Kate Mosse - Author
About the Author
Kate Mosse was our Guest Editor in November 2012 - click here - to see the books that inspired her writing.
Kate Mosse is a number one international bestselling novelist, playwright and non-fiction writer. The author of several novels and short-story collections – including the multimillion-selling Languedoc Trilogy (Labyrinth, Sepulchre and Citadel) and Gothic fiction The Winter Ghosts and The Taxidermist’s Daughter, which she is adapting for the stage – her books have been translated into thirty-seven languages and published in more than forty countries. She has also written four works of non-fiction – including An Extra Pair of Hands (Wellcome Collection, 2021) - four plays, contributed essays and introductions to classic novels and collections. A champion of women's creativity, Kate is the Founder Director of the Women’s Prize for Fiction and a regular interviewer for theatre and fiction events. She is the Founder of the global campaign - #WomanInHistory – launched in January 2021 to honour, celebrate and promote women’s achievements throughout history and from every corner of the world. Kate divides her time between Chichester in West Sussex and Carcassonne in south-west France. The first two novels in The Burning Chambers series, The Burning Chambers and The City of Tears, are out now.
Author photo © Roderick Field
Featured books by Kate Mosse
An Extra Pair of Hands
An Extra Pair of Hands is an emotional journey, following Kate Mosse as she became a carer for her father, mother and then mother-in-law in a short space of time. This is a book about what it’s like to be a carer, not as a paid employee but to be there for your family at times of illness, crisis and increasing fragility – because you want to be, not because it’s just part of a job. I felt like I was there in her memories, not only during her practical day-to-day activities and dealing with their essential needs, but also the impact on her own mental health. Carers silently, stoically and heroically do what they do out of love and for little or no reward. It can be hard, both physically and emotionally – always thinking of, and dealing with, loved ones’ needs other than their own. In her book, Kate Mosse also touches on the impact of pandemic and lockdowns and the shielding of older & vulnerable people. An Extra Pair of Hands is a celebration of family and love and an exploration of grief and ageing – it’s raw, witty, heartbreaking and honest.
The Black Mountain: Quick Reads 2022
The Black Mountain is a Quick Read short story from bestselling author Kate Mosse. It is May, 1706. Ana, a young Spanish woman, lives in a small town on the north-west coast of Tenerife with her mother and twin younger brothers. The town is in the shadow of a mighty volcano, which legend says has the devil living inside it. However, there has been no eruption for thousands of years and no one believes it is a threat. One day, Ana notices that the air feels strange and heavy, that the birds have stopped singing. Tending the family vineyard, a sudden strange tremor in the earth frightens her. Very soon it will be a race against time for Ana to help persuade the town that they are in danger and should flee before the volcano erupts and destroys their world. Will they listen? And Ana herself faces another danger . . .
The City of Tears
If you know anything about Kate Mosse’s historical fictions it will be that she turns excellent, diligent research into beautifully crafted narratives, weaving enduring characters, especially resourceful, admirable women, into crafted, driven stories that truly resonate. Never was this more true than with The City of Tears, a multi-faceted tour de force that encompasses the Huguenot displacement, the Medici, murders and massacres, weddings and weeping and so much more. That it sweeps across the centuries and from South Africa to France and Holland, gives this utterly immersive novel a sense of pace and drive that at times leaves the reader breathless with admiration and full of anticipation for what is yet to come. Mosse is at heart a truly gifted storyteller, one who fully understands what stories can do, and what they are for. She is also one of the finest creators of unforgettable characters, instantly identifiable to the reader and who, in this book, carry the weight of history on their shoulders. There is also in this work a sneaky analysis of the role of fake news, truths and untruths and how Governments manipulate narratives for their own ends, which gives the story a very timely, and very current freshness to it, seeming to say that “there is nothing new under the sun.” If you like your history to be threaded with secrets, treasure and treachery then this is a real treat. The LoveReading LitFest invited Kate to the festival to treat us to a world exclusive reading of the opening chapter of The City of Tears. Go and find out more about accessing this and tons more content, with new events appearing every single week, all year round. Check out a preview of the event here
The Burning Chambers
* The Sunday Times Number One Bestseller * From the multi-million, number one bestselling author of Labyrinth and The Taxidermist's Daughter, comes The Burning Chambers: a gripping story of love and betrayal, mysteries and secrets, conspiracies and divided loyalties . . . Carcassonne 1562. Nineteen-year-old Minou Joubert receives an anonymous letter at her father's bookshop. Sealed with a distinctive family crest, it contains just five words: SHE KNOWS THAT YOU LIVE. But before Minou can decipher the mysterious message, a chance encounter with a young Huguenot convert, Piet Reydon, changes her destiny forever. For Piet has a dangerous mission of his own, and he will need Minou's help if he is to get out of La Cite alive . . . A thrilling adventure, and a heart-breaking love story, The Burning Chambers is a historical novel of excitement, conspiracy and danger like no other . . .
