The Thirteenth Tale

Is truth really stranger than fiction?

The Thirteenth Tale
Genre: 
WHEN MARGARET LEA, A BIOGRAPHER, receives a letter from one of Britain’s most famous authors—Vida Winter, the lure to go and visit her is irresistible. Vida has always avoided revealing her true self, teasing journalists with fanciful fabrications of her ‘life’. Now she has finally decided to tell the truth…or has she?

Vida recounts a tale of the remarkable Angelfield family featuring incestuous longing, wild young women and feral twins. Can Margaret be sure it’s true? As she sets about sorting fact from fiction, she must confront the ghosts of her own past, as well as Vida’s.

This is a sensational book in the finest of gothic traditions—with ghostly apparitions, moody gardeners and brooding secrets waiting decades to reveal themselves. Written with an eye for detail that makes this not just a thrilling page turner, but a visual feast.

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About the Author

Diane Setterfield

Diane Setterfield is in her early forties. Having spent time in France, she now lives in Harrogate. Her previous publications have been in the field of 19th and 20th century French literature, especially the works of Andre Gide. The Thirteenth Tale is her first novel.

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