Beautifully written, Hope Adams has woven together an epic sea voyage with an intriguing murder mystery to make an unputdownable read -- Katie Fforde
A gorgeous and compelling story with vibrant characters. I was fascinated by the novel's inspiration and the real life story of the Rajah Quilt -- Rachel Hore
An intriguing murder-mystery, skilfully written and bursting with colour and life -- Lucy Atkins * author of Magpie Lane *
A fabulous book with a fascinating premise. A murder mystery drives the story, but it's the characters who keep you entranced as, in the confined space of a long sea voyage, these feisty inventive women negotiate each other and their new world. I loved it -- Dinah Jefferies
A fascinating prose patchwork of the women's lives, stitched together by a twisting murder mystery. Engrossing and deeply satisfying - over the course of the journey we learn about the desperate lives of these women, many guilty only of petty crimes * The Times *
I so enjoyed this. It evokes an era when justice was cruel, but also how the creation of something like a quilt gave hope and substance to existence. A terrific read -- Elizabeth Buchan
Dazzling. Adams takes the fascination history of a convict ship and brings it to life in a captivating story filled with intrigue and dark secrets. An immensely satisfying tale of guilt, innocent and second chances -- Emma Rous * author of The Au Pair *
Well-written, engaging and thoroughly compelling. I love it when forgotten histories are brought to light, and touch the reader so that they immediately want to know more -- Elizabeth Chadwick
A gripping exploration of female solidarity in a time of crisis and claustrophobia. Hope Adams sets the grubby injustices of a misogynistic legal system against the beauty of creating a work of art and, through that art, stitching together an unlikely community -- Caroline Lea, author of The Glass Woman
Hope Adams has skilfully patched a murder mystery into a historical event . . . Masterful plotting, well-drawn characters, and a plausible balance of despair for what was left behind and optimism for what lies ahead add up to an immensely satisfying read * Guardian *
Adams disguises a social-history lesson on women's rights as a gripping period drama and we're here for it * Cosmopolitan *
A fabulous, page-turning novel that kept me gripped. Bringing together murder, convicts and patchwork quilting - all aboard a ship bound for Australia - it's impossible not to become engaged with these women and their individual plights - especially once everyone becomes a suspect -- Jane Harris * author of The Observations *
A ship of convict women - all with their secrets - on the way to a new life in a new land, but facing danger all the way - this is a locked room mystery to end all locked room mysteries! -- Sophia Bennett * author of The Windsor Knot *
A fine story of suspense, sisterhood and society, reflecting the harshness of women's lives and their desperation to survive in a world that has scant regard for their wellbeing * Daily Mail *
A page-turning murder mystery and a richly-drawn tale of women caught up in a male-dominated world, hoping for a better life. Descriptions of the poorer class of women in Victorian England are moving and evocative, the period details terrifically well-researched. I felt I was on that transport ship with those women, facing the storms and living their joys and sorrows -- Carol Drinkwater
Combines historical fiction with tremendously gripping entertainment. Who on a ship of convicted women sailing from London to Tasmania is a murderer? -- Amanda Craig * author of The Golden Rule *
A truly engrossing historical 'locked room' thriller -- Essie Fox
A must-read for lovers of fearless historical fiction, and an examination of the shocking treatment of women in our not-too distant past -- Alma Katsu * author of The Deep *
Nerves fray, alliances form, and love blooms in this fast paced, well-written novel. This is a great page-turner! * Mystery and Suspense Magazine *
A historical episode artfully adapted in a tale that offers glimmers of hope for women discarded by society * Kirkus *
Wonderful, evocative, moving and suspenseful -- Marika Cobbold * author of On Hampstead Heath *
A vivid, cleverly-crafted mystery that will keep the reader turning the pages -- Erica James * bestselling author of Letters from the Past *
It's a fantastically exciting story, and a wonderful novel. There is so much more going on, on the Rajah, in this unity of women, than a simple love story -- Antonia Honeywell
Transforms an actual 19th-century sea voyage of female convicts into a striking drama. The ship's young matron chooses a group to sew a presentation quilt, but near their destination, someone stabs one of the quilters. Evocative sketches of those on board reveal the realities of poor women's lives - readers will be rewarded * Publisher's Weekly *
A murder mystery with a great twist at the end . . . Gripping * i *
Dangerous Women is a successful blend of two genres: a historical novel, inspired by real events, and a murder mystery with a great twist at the end. By the time I was halfway through I was completely gripped, and couldn't put it down -- Wendy Cope
An enthralling narrative . . . lays bare the painful lives of these women, far from their homes and loved ones, and feeling the brutal weight of the law * Northern Life Magazine *
This atmospheric narrative excels in its depiction of the relationship between female prisoners - largely petty criminals - and the tragic backstories that have brought them together * Mail on Sunday *
Packed with atmosphere . . . a terrific read * Choice Magazine 'Book of the Month' *
A very fine novel - and, like the quilt it celebrates, a work of love -- Mick Herron
Utterly compelling and as finely wrought as the patchwork quilt that inspired the story -- Minette Walters * author of the bestselling The Last Hours *
Fascinating. Gives women without one a voice - a storming read -- Helena Pielichaty
A compelling, immersive book that deftly weaves its beauty and pathos. I'm still thinking about it -- Hilary McKay
An enthralling story, inspired by true events * Best *
A secret murder on a convict ship transporting women to Australia in 1841 . . . this is an intriguing story, with its root embedded in facts -- Andrew Taylor
Intriguing . . . [Hope Adams] can stitch a great story * Jewish Chronicle *
In vivid detail, Hope Adams illuminates life in convict quarters on a stinking, storm-soaked ship, and delves into the lives of individual women and the small tragedies that have condemned them to be sent far away, with little hope of return * Jewish Chronicle *
A well-paced page-turner illuminating a forgotten story that reminds us how far we have come * Jewish Chronicle *
Pulls you into the heart of its story, while celebrating redemption, rehabilitation and the good in people. All set to the backdrop of a truly fascinating slice of history * Phase Eight Book Club *
Historical events and characters are cleverly blended into a thought-provoking tale * Candis *
Adams disguises a social-history lesson on women's rights as a gripping period drama * Cosmopolitan *
