Lady of Ashes (48 page)

Although he is a minor character at best, it is worth noting that the revolutionary socialist Karl Marx (1818–1883) moved to London in 1849 with his wife, Jenny, and lived at Grafton Terrace in Kentish Town from 1856 until his death. They did name all of their girls after Jenny. Marx frequented the British Museum’s Reading Room during this period of his extensive writing on class struggle. In January 1865, Marx sent President Lincoln a letter on behalf of the “International Working Men’s Association,” congratulating him on his reelection. Charles Francis Adams was given the duty of a reply, which was extremely tepid and unenthusiastic.

Catherine Wilson (1822–1862) was, in essence, a clumsy serial killer who merely had a run of good luck until, well, her luck ran out. Her first experiment on an unsuspecting victim was with a retired sea captain named Peter Mawer, who lived in Lincolnshire. The captain was so pleased with his new housekeeper’s work that he made a will leaving all his money to her. A few weeks later, the man died from colchicum poisoning. Because Mawer had gout and had been taking the drug himself, no one suspected Wilson.

Bolstered by her success, Catherine headed to London with a man named Dixon. It is unclear whether Wilson was married to him, although she did claim Dixon to be her husband. Shortly thereafter, their new landlady, a Mrs. Soames, chastised Catherine for being late with the rent. Dixon himself was not earning enough to suit Catherine. No matter, because in a few short weeks, he and Mrs. Soames were dead. As Wilson’s remarkable luck would have it, the doctor missed both Dixon’s and the landlady’s colchicum poisoning.

Catherine continued moving around and changing jobs, gaining employment with elderly or ill, but wealthy, people, gaining their trust and seeing herself written into their wills, only to finalize everything with a fatal dose of “tonic” full of colchicum or sulfuric acid.

My story of Catherine being discovered by a savvy undertaker is completely fictional. She was really exposed while employed with Mrs. Sarah Carnell, who also made out a will in Catherine’s favor. She took some tonic from Catherine, which unfortunately the murderess had loaded up a little too well with acid. Spitting out the revolting medicine, Mrs. Carnell watched in shock as it burned a hole in her bedcovers. Catherine fled the scene, but it wasn’t long before she was caught and brought to trial, where she was, unbelievably, acquitted.

Catherine was picked up once again in connection with another woman whose death suggested poisoning. This time, she did not escape her fate.

Catherine Wilson was hanged at Newgate on October 20, 1862, before a crowd of 25,000. She was the last woman to be publicly hanged in London, although four more would suffer the ignominy of a public hanging between 1866 and 1868: one in Chester, one in Exeter, one in Lincoln, and the final public hanging of a woman in Maidstone.

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LADY OF ASHES

 

 

 

 

Christine Trent

 

 

ABOUT THIS GUIDE

 

The suggested questions are included
to enhance your group’s reading
of Christine Trent’s

 

Christine Trent lives in the Mid-Atlantic region with her husband and five cats: Caesar, Claudia, Livia, Marcus, and Octavian. When she isn’t working on a novel of a heroine in an unusual profession, you can usually find her scrapbooking, planning a trip to England, or haunting bookstores. Her husband remains very busy building shelves to house their ever-expanding collection of books.

Visit her website at christinetrent.com.

BY THE KING’S DESIGN

Strong-willed Annabelle Stirling is more than capable of running the family draper shop after the untimely death of her parents. Under her father’s tutelage, she became a talented cloth merchant, while her brother Wesley, the true heir, was busy philandering about Yorkshire. Knowing she must change with the times to survive, Belle installs new machinery that finishes twice the fabric in half the time it takes by hand. But not everyone is so enthusiastic.

Soon, riled up by Belle’s competitors, the outmoded workers seek violent revenge. Her shop destroyed, Belle travels to London to seek redress from Parliament. While there, the Prince Regent, future King George IV, commissions her to provide fabrics for his Royal Pavilion. As Belle’s renown spreads, she meets handsome cabinetmaker Putnam Boyce, but worries that marriage will mean sacrificing her now flourishing shop. And after Wesley plots to kidnap the newly crowned King—whose indiscretions are surfacing—she finds herself entangled in a duplicitous world of shifting allegiances.

Painting a vivid portrait of life in the British Regency, Christine Trent spins a harrowing tale of ambition, vengeance, love, and complex loyalties against the dynamic backdrop of the early Industrial Revolution.

A ROYAL LIKENESS

As heiress to the famous Laurent Fashion Dolls business, Marguerite Ashby’s future seems secure. But France still seethes with violence in the wake of the Revolution. And when Marguerite’s husband, Nicholas, is killed during a riot at their shop, she leaves home vowing never to return. Instead, the young widow travels to Edinburgh and joins her old friend Marie Tussaud, who has established a touring wax exhibition.

Under the great Tussaud’s patient instruction, Marguerite learns to mold wax into stunningly lifelike creations. When Prime Minister William Pitt commissions a wax figure of military hero Admiral Nelson, Marguerite becomes immersed in a dangerous adventure—and earns the admiration of two very different men. And as Britain battles to overthrow Napoleon and flush out spies against the Crown, Marguerite will find her own loyalties, and her heart, under fire from all sides.

With wit, flair, and a masterful eye for telling details, Christine Trent brings one of history’s most fascinating eras to vibrant life in an unforgettable story of desire, ambition, treachery, and courage.