Miss Marley

‘Exquisite’ Veronica Henry

Before A Christmas Carol there was… Miss Marley

A seasonal tale of kindness and goodwill

Orphans Clara and Jacob Marley live by their wits, scavenging for scraps in the poorest alleyways of London, in the shadow of the workhouse. Every night, Jake promises his little sister ‘tomorrow will be better’ and when the chance to escape poverty comes their way, he seizes it despite the terrible price.

And so Jacob Marley is set on a path that leads to his infamous partnership with Ebenezer Scrooge. As Jacob builds a fortress of wealth to keep the world out, only Clara can warn him of the hideous fate that awaits him if he refuses to let love and kindness into his heart…

In Miss Marley, Vanessa Lafaye weaves a spellbinding Dickensian tale of ghosts, goodwill and hope – a perfect prequel to A Christmas Carol.

Praise for Miss Marley:

‘A spellbinding Dickensian tale of ghosts, goodwill and hope’ Mail on Sunday

‘Redemptive… a fitting legacy for a writer who is so sadly missed’ Red

‘evocative’ Heat

‘delightful’ Sunday Mirror

‘a reminder of the power of kindness and love’ Stylist

A ‘gem of a tale’ Sunday Express

‘A beautifully written Dickensian tale’ Candis

‘Captivating … A beautiful and tender fable’ Daily Express

‘Fantastic’ Good Housekeeping

‘ghosts, goodwill and hope on every page’ My Weekly

‘Lafaye masterfully brings the setting of 19th-Century London to life’ Woman

‘Love, disappointment, kindness and greed all play their parts in this delightful companion piece to Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol’ Woman & Home

‘A seasonal tale of kindness and goodwill that captures the atmosphere of Dickens’ Yours

‘Exquisite’ Veronica Henry

‘A beautiful, warm, rich hug of a story and bittersweet reminder to embrace life and enrich others as you go’  Liz Fenwick


Genre: Historical

"Just perfect." - Louise Beech

"An exquisite little jewel of a book in which heartbreak and hope twist around each other like the stripes of a Christmas candy cane. Brava Vanessa Lafaye and Rebecca Mascull." - Tammy Cohen

"A beautiful, warm, rich hug of a story and bittersweet reminder to embrace life and enrich others as you go." - Liz Fenwick

"A moving companion piece to the classic A Christmas Carol, with all the traditional echoes of the Dickensian festive season woven through, and with tragedy and joy in equal measure. A delight." - Essie Fox

"A wonderful novel for Christmas." - Claire Fuller

"Exquisite." - Veronica Henry

"A warm return to some of Dickens’ greatest characters – delivered with care, confidence and a vibrant heart, but most of all, with love." - Jason Hewitt

"A charming, finely detailed and beautifully written jaunt through Dickens’ London – a tale of heartbreak, love, kindness, and avarice. With Lafaye at her finest it’s seamlessly finished by Mascull; this book is a total, total joy." - Fionnuala Kearney

"Miss Marley has a fable-like quality that beautifully echoes the original with a directness that is both poignant and powerful." - Rachel Malik

"A perfect gem of a book: a luminous depiction of Dickensian England, filled with a profound humanity that is uniquely its own." - Louisa Treger

"An absolute gem of a story… vivid and emotional on so many levels. It deserves to be in everyone’s Christmas stocking." - Juliet West