The Mourning Necklace: A Feminist Historical Novel from the Women's Prize-Longlisted Author
May 2025 · Pan Macmillan
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‘Moving and masterful . . . transports you to 18th-century Scotland and says as much about modern life as it does about those harrowing times’ – Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Appeal
Inspired by an infamous real-life case, The Mourning Necklace is the unforgettable original feminist historical novel from the Women’s Prize-longlisted author of The Maiden, Kate Foster.
They said I would swing for the crime and I did . . . I wear the rope-mark like a mourning necklace.
1724. In a tavern just outside Edinburgh, the family of Maggie Dickson – hanged for the murder of her newborn child – drown their sorrows, mourning her death yet relieved she is gone. Shame haunts them; passers-by avert their eyes from her cheap coffin on its rickety cart.
But as her family pray her soul rests in peace, a figure appears at the door.
It is Maggie. She is alive.
Bruised and dazed, Maggie has little time for her family’s questions. All that matters to her is answering one: will they hang her twice?
Praise for Kate Foster:
‘Riveting . . . The tension persists until the last page’ – The Times
‘Tense, thrilling . . . with a decidedly feminist slant’ – Daily Mail
‘Kate excels at bringing the forgotten women of history back to life and giving them the attention they deserve’ – Claire Evans, author of The Fourteenth Letter
‘Captivating . . . Scratch beneath the surface of a Kate Foster novel and all of life is there in the most elegant prose’ – Marion Todd, author of the bestselling DI Clare Mackay series
‘Brilliant . . . the new Hilary Mantel’ – Tina Baker, author of What We Did In The Storm
Inspired by an infamous real-life case, The Mourning Necklace is the unforgettable original feminist historical novel from the Women’s Prize-longlisted author of The Maiden, Kate Foster.
They said I would swing for the crime and I did . . . I wear the rope-mark like a mourning necklace.
1724. In a tavern just outside Edinburgh, the family of Maggie Dickson – hanged for the murder of her newborn child – drown their sorrows, mourning her death yet relieved she is gone. Shame haunts them; passers-by avert their eyes from her cheap coffin on its rickety cart.
But as her family pray her soul rests in peace, a figure appears at the door.
It is Maggie. She is alive.
Bruised and dazed, Maggie has little time for her family’s questions. All that matters to her is answering one: will they hang her twice?
Praise for Kate Foster:
‘Riveting . . . The tension persists until the last page’ – The Times
‘Tense, thrilling . . . with a decidedly feminist slant’ – Daily Mail
‘Kate excels at bringing the forgotten women of history back to life and giving them the attention they deserve’ – Claire Evans, author of The Fourteenth Letter
‘Captivating . . . Scratch beneath the surface of a Kate Foster novel and all of life is there in the most elegant prose’ – Marion Todd, author of the bestselling DI Clare Mackay series
‘Brilliant . . . the new Hilary Mantel’ – Tina Baker, author of What We Did In The Storm
‘Moving and masterful . . . transports you to 18th-century Scotland and says as much about modern life as it does about those harrowing times’ – Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Appeal
Inspired by an infamous real-life case, The Mourning Necklace is the unforgettable original feminist h...
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Ratings and reviews
1 review
Debbie Martin
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February 9, 2026
brilliant
About the author
Kate Foster worked as a national newspaper journalist for more than twenty years before becoming an author. Growing up in Edinburgh, she became fascinated by its history and often uses it as inspiration for her stories. Her previous novels include The Maiden, which won the Bloody Scotland Crime Debut of the Year and was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, and The King’s Witches. The Mourning Necklace is her third novel. She lives in Edinburgh with her two children.
Kate Foster worked as a national newspaper journalist for more than twenty years before becoming an author. Growing up in Edinburgh, she became fascinated by its history and often uses it as inspiration for her stories. Her previous novels include The Maiden, which won the Bloody Scotland Crime D...
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