The Devil in the Marshalsea

Buy The Raven Scholar now - a masterfully woven tale of imperial intrigue from Sunday Times bestselling Antonia Hodgson WINNER OF THE CWA HISTORICAL DAGGER AWARD SHORTLISTED FOR THE THEAKSTON OLD PECULIER CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR SHORTLISTED FOR THE JOHN CREASEY CWA DAGGER FOR BEST DEBUT CRIME NOVEL 'A splendid debut. . .this is a truly spellbinding tale' Guardian 'Hodgson's utterly compelling debut is fiendishly plotted and dripping with atmosphere' Mark Billingham 'A brilliant first novel. . .a blood-drenched investigation that twists and turns in the vortex of Georgian society' The Times 'Historical fiction just doesn't get any better than this. Magnificent!' Jeffery Deaver London, 1727. Tom Hawkins is about to fall from his heaven of card games, brothels and coffee-houses into the hell of a debtors' prison. The Marshalsea is a savage world of its own, with simple rules: Those with family or friends who can lend them a little money may survive in relative comfort. Those with none will starve in squalor and disease. And those who try to escape will suffer a gruesome fate at the hands of the gaol's rutheless governor and his cronies. The trouble is, Tom Hawkins has never been good at following rules - even simple ones. And the recent murder of a debtor, Captain Roberts, has brought further terror to the gaol. While the Captain's beautiful widow cries for justice, the finger of suspicion points only one way: to the sly, enigmatic figure of Samuel Fleet. READERS ARE OBSESSED WITH THIS MAGNIFICENT HISTORICAL MYSTERY 'I read a lot of detective fiction. Hodsgon's debut is one of the best ever' ----- 'A devil of a good story' ----- 'A rollicking good read' ----- 'I haven't enjoyed a novel so much in a long, long time' ----- 'Absolutely breathtaking' ----- 'Superb from start to finish' -----

Antonia Hodgson has written four acclaimed historical crime novels. She won the CWA Historical Dagger for The Devil in the Marshalsea, and her work has also been shortlisted for numerous awards including the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year. Antonia's first (unpublished) novel was a gothic fantasy and she always dreamed of writing an epic series, given the chance. The Raven Scholar was released to widespread acclaim in 2025 and became an instant Sunday Times bestseller. She is now busy finishing its sequel.