The Taxidermist's Daughter
Sussex, 1912. In a churchyard, villagers gather on the night when the ghosts of those who will die in the coming year are thought to be seen. Here, where the estuary leads out to the sea, superstitions still hold sway. Standing alone is the taxidermist's daughter. At 17, Constantia Gifford lives with her father in a decaying house: it is all that is left of Gifford's once world-famous museum of taxidermy. The stuffed animals that used to grace every parlour are out of fashion, leaving Gifford a disgraced and bitter man. The bell begins to toll and all eyes are fixed on the church. No one sees the gloved hand pick up a flint. As the last notes fade into the dark, a woman lies dead. While the village braces itself against rising waters and the highest tide of the season, Connie struggles to discover who is responsible, but finds herself under suspicion. Is Constantia who she seems - is she the victim of circumstances or are more sinister forces at work? And what is the secret that lies at the heart of Gifford House, hidden among the bell jars of her father's workshop? Told over one summer, THE TAXIDERMIST'S DAUGHTER is the haunting new novel from the bestselling author of LABYRINTH, SEPULCHRE, CIDADEL and THE WINTER GHOSTS.
The Winter Ghosts
Because the word ‘ghosts’ appears in the title we know what they are when they turn up but our protagonist doesn’t. How he comes to realise this and cope with it is cleverly done in a creepy tale of persecution, war, loss and love very reminiscent of Susan Hill’s creepy tales. It’s short and atmospheric, a one-sitting read, highly recommended. Comparison: Susan Hill, Alexandra Sololoff, Jennifer Egan.
The Mistletoe Bride and Other Haunting Tales
A beautiful collection of short stories from the author of Labyrinth. These simple, perfectly crafted tales are a selection of ghost stories and tales inspired from English and French folklore. They are haunting but not all in a shivers-down-the-spine kind of way, some simply because you know when you finish reading them they will stay with you for a long, long time.
Citadel
July 2013 Book of the Month. Citadel, again set in South West France this time during WW2, is the thrilling conclusion to the Languedoc trilogy that began with Labyrinth and continued with Sepulchre. Kate Mosse writes such believable and compelling historical adventures that you can’t help but feel transported in time. Full of legends, incredible history and more hidden secrets of Carcassonne that ensure fans of the series will not be disappointed. Click here to see what our Reader Review Panel thought of Labyrinth. Shortlisted for the Specsavers National Book Awards 'Popular Fiction of the Year' 2012. The Languedoc series. 1. Labyrinth 2. Sepulchre 3. Citadel
The Winter Ghosts
Because the word ‘ghosts’ appears in the title we know what they are when they turn up but our protagonist doesn’t. How he comes to realise this and cope with it is cleverly done in a creepy tale of persecution, war, loss and love very reminiscent of Susan Hill’s creepy tales. It’s short and atmospheric, a one-sitting read, highly recommended. Comparison: Susan Hill, Alexandra Sololoff, Jennifer Egan.
