It’s 1816, and a massive volcanic eruption has caused the worst storms that Europe has seen in decades, yet Percy and Mary Shelley have chosen to visit the infamous Lord Byron at his villa on Lake Geneva.
It wasn’t their idea: Mary’s 18-year-old step-sister, Claire Clairmont, insisted.
But the reason for Claire’s visit is more pressing than a summer escape with the most famous writers in the world. She’s pregnant with Byron’s child — a child Byron doesn’t want, and scarcely believes is his own.
Claire has the world in her grasp. This trip should have given her everything she ever dreamed of. But within days, her life will be in ruins.
History has all but forgotten her story — but she will not be silenced.
Clairmont by Lesley McDowell is published on 29 August, 2024.
Read Lesley’s feature about the background to her book and writing women’s sexual passions.
Our round-up of over 180 books coming out this year has much more historical fiction to choose from.
