strength against the adversity she faces. The spooky elements added an extra dimension to the plot and I enjoyed the romances in both timelines. I felt that the ending of the book didn't resolve the ghost thread to my satisfaction.
The Wicked Lady is an enjoyable dual timeline novel and I loved the strong lead female character and historical aspects.

This rather intriguing time slip novel has two story strands. Linking them is Katherine Ferrers. Whilst her story in the novel is conjecture, it is based on actual places and of course, the real life Katherine. In the present day, Charlie and Edie try to unravel events from centuries earlier. Usually with dual timeline stories, I tend to prefer one story over the other. In this case, I was invested in both. I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of historical figures of the past and to cultural references.

In the novel, Katherine emerges as an independent and fair minded character who has been forced to live within the expectations of the time. She is the victim of the view that women’s property became their husband’s. Her solution to this makes for an entertaining story, full of action and adventure. Charlie and Edie’s contemporary love story is a nice contrast and adds to the poignant atmosphere invoked by Katherine. At the start, he seems a lost soul but you sense that he is fated to arrive at Constable’s Cottages and needs to feel grounded. As Charlie and Edie investigate Katherine’s life, friendship grows.

In short: two centuries collide

The timeslip novels of Elena Collins are captivating and completely engrossing, and I found this one utterly transfixing to the point that I was thinking about it when I was doing other things. It takes us from present day with Charlie to the 1600s and the historical figure of Katherine (Kate) Ferrers, a notorious highway robber, in part historical fact, with some fictional embellishments to fill in some of the gaps from the true story of Katherine Ferrers.

When Charlie moves into a cottage on Nomansland Common to help renovate it with his uncle after his job and long term relationships end concurrently, he begins to feel he is being watched. What happens next takes on a ghostly quality as he and his wonderful dog Alan keep seeing a ghostly rider in the trees around the cottage.

That ghostly rider is Kate Ferrers, a legendary highway robber. Kate’s story is one that captivated me from the start. She lives in a time where rich women were married off to men in want of a fortune, and her marriage to Thomas Fanshawe when she was nearly 14 was no exception. As soon as the marriage takes place, Thomas promptly takes her fortune and begins to squander it in order to support King Charles II in his attempt to accede to the throne during the second English Civil War. Fighting for the King, he spent much of his time away from home, which suited Kate and gave her a freedom not normally permitted for married women of the time.

Kate was feisty, strong-willed, with a strong sense of duty towards the families who lived on her lands. I loved the famous people she met during her visits to her cousin in London, and in particular diarist Samuel Pepys, with their conversations being very entertaining. When Kate becomes aware of the intense hardships of the families she feels responsible for, but with her fortune rapidly disappearing, she becomes tempted to emulate highwaymen, and steal from the rich in order to help the poor. In spite of her bleak life, as was expected for women in those days, there were moments that provided respite from the negatives of life in an extremely patriarchal society.

The friendship between Charlie, in the present day, with Edie one of his neighbours was so interesting, and I loved how their investigations into who Kate Ferrers was not only provided the link between the two storylines, but also brought more depth to their own connection.

I am always excited when there is a new timeslip novel by Elena Collins, and this did not disappoint. It was the sort of book that captures your attention and your heart, and pulls you into the scene so much that you feel that you are living the romance, the history, the drama of the captivating story of a ‘Wicked Lady’.

My first Elena Collins novel did not disappoint!

A beautifully written tale of love, heartbreak and justice. This story is set in 1600s Hertfordshire alongside a dual timeline of Present Day. The author effortlessly weaves a piece of fascinating historical fiction based on a female highwayman.

Katherine Ferrers is a most wonderful character and we follow her journey through a loveless marriage and her yearning for love and justice. A story of one extraordinary woman's strength and guile.

Present day characters are also wonderfully written and display a warmth and vulnerable charm.

This was such an easy read not only did it have a spellbinding storyline, I loved the characters and the roles they played. It was atmospheric and had a ghostly gothic vibe too.

Can't recommend this enough. 5 Stars all the way!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for this ARC.