Labyrinth
July 2005. In the Pyrenees mountains near Carcassonne, Alice, a volunteer at an archaeological dig, stumbles into a cave and makes a startling discovery-two crumbling skeletons, strange writings on the walls, and the pattern of a labyrinth. Eight hundred years earlier, on the eve of a brutal crusade that will rip apart southern France, a young woman named Alais is given a ring and a mysterious book for safekeeping by her father. The book, he says, contains the secret of the true Grail, and the ring, inscribed with a labyrinth, will identify a guardian of the Grail. Now, as crusading armies gather outside the city walls of Carcassonne, it will take a tremendous sacrifice to keep the secret of the labyrinth safe.
Sepulchre
A gripping tale of mystery and adventure from the bestselling author of THE CITY OF LIES and LABYRINTH. 1891. Seventeen-year-old Leonie Vernier and her brother abandon Paris for the sanctuary of their aunt's isolated country house near Carcassonne, the Domaine de la Cade. But Leonie stumbles across a ruined sepulchre - and a timeless mystery whose traces are written in blood. 2007. Meredith Martin arrives at the Domaine de la Cade to research a biography. But Meredith is also seeking the key to her own complex legacy and becomes immersed in the story of a tragic love, a missing girl, a unique deck of tarot cards and the strange events of one cataclysmic night a century ago...
Other books by Kate Mosse
An Extra Pair of Hands
'Inspiring' GUARDIAN 'Heartbreaking' INDEPENDENT 'I loved it' ADAM KAY 'Beautiful' MATT HAIG 'Luminous' NICCI GERRARD 'Essential reading' MADELEINE BUNTING 'A celebration' CHRISTIE WATSON ----- A Best Book for Summer 2021 in the Times, Guardian and The i Independent Book of the Month ----- As our population ages, more and more of us find ourselves caring for parents and loved ones - some 8.8 million people in the UK. An invisible army of carers holding families together. Here, Kate Mosse tells her personal story of finding herself as a carer in middle age: first, helping her mother look after her beloved father through Parkinson's, then supporting her mother in widowhood, and finally as 'an extra pair of hands' for her 90-year-old mother-in-law. This is a story about the gentle heroism of our carers, about small everyday acts of tenderness, and finding joy in times of crisis. It's about juggling priorities, mind-numbing repetition, about guilt and powerlessness, about grief, and the solace of nature when we're exhausted or at a loss. It is also about celebrating older people, about learning to live differently - and think differently about ageing. But most of all, it's a story about love. ----- 'Lifts the spirits without pulling punches' IAN RANKIN 'Irresistible' RACHEL JOYCE 'Questions how and why we fetishise independence when the reality of human experience is always interdependence' GUARDIAN, BOOK OF THE DAY 'Heartfelt, funny and at times heartbreaking. 10/10' INDEPENDENT 'Utterly beautiful' FRANCESCA SEGAL
Labyrinth
The number one bestselling phenomenon JULY 1209, Carcassonne. Seventeen-year-old Alais Pelletier is given a mysterious book by her father, which he claims contains the secret of the true Grail. Although Alais cannot understand the strange words and symbols hidden within, she knows that her destiny lies in keeping the secret of the labyrinth safe. JULY 2005. Archaeologist Alice Tanner discovers two skeletons in a forgotten cave in the French Pyrenees. Puzzled by the labyrinth symbol carved into the rock, she realises she has disturbed something that was meant to remain buried. Soon, a link to a shocking secret - and her own past - is revealed . . . 'LABYRINTH is a reader's Holy Grail . . . a heart-wrenching, thrilling tale' Val McDermid 'An action-packed adventure of modern conspiracy and medieval passion' Independent BOOK ONE OF THE LANGUEDOC TRILOGY
Sepulchre
