Our Wicked Histories - by Amy Goldsmith

About the Book

"After a disastrous accident at her school's Midsummer Ball leads to Meg's suspension, she agrees to attend a Halloween party at her old friends' ancestral home in Ireland in order to make amends, only to discover that the estate has a sordid past of its own"--

Book Synopsis

A teen girl's attempt to make amends with her former friend group takes a sinister turn during a weekend getaway at an ancestral Irish estate in this atmospheric, literary horror from the author of Those We Drown.

There's something in the lake at Wren Hall.

At least, that's what the locals say. Not that Meg cares much about the rumors. When she's asked to spend Halloween weekend at the Ireland retreat of the wealthy Wren twins, she recognizes the invitation for exactly what it is: her last, and only, chance to save her spot at Greyscott's, the exclusive British art school she attended on scholarship until last summer. Clever, beautiful, and talented, the twins are the pride of Greyscott's, and kindhearted Lottie Wren was once Meg's closest friend. But not anymore.

None of Meg's old friend group have talked to her since she left school--and they especially don't talk about the incident that resulted in her suspension. Now, Meg is willing to do whatever it takes to earn their forgiveness.

But Wren Hall turns out to be far from the idyllic country manor Meg was expecting. The house is damp and drafty, the mirrors are all covered, and the weed-choked lake is at the center of legends that haunt the property to this day--a tainted legacy the estate seems unable to shake.

The truth is, people aren't the only ones who keep secrets. Places can keep them too--and Wren Hall is drowning in them. When the past bleeds into the present and ancient sins rise to the surface, Meg must ask herself how well she really knows her one-time best friends...or whether any of them will survive the weekend.

Review Quotes

"No one does horror quite like Amy Goldsmith! Our Wicked Histories is an expertly crafted sophomore novel sure to haunt you long after the very last page. Goldsmith paints a chilling scene: a fog-drenched lake, a crumbling manor, and a girl desperate to claw her way back into her estranged friend group. Readers will be left 'fearing death by water' and wondering what grisly truth lies hidden in the mist." --Skyla Arndt, author of Together We Rot

"Our Wicked Histories lured me into its watery depths and left me gasping for air. A dark, enthralling tale that kept me guessing until the very end." --Cynthia Murphy, author of Win Lose Kill Die

"[A] simmering, tension-filled novel that hinges on twisted secrets....Deftly blends classic gothic style with a contemporary sensibility." --Kirkus Reviews

"Goldsmith brings stunning atmosphere to the forefront of this lushly described gothic mystery that features interrogations of class and gender." --Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Amy Goldsmith grew up on the south coast of England, obsessed with obscure 70s horror movies and antiquarian ghost stories. She studied Psychology at the University of Sussex and, after gaining her Postgraduate Certificate in Education, moved to inner London to teach. Now, she lives back on the south coast where she still teaches English and spends her weekends trawling antiques shops for haunted mirrors. She is the author of Those We Drown and Our Wicked Histories.