The richest silk hides the deepest secrets . . .
The Dressmaker of Draper’s Lane by Liz Trenow is an immersive historical novel set during the opulence and extravagance of the London silk trade in the mid-eighteenth century.
1768, London.
As a foundling who rose from poverty and now runs her own successful dressmaking business in the heart of society London, Miss Charlotte is a remarkable woman, admired by many. She has no need, nor desire, to marry. The people she values most are her friend Anna, her recently-found sister Louisa and nephew Peter.
She feels herself fortunate, and should be content with what she has. But something is missing.
A small piece of rare silk discovered in a bundle of scraps at auction triggers a curious sense of familiarity, and prompts her to unpick a past filled with extraordinary secrets and revelations . . .
Liz Trenow is the author of several historical novels, including The Last Telegram, The Forgotten Seamstress, The Poppy Factory, The Silk Weaver and In Love and War. Liz’s family have been silk weavers for nearly three hundred years and she grew up in a house next to the mill in Suffolk, which still operates today, weaving for top-end fashion houses and royal commissions. This unique history inspired her first two novels, and this, her fourth novel.
Liz is a former journalist who spent fifteen years on regional and national newspapers, and on BBC radio and television news, before turning her hand to fiction. She lives in East Anglia with her artist husband, and they have two grown-up daughters.