Eye of a Rook

In Victorian London, Arthur Rochdale’s wife, Emily, is struck down by a pain for which she can find no words. In desperation, Arthur seeks the aid of Isaac Baker Brown and contemplates the surgeon’s terrifying treatment for ‘hysterical’ women at his London Surgical Home. Almost 150 years later, writer and academic Alice Tennant explores the history of hysteria to make sense of her own mystifying and private pain. Circling ever closer to Arthur and Emily’s story, Alice begins to question her own life and marriage.

This wonderful historical novel is what Lee Kofman calls ‘bold and intellectually tough, and intensely lyrical’. Donna Mazza says Eye of a Rook is ‘raw and intelligent’ while Susan Midalia says it’s ‘courageous and enthralling’.

Eye of a Rook
Author: Josephine Taylor
Publisher: Fremantle Press
Rights held: World
Contact: Jane Fraser
Email: jfraser@fremantlepress.com.au
Website: www.fremantlepress.com.au
Catalogue available here

Category: Think Australian Title Preview