I enjoyed this engaging dual-timeline story set in the mid-seventeenth century. Katherine is married at a young age to a royalist whose only interest is restoring the King to the throne, using her legacy. Katherine lives an independent, if lonely, life, but when her husband's greed threatens the estate workers, she decides on a dangerous course of action that can only end tragically. In the present day, Charlie is recovering from a broken heart; he takes steps towards a new life with his uncle's help renovating an old cottage. His life improves, but he witnesses a series of supernatural occurrences that he decides to investigate. The storytelling is lovely in both timelines. The historical tale is suspenseful and vibrant with historical characters, details, and events. The reader empathises with Katherine, who is a likeable protagonist. Charlie is also likeable, and the present-day story charts his self-realisation, helped by what he discovers about the past. I like the characters, the haunting connection between the tales and the rich historical story,
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

This book was special. I always love Elena Collins books, and this one is set locally to me which only increased the immediacy.

There are two timelines, a romance with a ghost, and a historical tragedy which tells the story that leads to the haunting.

The modern timeline is a fabulous feel good story with characters to love, their gorgeous dogs, and a wonderful, haunted common. It’s told from the point of view of Charlie, a musician who has had his heart broken, and retreated from his old life to work with his uncle, renovating a run-down cottage on Nomansland just outside St Albans. I loved the way the renovation of the cottage mirrored Charlie’s healing process, and his love for the new life he’s building. I loved the relationships he builds and I really enjoyed the music that was threaded through the story. This is a gorgeous story of personal transformation and happy endings.

But while Charlie lives in the cottage, he sees a ghost and it’s these encounters that link the two timelines together and bring the real magic to the story.

Set in 1648, the Katherine Ferrers timeline is a really sad story about a young girl pushed into a life she never wanted, with a man she didn’t like and who had no interest in her. This is a much darker story, with a fiery woman who deserved so much more out of life. Backed into a corner, faced with losing everything to the man she married, she made a frightening choice and took a stand in an attempt to save herself and those she loved. Though I knew roughly where this was going, I was really rooting for her to succeed and come out of it alive and happy. This is such a deeply felt story line, with love, tragedy, bravery and a strong moral compass. It was impossible not to love her.

This part of the book was based on a local legend, and I am fascinated to find out more.

I loved every minute of this book and definitely recommend it. It has everything from a contemporary feel good storyline to a much darker, older narrative. It has love, tragedy, happy endings and sad, and of course dogs!

Another fabulous mystical book from Elena Collins.

I would like to thank netgalley and Boldwood Books for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting concept but the writing was poor.

I’m fascinated with the history of Highwaymen so I was very excited to read this duel timeline story. I was instantly hooked by the story of Katherine, her struggles as a woman in a man’s world in the 1600s, being forced into an arranged marriage and having no control over her own money. I loved how she fought for her independence and to care for the poor families on the estate. It was interesting so see her story develop, taking on a new life to preserve her home and help the poor under her care.
The modern day story features Charlie, who has separated from his long term girlfriend and finds himself in a new location working alongside his Uncle. Spooky things begin to occur and it leads him to a new friendship with a neighbour.
I liked that the main character in the present part of the story was male, it added a further depth to the story and was refreshing to see his perspective.
An enjoyable historical read that was gripping and entertaining throughout.

