Description

‘A page-turner of a crime thriller . . . This is a world conveyed with convincing, terrible clarity’ – C. J. Sansom, author of Dissolution.

Winner of the HWA Debut Crown
Winner of the Specsavers Debut Crime Novel Award

Blood & Sugar is the thrilling debut historical crime novel from Laura Shepherd-Robinson for fans of C. J. Sansom and Andrew Taylor.

June, 1781. An unidentified body hangs upon a hook at Deptford Dock, London – horribly tortured and branded with a slaver’s mark.

Some days later, Captain Harry Corsham – a war hero embarking upon a promising parliamentary career – learns that an old friend, passionate abolitionist Tad Archer, had been about to expose a secret that he believed could cause irreparable damage to the British slaving industry. He’d said people were trying to kill him, and now he is missing . . .

To discover what happened to Tad, Harry is forced to pick up the threads of his friend’s investigation, delving into the heart of the conspiracy Tad had unearthed. His investigation will threaten his political prospects, his family’s happiness, and force a reckoning with his past, risking the revelation of secrets that have the power to destroy him.

And that is only if he can survive the mortal dangers awaiting him in Deptford . . .

‘A brilliant book . . . Absolutely superb’ – James O’Brien

Shortlisted for the CWA New Blood Dagger
Shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger
Longlisted for the Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year

Publisher Review

Deptford, a gateway to and from Britain's expanding empire, is evoked in pungent detail. The British slave trade was an appalling episode in our history and the novel is unflinching in its refusal to sentimentalise motives or to row back on the savagery of the times. * Daily Mail * One of the best historical novels I've read in ages. -- Kaite Welsh, author of The Wages of Sin A gripping mystery . . . I loved it -- Laura Marshall, author of Friend Request I haven't read such an accomplished historical novel since I was introduced to C.J. Sansom. -- Jo Spain The most absorbing, intelligent and breathtakingly atmospheric novel I've read in a long time -- Chris Whitaker Utterly compelling . . . The next star of historical crime fiction has arrived -- R. N. Morris I can't recommend it enough -- Jo Jakeman, author of Sticks and Stones Extraordinary, immersive, addictive and moving -- Olivia Kiernan, author of Too Close to Breath Immersive and exhilarating . . . I was completely swept away -- Holly Seddon, author of Love Will Tear Us Apart Gripping and original . . . I absolutely loved it -- Karen Hamilton, author of The Perfect Girlfriend A page-turning dive into the torrid depths of London in the 1780s -- Mary Paulson-Ellis, author of The Other Mrs Walker A remarkably assured debut -- Elizabeth Fremantle, author of The Queen's Gambit The finest Georgian intrigue * The Times Crime Club * With a hugely likeable hero at its heart, this rich and beautifully written debut marks out Laura Shepherd-Robinson as a major new talent -- Fiona Cummins, author of Rattle A passionate indictment of British involvement in the slave trade but it never neglects its duty to chill and thrill * Sunday Express * Truly addictive -- Jenny Quintana, author of The Missing Girl Extraordinary -- Caz Frear, author of Sweet Little Lies A searing, ingeniously constructed story * The Times * Phenomenal . . . A shoo-in for one of the books of the year -- David Young, author of Stasi Child Magnificent . . . A tense and gripping historical thriller that shines an unwavering light on a dark period in British history. Unmissable. -- Antonia Hodgson, author of The Devil in the Marshalsea Enthralling * Daily Telegraph * Epic, harrowing, thrilling, brutal, addictive. I read it flat out in one day -- C. J. Tudor, author of The Chalk Man A striking historical thriller . . . Few first novels are as accomplished as this -- Andrew Taylor, author of The Ashes of London Stunning . . . Blood & Sugar is a harrowing and brutal epic [that] shocks and thrills in equal measure * Express * A tightly plotted crime story with vivid details of Georgian England * Sunday Times * A novel of astonishing skill * Financial Times * Laura Shepherd-Robinson has written a story that is not only a page-turner of a thriller but, to an extent unusual in historical novels, where you feel you really are listening to a voice from the eighteenth century. This is a world conveyed with convincing, terrible clarity' -- C. J. Sansom