The Dazzle Of The Light

Georgina Clarke Verve, £9.99

This evocative historical novel shines a light on the lives of two very different women in London in 1920. Ruby is a member of the infamous Forty Thieves crime syndicate, while Harriet comes from a well-off family and is engaged to a Tory MP. She’s passing time before marriage by writing for the local newspaper.

When the two women cross paths, Harriet becomes obsessed with Ruby, envying her apparent independence. But after Harriet writes an article exposing The Forty Thieves, the gang blame Ruby. Ostracised, she leaves the collective and heads deeper into the criminal underworld, but her career is on a dark path.

Inspired by a real-life crime syndicate, this is a wonderful, vibrant story of survival, feminism and life lived on the edge.