The House of Brides

‘Spellbinding, evocative and compelling, The House of Brides is a delicious literary treat that I couldn't devour fast enough. I predict this is the book everyone will be talking about this summer.’ - Rachael Johns, bestselling Australian author

Miranda has had a rough few years. Her successful career as a social media influencer has come crashing down after the controversial flop of her fertility app. Humiliated, she moves reluctantly back home to her judgemental father and cold stepmother's house to nurse her wounds, feeling more than ever the loss of her mother.

Miranda's mother, well-known author Tessa Summer, died when Miranda was young, leaving behind her bestselling book The House of Brides — a book that chronicled the generations of brides, each more notorious and tragic than the last, who married into the infamous Summer family and became mistress of the beautiful Barnsley House in England. Miranda does not know her mother's family, so when a mysterious letter arrives from a young Summer cousin, asking for her help, Miranda's curiosity about the legendary family (and desire to escape her current situation) prompts her to act.

Posing as a prospective nanny, she is soon living in the heart of the family, but nothing is as she expects. The luxury hotel and world-renowned restaurant created by the most recent 'bride', the lovely and effervescent Daphne, is gone. So is Daphne. More disturbing, one of the children is in a wheelchair after a mysterious accident and the sinister housekeeper Mrs Mins seems to have a dark influence over the master of the house.

What happened in this house? Where is Daphne? Will Miranda discover what darkness lies hidden at the heart of this house of brides? And if she does, will she survive it?

MORE PRAISE FOR THE HOUSE OF BRIDES

‘Cockram's plot crackles with tension, hitting all the right notes for readers fond of gothic-flavoured tales.’ - Publishers Weekly

‘Gripping, atmospheric and with an ending you won't see coming, this book held me in its spell long after the final page. A sure-fire bestseller.’ - Sally Hepworth, bestselling author of The Mother-in-Law

‘Jane Cockram's The House of Brides is a twisty, turny ride through the English countryside... Fans of Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Rebecca will love this!’ - Ellen LaCorte, author of The Perfect Fraud