Read January 2020.
England, 1665: Tension simmers in a country that has been torn apart by the brutal civil wars and the execution of Charles I. His son, Charles Stuart lives in exile with his court, in France, hoping that one day he may return to the country of his birth.
The peace is fragile and Cromwell employs his Secretary of State, John Thurloe, as his spy-master, in order to keep ahead of any possible rebellion by Royalist sympathisers keen to restore the monarchy.
Two spies are sent by Charles Stuart to undetake a dangerous mission to obtain information from under the very nose of John Thurloe himself. But there is something different about these spies, which will hopefully aid them in their task - they are both women, and they will risk everything for king and country.
Based on a true story about England's first female spies, Killing Beauties takes us into a world of intrigue and danger, moves and counter moves, in seventeenth century London. A world which history portrays as one in the hands of men. This is the story of the she-intelligencers.
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We rarely hear about the women who have had a part in our history, but when we do their stories are incredibly interesting, and this is certainly the case of the amazingly brave women in this book - and their secret sisterhood.
The women in our story - Diana Gennings/Lady Stanley and Lady Susan Hyde - are real and Pete Langman weaves the truth of their existence into a fictional tale that gives us a glimpse into the part they may have played in a London rife with intrigue, betrayal and conspiracy - a world that simmers with tension and glorious historical detail.
Although this is a story primarily concerned with the fate of Susan Hyde and her dangerous mission to make John Thurloe her unwitting accomplice, we see enough of her compatriots to know that the women who are part of this sisterhood are very special indeed. They are courageous, resourceful and as willing as any man to put their lives and reputations on the line, and often have to be much cleverer than a man in the same situation would have to be. I thoroughly enjoyed the way Pete Langman told their tales.
Susan is a complex and rather serious character, dedicated to the task she has been given, even though she knows it will end in her own ruin. It is interesting to follow the development of her character, as she struggles with the practicalities, and mental strain of what she has to do to fulfill her mission - but I must admit that I did find it difficult to warm to her, although she is undoubtedly a formidable character.
My favourite character was actually the gutsy Diana, as her antics were far more fun to read about and I would love to hear more about her adventures in the future. She seems to have a rollicking time wherever she goes, even if her motives are sometimes a little suspect.
There is lots of historical detail in these pages, that tells of the impressive amount of research behind this book, and this successfully immerses you in the time period - you can almost hear, taste and smell the seventeenth century in these pages.
But the text can be a little wordy as a result and the conversations can be somewhat archaic in tone, which means you do have to concentrate quite hard when reading this book. I did find myself a little distracted by the number of times the female characters found it necessary to refer to each other as "sister", as it became a bit irritating after a while, but I understand that Pete Langman was trying to stay true to the time period and reinforce the idea that these women were part of a "sisterhood".
I also think it is much easier to understand the importance of what our women are trying to achieve here if you know a little about the time period in which this book is set. This was a fascinating period history after all!
Killing Beauties is an absorbing read and it is interesting to speculate about how much of this tale could be true. I have no doubt that there were lots of women playing their part behind the scenes of important periods in history and I really enjoy reading about them. I hope you do too.
Killing Beauties is available to pre-order now from your favourite book retailer.
Thank you to Pete Langman and Unbound for providing me with a copy of this book in return for an honest review, and to Anne Cater for inviting me to be part of the Random Things blog tour.
From the cover of the book:
In a world made for men, Susan Hyde is no ordinary woman.
And no one would suspect that the sister of Edward Hyde, chief advisor to King in exile Charles Stuart, spends her time peddling state secrets and fomenting rebellion rather than on her tapestry.
As a she-intelligencer – female spy – Susan’s mission is to extract information from Oliver Cromwell’s unsuspecting spymaster, by any means necessary.
In a shadow-world of ciphers, surveillance, poison, seduction and duplicity, this daring spy will risk everything for king and country.
Based on the astonishing true story of England’s earliest female spies, Killing Beauties will transport you to a seventeenth-century London rife with political intrigue, betrayal and conspiracy.
About the author:
Pete Langman is an editor, academic, cricketer and sometime rock and roll guitarist who holds a PhD on Francis Bacon (the other one) and was diagnosed with Young Onset Parkinson’s Disease at 40.
His non-fiction encompasses Cricket, Parkinson’s Disease, Music, History of Science, literature and culture, and has appeared in publications ranging from The Guardian to Guitar and Bass Magazine.
He lives between Leiden and Brighton with his partner Dr. Nadine Akkerman, award-winning author of Invisible Agents, who supplies him with extra historical expertise and keeps asking if they can have a cat now, please.
Thanks for the blog tour support x
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