It was the longest of nights, when the strangest of things happened... the spell-binding novel from best-selling author Diane Setterfield will captivate readers in its multi-layered mystery.
Diane Setterfield's bestselling novel, The Thirteenth Tale was published in 38 countries, sold more than three million copies, and was made into a television drama scripted by Christopher Hampton, starring Olivia Colmanand Vanessa Redgrave. Her other novels are Bellman & Black and Once Upon a River, winner of the 2019 HWA Gold Crown Award. Born in rural Berkshire, she now lives near Oxford, by the Thames.
A story, no matter how cleverly it is structured, lives or dies on
the vividness of its characters. Setterfield, a true storyteller,
makes us care about all her players in this beguiling novel.
*The Times*
Exploring themes of storytelling, parenthood, science and society
on the cusp of change, this is a richly evocative novel.
*Observer*
Diane Setterfield's debut novel, The Thirteenth Tale, came out in
2006 to wide acclaim. She made her mark by delivering her own take
on the classic romantic mystery novel, infused with the spirit of
Jane Eyre, Rebecca and The Woman in White. Once Upon a River
continues to demonstrate her mastery of the Gothic genre in a way
that will appeal to modern readers...Setterfield knows how to make
the words sing. It is worth taking a journey down the Thames with
her.
*Independent*
Once Upon a River is magical, in every which way...it's the power
of her storytelling that allows readers to suspend disbelief, and
draws them through each tangled, dazzling chapter...This riverine
novel has the mood and feel of a ghost story told late into the
night, and will win over readers who enjoy a touch of age-old
enchantment.
*Financial Times*
I was completely spellbound by this book. Numerous strands of the
same story are skilfully woven into a magical web from which I, as
a reader, had no desire to escape. Setterfield’s prose is
beautiful, dark and eerily atmospheric, and her rich cast of
characters convincingly illustrate the best and worst of humanity.
Utterly brilliant!
*Ruth Hogan,bestselling author of The Keeper of Lost Things*
Once Upon a River is one of the most pleasurable and satisfying new
books I've read in a long time. Setterfield is a master
storyteller, her language flowing with a dark magic very like the
river at the heart of her tale: swift and entrancing, profound and
beautiful. Give yourself a treat and read it!
*Madeline Miller,Orange Prize-winning author of The Song of
Achilles and Circe*
I so didn't want to leave the world of Once Upon a River but now I
have and I'm bereft of the company of country folk and river
spirits. This charming story about stories and the mystery of life
& death captured my heart. A truly extraordinary book.
*Dinah Jefferies*
Her characters are so vivid, one feels as though one has met them,
spent an evening in their company, telling stories around the
hearth...Setterfield is a master storyteller herself, giving us all
the depth and plot and richness of the great narrative novelists.
This is dazzling, alive, all-consumer writing: one reads each page
greedily, the beautiful sentences shining like jewels under the
pulling current of the tale itself.
*Daily Telegraph*
A satisfying, thickly characterised tale that plunges you into an
evocatively realised historical setting. You care for its
characters.
*Sunday Times*
A finely drawn cast and bravura storytellling.
*Mail on Sunday*
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