Any book written by Judy Leigh and her alter ego Elena Collins are well worth reading. She has such a beautiful way of describing characters, that they are completely believable and stir your emotions. She is also excellent in creating strong, female characters and here in The Wicked Lady. We have the wonderful Katherine (Kate) Ferrers, who I loved immediately.
This is a dual timeline novel and in the present day, our hero is twenty-nine year old Charlie Wolfe. We begin the story in London with his life swiftly going downhill. His girlfriend has left him and his temporary teaching job has finished. Luckily he still has his adorable dog – Alan the black labrador.
He ends up moving near to St Albans to help his Uncle Bill renovate an old cottage – 1 Constable’s Cottages, Ferrers Lane in Wheathampstead. Bill is sixty and a builder, his wife Marcia is forty-five and from Honduras. Charlie meets the neighbours, one of whom is Edie Berry, who has a Samoyed dog called Bianca.
He feels happy about his decision to start life anew and live in the cottage while they do it up, yet there seems to be a ghostly rider he encounters… Could it really be something to do with the legend of the Wicked Lady?
Meanwhile, in 1648, Katherine Ferrers is an orphan, who lives with her Aunt Alice in Huntingdonshire. She is coming up to fourteen years old and her stepfather wants her to marry his sixteen-year-old nephew Thomas Fanshawe, who Katherine doesn’t like and knows he is only after her money. Her mother always told her to speak up for herself and to be strong, which she follows, though it means adults find her wilful and impetuous.
She gets married to the completely unlikeable Thomas and they move to Hertfordshire, where she lives in her old family home The Cell. By 1659, she is twenty-five and has been married eleven years. Her husband is away a lot, which suits them both, as it is a loveless marriage. Kate spends time with the servants Beatrice and John and her horse Shadow. She meets local farmer Raife Chetwyn and seeing the poverty all around her, she vows to help in any way she can…
Elena Collins’s novels are always rich in beautiful description and full of fascinating characters, intermingled with a story that holds your interest throughout. The historical elements are wonderfully researched and the level of detail is perfect so as the reader, you can easily immerse yourself in the sights, sounds and politics of the time period. I always feel I learn something from her books and that’s always a bonus.

Katherine is unfortunate, but she is a badass,
Charlie is having a rough patch. Moreover, there is a ghost on a horse.
I am not a big fan of the dual-timeline narrative - it is rarely done well.
Though, the switch between Katherine’s 17th century and Charlie’s present day is interesting.
I mostly like Katherine and her storyline. I would be eager to read a book solely about her, and I like Collins’ prose plenty.

Back to the 1640s, and I was immediately caught up in the life of Katherine Ferrers – only thirteen, but promised in marriage to a man she barely knows, and who only wants to get his hands on her properties and fortune to support the Royalist cause. The only blessing is that he’s rarely home – she forms friendships with the staff at her former childhood home, enjoys riding her stallion on Nomansland common, but then becomes very aware that there are many on their estate suffering in poverty as her husband siphons the money away. Always feisty, she comes up with a daring plan to replenish the coffers – while putting herself in considerable danger, as the authorities become increasingly determined to end her nocturnal activities.

In the present day, Charlie – yes, rather unusually, a male lead character, and one I particularly liked – is trying to find his way again after a broken relationship, staying in a dilapidated cottage in Hertfordshire, working with his builder uncle to renovate and put it on the market. It’s one of three, and we follow him as he builds new relationships with his neighbours – but also becomes increasingly aware of a ghostly presence, on horseback, disturbing his nights, setting out to discover more about their story and allow the spirit to find rest.

Katherine’s story is compulsive reading – and, despite the dubious morals of her chosen path, she remains entirely sympathetic throughout with her determination to put right the wrongs of her neglectful husband. It’s also a particularly moving romance – perhaps an impossible one, but one I desperately hoped would bring her happiness. The whole historical setting is wonderfully brought to life – and I really loved that constant edge of danger and mounting tension that the author brought to the story as Katherine’s outings became increasingly fraught with the possibility of discovery.

But it’s a really well balanced dual time story too – none of those uncomfortable wrenches – with some excellent character development, as Charlie encounters some romance of his own, and finds that uncovering Katherine’s story allows him to make some necessary decisions about his own future. The touches of the supernatural that link the stories are quite wonderfully done – there’s not really anything that will give a reader sleepless nights, but they’re certainly particularly atmospheric, very realistic, and distinctly chilling at times.

The twists and turns of the beautifully told story really kept the pages turning, and even faster as the tension steadily increased – and it certainly more than engaged me at an emotional level too. I read it in one thoroughly enjoyable sitting – and would very much recommend it to others.

In a Nutshell: A dual-timeline novel based on the partly-fictionalised story of Katherine Ferrers, an actual highway robber from the 17th century. Good use of both timelines. Atmospheric writing, great research, interesting characters, mildly paranormal. Recommended.

