Check out our Most Anticipated Books for 2025

Book Summary and Reviews of House of Shades by Lianne Dillsworth

House of Shades by Lianne Dillsworth

House of Shades

A Novel

by Lianne Dillsworth

  • Published:
  • Jul 2024, 256 pages
  • Rate this book

  • Buy This Book

About this book

Book Summary

In this dark, immersive tale steeped in atmosphere and drama, the author of Theatre of Marvels returns to Victorian London to tell the story of a young Black female doctor's dangerous quest to find the truth that unearth the secrets of the past.

London, 1833.

Doctress Hester Reeves has been offered a life-changing commission.

But it comes at a price. She must leave behind her husband and their canal-side home in Kings Cross and move to Tall Trees—a dark and foreboding house in Fitzrovia.

If Hester can cure the ailing health of its owner, Gervaise Cherville, she will receive payment that will bring her everything she could dream of.

But on arriving at Tall Trees, Hester quickly discovers that an even bigger task awaits her. Now she must unearth secrets that have lain hidden for decades – including one that will leave Hester's own life forever changed...

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"Historical fiction fans will be pleased." —Publishers Weekly

"Intensely moving, compulsively readable and beautifully written. Hester is a wonderful protagonist. I thoroughly enjoyed it" —Rosie Andrews, author of the Sunday Times bestseller The Leviathan

"Gripping, heart-breaking and brilliantly told. Hester Reeves is fresh and relatable – I felt every twist and turn of her story and was rooting for her from the get-go" —Lucy Barker, author of The Other Side of Mrs. Wood.

"I loved this original and compelling tale of intrigue, quest, and retribution... one not to be missed" —Mary Chamberlain, author of The Dressmaker's War

This information about House of Shades was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Author Information

Lianne Dillsworth Author Biography

Lianne Dillsworth graduated from Royal Holloway with an MA in creative writing with distinction in 2018, and in 2019, she won a place on the London Library Emerging Writers Programme. Most recently she was awarded a bursary place for underrepresented writers on the Jericho Writers Self-Editing course and short-listed for the SI Leeds Literary Prize. She also holds an MA in Victorian studies, and her love for the period shines through her writing. She currently lives in London, where she works for the government on growing diversity within the Civil Service.

Other books by Lianne Dillsworth at BookBrowse
  • Theatre Of Marvels jacket
Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

More Recommendations

Readers Also Browsed . . .

more historical fiction...

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: Absolution
    Absolution
    by Jeff VanderMeer
    Ten years ago, the literary landscape was changed forever when Jeff VanderMeer became the "King of ...
  • Book Jacket: The Message
    The Message
    by Ta-Nehisi Coates
    It does not surprise me that Ta-Nehisi Coates' The Message is one of the most important books I've ...
  • Book Jacket
    The House of Doors
    by Tan Twan Eng
    Every July, I take on the overly ambitious goal of reading all of the novels chosen as longlist ...
  • Book Jacket: The Puzzle Box
    The Puzzle Box
    by Danielle Trussoni
    During the tumultuous last days of the Tokugawa shogunate, a 17-year-old emperor known as Meiji ...

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    Pony Confidential
    by Christina Lynch

    In this whimsical mystery, a grumpy pony must clear his beloved human's name from a murder accusation.

Who Said...

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

X M T S

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.