The Poison Bed

Engaging, vivid and revelling in historical detail, this thriller delves into a notorious murder. The reversal comes in a double blow, the first of which is so cunningly done I found myself pausing, frowning and riffling back through the pages to confirm that I had, indeed, been thoroughly stitched up * Sarah Perry, bestselling author of The Essex Serpent * A twisting psychological thriller based on a real Jacobean murder. Unputdownable * The Times * A gripping historical thriller. Think Gone Girl with bodices. Brilliant * Glamour * A tale of intrigue and ambition, this is a rich and fascinating book -- ONE OF THE BEST RECENT CRIME NOVELS * The Guardian * A gripping page-turner that will have you awake long into the night. Ingenious * The Times * An intoxicating blend of intrigue, seduction, witchcraft and murder. The Poison Bed is beautifully told and impossible to put down -- Karen Perry An electrifying, brilliantly executed thriller * Woman & Home * Gripping and fascinating. Fremantle is a master * Santa Montefiore * Who is to blame? And will they get away with it? A rollicking read * Heat * Immaculately detailed and atmospheric, this Jacobean mystery borrows from both the revenge tragedies and contemporary noir thriller to manipulate the reader. It is dark, clever and compulsive -- Elizabeth Buchan * Daily Mail * A novel set in the court of James I that reopens the case of Robert and Frances Carr, aristocrats charged with killing a man who opposed their marriage. With skill and delicacy, Fremantle presents the period as a cabinet of curiosities * New York Times * Exquisite. The reveal is terrifying -- Toby Clements A Jacobean Gone Girl! Dark and deeply satisfying, The Poison Bed is a tale of monstrous intrigue and murder -- M J Carter A riveting tale that kept me reading into the night. Beautifully written and realised -- Costa shortlisted Kate Hammer A thoroughly compelling tale of sexually-charged intrigue and murder. Once started, impossible to put down -- Minette Walters A twisting tale of power, poison and intrigue. Historical fiction with the pull of a psychological thriller -- Anna Mazzola Flawless. A sharp, well-constructed thriller, this is a book that will keep you on your toes * Bookbag * A toxic blend of glamour, intrigue and ambition -- Andrew Taylor bestselling author of * The Ashes of London * A seductive historical thriller. The Jacobean world leaps off the page in all its vivid, visceral glory -- Kate Riordan Brilliant. Gripping and sexy and wholly transporting. Highly recommended. * Eve Chase * A riveting tale. I cannot recommend this highly enough -- Alison Weir A great summer read. Fremantle weaves together documented fact with sensitively imagined fiction to create a novel that helps us understand a time and place better * National Public Radio * A creepy and powerfully immersive retelling of one of the greatest scandals of the Jacobean court . . . The Poison Bed is unerringly addictive. Fremantle's writing has a dynamic quality and an immediacy that draws readers in, whether or not they're familiar with the material of the story * Marylebone Journal * Engaging, vivid and cleverly constructed. One expects the reversal, but it comes in a double blow, the first of which is so cunningly done I found myself pausing, frowning and riffling back through the pages to confirm that I had, indeed, been thoroughly stitched up -- Sarah Parry

Elizabeth Fremantle is the critically acclaimed author of four Tudor historical novels: Queen's Gambit (soon to be the feature film, Firebrand), Sisters of Treason, Watch the Lady and The Girl in the Glass Tower. As E.C. Fremantle she has written two gripping historical thrillers: The Poison Bed and The Honey and the Sting. Her most recent novel, Disobedient, is a gripping feminist retelling of the life of seventeenth-century Italian painter Artemisia Gentileschi. She lives in London.