{"product_id":"9781443454988","title":"The Last Hours : A Novel","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eThe Last Hours\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Minette Walters\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor most, the Black Death is the end. For a brave few, it heralds a new beginning.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWidowed by her husband’s death from the pestilence, Lady Anne assumes control of his people’s future—200 bonded serfs without rights of ownership to land. Strong, compassionate and resourceful—qualities she kept hidden from the husband she loathed and despised—Lady Anne chooses a bastard slave, Thaddeus Thurkell, to act as her steward. Together, they decide to quarantine Develish by bringing the serfs inside a defendable moat and sharing the available food amongst all. With this sudden overturning of the accepted social order, where serfs exist only to serve their lords, conflict arises when they’re given a voice. Ignorant of what is happening in the world outside, they wrestle with themselves, with God and the terrible uncertainty of their futures. They fear starvation when their food runs out but they fear the pestilence more. Who amongst them has the courage to leave the safety of the demesne in search of supplies and news? And how safe is anyone in Develish when an unexplained murder threatens the uneasy status quo?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eThe Last Hours\u003c\/em\u003e Minette Walters brings all her trademark intelligence to a totally new timeframe—creating a vivid and powerful drama through compelling characters whose journey readers will be drawn to. \u003cem\u003eThe Last Hours\u003c\/em\u003e is an exciting new direction from an established best-selling author and Minette is currently writing the sequel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e“Wonderful and sweeping…with a fabulous sense of place and history.”\u003cbr\u003e“The pace never flags … enjoyed it immensely.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003e“\u003c\/em\u003eA vividly-wrought and powerful story. With \u003cem\u003eThe Last Hours\u003c\/em\u003e, Minette Walters has brought her impressive skill as a writer of psychological crime to create a dark and gripping depiction of Medieval England in the jaws of the Black Death\u003cem\u003e.” \u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Deeply researched and engrossing, this masterful series opener leaves readers hanging—Rats!—so they’ll eagerly await the sequel.”\u003cbr\u003e“A sweeping narrative, marked ‘To Be Continued’ at its end, The Last Hours draws us into the terrifying world of its characters.”\u003cbr\u003e“…gripping and original…”\u003cbr\u003e“Beautifully written, atmospheric and always gripping.”\u003cbr\u003e“Sly pacing and a detached narrative voice give this horror story exceptional punch.”\u003cbr\u003e“Reads like a particularly grim Grimm’s Fairy Tale, with an all-too-credible contemporary setting. . . . Gratifyingly menacing.”\u003cbr\u003e“Contemporary crime writing at its absolute peak.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9781443454988\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"HarperCollins Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback","offer_id":41091614376142,"sku":"9781443454988","price":19.24,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/9781443454988.jpg?v=1649130269","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9781443454988","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}