“I thought, how true it is that ugly people have hope while pretty people have expectation. I’d never seen the use of beauty myself. Nothing but a lucky arrangement of meat and bone.”


Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 384
Published: April 4th, 2019
Rate: 4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Goodreads Synopsis
All of London is abuzz with the scandalous case of Frannie Langton, accused of the brutal double murder of her employers, renowned scientist George Benham and his eccentric French wife, Marguerite. Crowds pack the courtroom, eagerly following every twist, while the newspapers print lurid theories about the killings and the mysterious woman being held in the Old Bailey.

The testimonies against Frannie are damning. She is a seductress, a witch, a master manipulator, a whore.

But Frannie claims she cannot recall what happened that fateful evening, even if remembering could save her life. She doesn’t know how she came to be covered in the victims’ blood. But she does have a tale to tell: a story of her childhood on a Jamaican plantation, her apprenticeship under a debauched scientist who stretched all bounds of ethics, and the events that brought her into the Benhams’ London home—and into a passionate and forbidden relationship.

Though her testimony may seal her conviction, the truth will unmask the perpetrators of crimes far beyond murder and indict the whole of English society itself.

My Take
I love(d) this book! I read The Confessions of Frannie Langton in June for Read Caribbean month, the book having been on my tbr for the longest time, and oh my goodness, I’m pinching myself for having waited for so long before picking it up.

The Confessions of Frannie Langton is set in 1820s Jamaica, and we are taken from there to London. Its detailed with rich history of that time, which I was thoroughly invested in. Sara Collins gives vivid descriptions of places and settings that made me, the reader, feel like I was there with the characters.

The plot is chilly, eery and I knew from the start that I was in for a suspenseful read, and it didn’t disappoint. Sara Collins explores the power dynamics between the characters in such an evocative and emotive way that I found myself getting angry. I had moments where I wasn’t sure if I want to stop and take a break or continue and find out what happens. What a read this was!

“Where I come from, there’s more than one way a man gives you his name. He marries you or he buys you. In some places that is the same thing…”

The story is told by Frannie, who is enslaved and is accused of murder. This book has such a layered story, and as it unravels it will have you at the edge of your seat. I couldn’t see the shocking twists and turns coming. There’s a huge show in the relationship between the characters which is so well written.

The Confessions of Frannie Langton is such a brilliant, powerful read that I can’t recommend enough. Read it if you haven’t!


Have you read this book? Thoughts?