1891. Seventeen-year-old Leonie Vernier and her older brother abandon Paris for the sanctuary of their aunt's isolated country house near Carcassonne, the Domaine de la Cade. But when Leonie stumbles across a ruined sepulchre she uncovers a timeless mystery and a unique deck of tarot cards that seem to hold power over life and death. 2007. Meredith Martin arrives at the Domaine de la Cade to research a biography. But Meredith is also seeking the key to her own complex legacy and becomes immersed in the story of a tragic love, a missing girl, a quest for revenge and the haunting events of one cataclysmic night a century ago . . . 'Brilliantly absorbing . . . richly evocative and full of compelling twists and turns' Red 'A powerful storyteller with an abundant imagination' Daily Telegraph BOOK TWO OF THE LANGUEDOC TRILOGY. Now fully revised and updated
Citadel
1942, Nazi-occupied France. Sandrine, a spirited and courageous nineteen-year-old, finds herself drawn into a Resistance network in Carcassonne - codenamed 'Citadel' - a group of ordinary women who are prepared to risk everything for what is right. When she meets Raoul, they discover a shared passion for the cause, for their homeland, and for each other. But in a world where the enemy now lies in every shadow - where neighbour informs on neighbour; where friends disappear without warning and often without trace - love can demand the highest price of all . . . 'A thrilling adventure and a truly epic love story' The Times 'A deeply satisfying literary adventure, brimming with romance, treachery and cliff-hangers' Observer BOOK THREE OF THE LANGUEDOC TRILOGY. Now fully revised and updated
The City of Tears
A breathtaking historical novel of revenge, persecution and loss, The City of Tears by Kate Mosse follows on from her Sunday Times number one bestseller, The Burning Chambers. May 1572: for ten violent years the Wars of Religion have raged across France. Neighbours have become enemies, countless lives have been lost, and the country has been torn apart over matters of religion, citizenship and sovereignty. But now a precarious peace is in the balance and a royal wedding has been negotiated. It is a marriage that could see France reunited at last. An invitation has arrived for Minou Joubert and her family to attend this historic wedding in Paris in August. But what Minou does not know is that the Joubert family's oldest enemy, Vidal, will also be there. Nor that, within days of the marriage, on the eve of the Feast Day of St Bartholomew, her family will be scattered to the four winds and one of her beloved children will have disappeared without trace . . . Sweeping from Paris and Chartres to the City of Tears itself - the great refugee city of Amsterdam - this is a story of one family's fight to stay together and survive against the devastating tides of history . . . 'A gorgeously written, utterly absorbing epic . . . I absolutely loved it' - Lucy Foley, author of The Hunting Party 'A novel with vast scope and ambition, brilliantly achieved . . . I was utterly immersed in this spell-binding story' - Rosamund Lupton, author of Three Hours 'This is historical fiction to devour. Nobody does it like Kate Mosse' - Anthony Horowitz on The Burning Chambers
The Burning Chambers
Bringing sixteenth-century Languedoc vividly to life, Kate Mosse's number one bestselling novel The Burning Chambers is a gripping story of love, betrayal, war, adventure, conspiracies and divided loyalties. Carcassonne 1562. Nineteen-year-old Minou Joubert receives an anonymous letter at her father's bookshop. Sealed with a distinctive family crest, it contains just five words: SHE KNOWS THAT YOU LIVE. But before Minou can decipher the mysterious message, a chance encounter with a young Huguenot convert, Piet Reydon, changes her destiny forever. For Piet has a dangerous mission of his own, and he will need Minou's help if he is to get out of La Cite alive . . . A thrilling adventure and a heartbreaking love story, The Burning Chambers is a historical novel of excitement, conspiracy and danger like no other . . . 'A powerful storyteller with an abundant imagination' - Daily Telegraph 'Impressively bold and ambitious' - Daily Mail
