Author/Uploaded by Scarlett Peckham
Contents Cover Title Page Dedication Contents Author’s Note Excerpt From the Catalogue Raisonné of Cornelia Ludgate Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Ch...
Contents Cover Title Page Dedication Contents Author’s Note Excerpt From the Catalogue Raisonné of Cornelia Ludgate Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty-One Chapter Twenty-Two Chapter Twenty-Three Chapter Twenty-Four Chapter Twenty-Five Chapter Twenty-Six Chapter Twenty-Seven Chapter Twenty-Eight Chapter Twenty-Nine Chapter Thirty Chapter Thirty-One Chapter Thirty-Two Chapter Thirty-Three Chapter Thirty-Four Chapter Thirty-Five Chapter Thirty-Six Chapter Thirty-Seven Chapter Thirty-Eight Chapter Thirty-Nine Chapter Forty Chapter Forty-One Chapter Forty-Two Chapter Forty-Three Chapter Forty-Four Chapter Forty-Five Chapter Forty-Six Epilogue Excerpt From the Catalogue Raisonné of Cornelia Ludgate Acknowledgments Announcement About the Author Praise for the Work of Scarlett Peckham By Scarlett Peckham Copyright About the Publisher vii ix x xi 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 Dedication For those not pictured Author’s Note Dear Reader, In building the world for the Society of Sirens series, I felt passionately that in portraying a group of radical women fighting for justice, it was important that they be intersectional. My characters are inspired by the racially, sexually, and economically diverse feminists, abolitionists, and reformers who have been on the front lines of the fight for equality and human rights throughout the course of history. I want all of my Sirens to get the love stories they deserve. I have made every effort to be sensitive and authentic in my portrayal of Cornelia, Rafe, and all my characters—but I know I have my own biases and blind spots. I hope I have done Cornelia, Rafe, and their friends justice. Any mistakes I have made are my own. Love, Scarlett Excerpt From the Catalogue Raisonné of Cornelia Ludgate Work 4008: The Baptism of the Jezebels Oil on Canvas 1797 Description: Four bare-breasted women in veils stand with linked arms in the foreground. Behind them, hundreds of aristocrats run from a stately manor wearing expressions of terror. The women are smiling. Commentary: The painting depicts the artist Cornelia Ludgate with three famed eighteenth-century protofeminists: the radical author Seraphina Arden; the aristocratic matron and intellectual Lady Elinor Bell; and the infamous courtesan-for-hire Thaïs Magdalene. Recurring figures throughout Ludgate’s oeuvre, the close-knit group of women called themselves The Society of Sirens, so named for their revolutionary mission to weaponize their notorious reputations to raise interest in the cause of female rights Chapter One Cornelia Ludgate tore open the wax seal on a letter and scanned the contents just long enough to see the word regrets. Her stomach did an unwelcome little curtsy. This was not good news. Another rejection. The third this week, the tenth this month. “It’s a no,” she announced briskly, allowing the letter to flutter to the floor with all the other missives offering insincere excuses from her supposed allies in the cause for female rights. Her acquaintances should know she preferred to deal in cheerful, brutal frankness. Just the no’s would do. Her three best friends, scattered in poses around her painting studio in various draped costumes, groaned. “Another?” Thaïs said with a dramatic sigh.