Rent The Quick: A Novel

Synopsis

For fans of Anne Rice, The Historian, and The Night Circus, an astonishing debut, a novel of epic scope and suspense that conjures up all the magic and menace of Victorian London
 
1892: James Norbury, a shy would-be poet newly down from Oxford, finds lodging with a charming young aristocrat. Through this new friendship, he is introduced to the drawing-rooms of high society and finds love in an unexpected quarter. Then, suddenly, he vanishes without a trace. Alarmed, his sister, Charlotte, sets out from their crumbling country estate determined to find him. In the sinister, labyrinthine London that greets her, she uncovers a hidden, supernatural city populated by unforgettable characters: a female rope walker turned vigilante, a street urchin with a deadly secret, and the chilling "Doctor Knife." But the answer to her brother's disappearance ultimately lies within the doors of the exclusive, secretive Aegolius Club, whose predatory members include the most ambitious, and most bloodthirsty, men in England.
 
In her first novel, Lauren Owen has created a fantastical world that is both beguiling and terrifying. The Quick will establish her as one of fiction's most dazzling talents.
 
Named One of the Top 10 Literary Fiction Books of the Season by Publishers Weekly

"[A] creepy debut . . . a thrilling tale . . . This book will give you chills even on a hot day."—Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
"Lauren Owen is an impressive storyteller and with this ambitious debut, the literary world will soon take notice. Part gothic mystery, part Victorian romance, The Quick is a novel where the glamorous and the macabre collide. . . . With suspenseful rhythm and illustrious prose, Owen succeeds at crafting a fresh, enchanting portrait of Victorian London wrapped around an irresistible mystery that is at once beautiful and terrifying."—Bustle

"The first quarter of this debut novel is a lovely, poetic tale. . . . The last half is entirely bonkers and totally unexpected. Read it with the lights on."—The New Republic

"A suspenseful, gloriously atmospheric first novel, and a feast of gothic storytelling that is impossible to resist."—Kate Atkinson, bestselling author of Life After Life and Case Histories
 
"A sly and glittering addition to the literature of the macabre . . . As soon as you have breathed with relief, much worse horrors begin. It's a skilled, assured performance, and it's hard to believe it is a first novel."—Hilary Mantel, bestselling author of Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies
 
"Ambitious, elegant, atmospheric, and often deeply poignant, The Quick is a seamless blend of Victorian London and rich imagination. This is a book to savor."—Tana French, bestselling author of In the Woods and Broken Harbor

"Seductive . . . extraordinarily polished . . . a book for readers to lose themselves in."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
 
"The book's energy, its wide reach and rich detail make it a confident example of the 'unputdownable' novel."—The Economist

"Owen has created an intricate world in which the reader feels a part. Take the trip, if you dare, into a luscious Victorian London rendered by a gifted young British writer who seems weaned on equal parts Sherlock Holmes, Buffy Summers and Harry Potter."—Shelf Awareness


From the Hardcover edition.

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