Plot Preview:
Present Day. Hertfordshire. After going through an unexpected break-up and losing his job, Charlie grabs the opportunity to help his uncle renovate an old cottage next to Nomansland Common. As Charlie eases into his temporary new home, he spends his time with activities that help him forget his pain. His friendly new neighbours are also helpful. The only issue is the mysterious hoofbeats he hears on some nights, and a strange lady who appears to be staring at him from the Common. When Charlie learns of her identity as the “Wicked Lady” who was a notorious highway robber in the mid-1600s, Charlie wonders about her life story, why she is still around, and why she always appears sad.
1659. Hertfordshire. Having been married at just age thirteen to a husband who is more interested in restoring the king to the throne than in his young wife, Katherine (Kate) Ferrers has spent the last eleven years lonely, watching her husband spend her parental money on royal requirements while ignoring their tenants. But when a new threat emerges along with a new chance for happiness, Kate knows that she’ll do whatever she can to fight the first and secure the second.
The story comes to us across the two timelines in the third-person perspectives of Charlie and Kate.

Bookish Yays:
😍 Kate: a strong character who does her best within the social restrictions of her time. Loved her complex and brave personality.
😍 The historical timeline details: The place, the characters, the beliefs, and the events seem mostly accurate to the era. Appreciate the author’s research into Kate’s life.
😍 Charlie: It was unusual to have a male protagonist in the contemporary timeline, as most such interlinked-dual-timeline novels go with female main characters. Charlie handles his role perfectly. His being a sensitive and sensible young man elevates this story.
😍 The music-related scenes: much appreciated!
😍 The paranormal bits in the contemporary timeline: Spooky and atmospheric. The face-outside-the-window scene creeped me out!
😍 The focus on the women's restricted freedom in the 1600s: Quite infuriating. There’s much unfairness in this timeline, but that is to be expected from the 1600s.
😍 Each timeline having a love story without being romance-dominated: Though I’m not fond of romantic insertions in non-romance genres, both were handled well in this novel.
😍 The author’s note: excellent! Always love it when authors clarify their writing choices in a historical fiction that is based on the facts. Filling in the gaps between fact and fiction isn’t easy for such an old story, especially when the details aren’t entirely available, but the author has done a commendable job here. A big thank you to the author for including the photos of the key character and the places!

Bookish Mixed Bags:
😐 This is advertised as a timeslip novel, but it didn’t meet my definition of timeslip. Isn’t timeslip is when characters accidentally move across timelines without the aid of technology? A paranormal/ghost appearance in another timeline is just a haunting spirit to me, not timeslip! (You are free to disagree, of course.) This isn’t a point against the novel, but against the label.
😐 The other characters of the contemporary timeline (except Luna and Marilyn) are interesting even when they have minor appearances, but they aren’t detailed too much. Charlie’s ex-girlfriend Luna and his new neighbour Marilyn get somewhat cliched roles. The historical timeline had more intricate characters.
😐 Alan the dog: Awesome dog (not surprisingly!), and inspired by a real dog named Alan whose photo appears in the author’s note. The only quibble is the emphasis on what a great name ‘Alan’ is for a dog. It is not only repetitive but also incorrect IMHO. (Again, you are free to disagree. But I just can’t picture a dog when I hear ‘Alan’!)
😐 I understand why the historical timeline ended where it did, but I wish we had known more. The ending has one really, really sad scene off the page. The author handled it exceptionally, but man, it was tough to know what happened.

Bookish Nays:
😕 The connection between the two timelines is a bit flimsy. This story would have worked perfectly even without the modern timeline, which has its good moments but is quite predictable, and is more of a placeholder for extending the reveals of the main plot from the 1650s.
😕 The use of the phrase 'beauty sleep' was certainly not present in the 1650s. Not a major flaw, but a distracting one.

All in all, the shortcomings are relatively minor. The historical timeline is strong enough to make this a book worth reading, all the more as it is based on the actual life of a brave young girl whom life didn’t do justice.

Much recommended to historical fiction readers.

3.75 stars.


My thanks to Boldwood Books for providing the DRC of “The Wicked Lady” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

The digital version of this book is currently available free to Kindle Unlimited subscribers.