So when she is made a job offer that she cannot refuse, she accepts, the pay is generous, there is a house and includes much needed essential medical treatment for a sibling, but will she live to regret her decision? Jenny Wilcox is a desperate woman, drowning in a precarious situation exacerbated by her brother Greg, leaving her solely responsible for her family. It soon becomes apparent that it is no accident that the plays include Dr Faustus and Macbeth. The narrative is structured around 5 plays that echo the themes and issues of the characters, whilst simultaneously driving the storylines onwards. Laura Purcell excels in the territory she has claimed as her own, the dark, disturbing and the tragic in this, with her chilling, atmospheric Victorian gothic storytelling with its elements of horror, with its blood and gore, as she slowly immerses the reader in the drama laden world of the characters that inhabit the Mercury Theatre in London's West End.

But when strange events begin to take place around the theatre, Jenny wonders whether the rumours are true and fears that when the muse comes calling for payment, the cost will be too high. On stage, it's as though Lilith is possessed by the characters she plays, yet off stage she is as tragic as the muse who inspires her, and Jenny, sorry for her, befriends the troubled actress. What Jenny finds is a woman as astonishing in her performance as she is provocative in her nature. Suspicious of Lilith, the jealous wife of the theatre owner sends dresser Jenny to spy on her, and, desperate for the money to help her family, Jenny agrees.

It is said that the lead actress Lilith has made a pact with Melpomene, the tragic muse of Greek mythology, to become the greatest actress to ever grace the stage. Be careful what you wish for it may just come true.Īt The Mercury Theatre in London's West End, rumours are circulating of a curse. From the Sunday Times bestselling author comes a gripping tale of obsession, superstition and ambition, set against the atmospheric backdrop of Victorian London.

Laura purcell the whispering muse