The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock

Merchant Jonah Hancock, who's been haunting his counting house and waiting uneasily in Deptford, London, for news of his lost ship, learns that his captain has returned alone, bearing what appears to be a mummified mermaid, for which he has sold the ship and its contents. Gazing at the oddity, Jonah can have no idea at the changes this creature will bring to his fortune. When her protector dies, courtesan Angelica Neal is left without resources until the mermaid brings her and Jonah together, transforming their lives in the most unexpected fashion. The world is turned upside down as the creature exerts its mysterious power until Angelica boldly takes back their lives, working her own transformative magic on those around her. Brilliantly written and redolent with evocative historical detail, this debut novel is as much a portrait of Georgian London as it is of the characters inhabiting it.