The Winter Ghosts
Nothing is as it seems . . . France, 1928. It is ten years since the Great War ended, but Freddie Watson is still haunted by the loss of his beloved brother. Driving through the foothills of the Pyrenees, his car spins off the road in a snowstorm. He takes refuge in an isolated village and there meets the captivating Fabrissa. They spend the night talking of love and loss and war. By daybreak, Fabrissa has vanished and Freddie has discovered that he alone holds the key to an ancient mystery, one which leads him deep into the mountains and to a cave that conceals a shocking secret . . . 'A wonderfully haunting winter's tale. Stop the clock and read it in one sitting' She 'A great read . . . Mosse writes movingly about loss and atmospherically about France' Daily Mail 'Beautiful and haunting, this is a great story of love, loss and courage' Woman WITH READING GROUP NOTES AND AN EXCLUSIVE SHORT STORY
The Taxidermist's Daughter
The enthralling Sunday Times bestselling gothic novel from the author of LABYRINTH and THE BURNING CHAMBERS The clock strikes twelve. Beneath the wind and the remorseless tolling of the bell, no one can hear the scream . . . 1912. A Sussex churchyard. Villagers gather on the night when the ghosts of those who will not survive the coming year are thought to walk. And in the shadows, a woman lies murdered. As the flood waters rise, Connie Gifford is marooned in a decaying house with her increasingly tormented father. He drinks to escape the past, but an accident has robbed her of her most significant childhood memories. Until the disturbance at the church awakens fragments of those vanished years . . .
The Mistletoe Bride and Other Haunting Tales
I hear someone coming. It has happened before . . . Rooted in the elemental landscapes of Sussex, Brittany and the Languedoc, here are tales of ghosts and spirits seeking revenge, of grief-stricken women and haunted men coming to terms with their destiny. Atmospheric and unforgettable, The Mistletoe Bride is a collection of stories inspired by ghost stories, folk tales and legends, from one of our most captivating writers. 'These eerie tales are perfect for stormy winter darkness' Daily Mail 'A master of the short form' Stylist 'A powerful storyteller with an abundant imagination' Daily Telegraph
I Am Heathcliff
16 modern fiction superstars shine a startling light on the romance and pain of the infamous literary pair Heathcliff and Cathy. Short stories to stir the heart and awaken vital conversation about love. Sixteen stories inspired by Wuthering Heights. In 'Terminus' a young woman hides in an empty Brighton hotel; in 'Thicker Than Blood' a man sits in a hot tub stalking his newly-married love on social media; and in 'A bird half-eaten' an amateur boxer prepares for a match. A woman recalls the 'Heathcliffs I Have Known' and the physical danger she has borne at their hands; in 'Anima' a child and a fox are unified in one startling moment of violence; and in 'One Letter Different' two teenagers walk the moors and face up to their respective buried secrets. Curated by Kate Mosse and commissioned for Emily Bronte's bicentenary year in 2018, these fresh, modern stories pulse with the raw beauty and pain of love and are as timely as they are illuminating. The full list of contributors is: Leila Aboulela, Hanan Al-Shaykh, Joanna Cannon, Alison Case, Juno Dawson, Louise Doughty, Sophie Hannah, Anna James, Erin Kelly, Dorothy Koomson, Grace McCleen, Lisa McInerney, Laurie Penny, Nikesh Shukla, Michael Stewart and Louisa Young.
Der Kreis der Rabenvogel
Mit ihrem neuen Roman "e;Der Kreis der Rabenvogel"e; gelingt der international gefeierten Bestseller-Autorin Kate Mosse erneut ein groartiger Wurf: Ein historischer Spannungs-Roman mit Schauerelementen um eine faszinierende Heldin und ein dunkles Geheimnis. England, 1912: Connie, die Tochter des Tierprparators Gifford, lebt zurckgezogen mit ihrem Vater in der Nhe des kleinen Dorfes Fishbourne. Connie kann sich seit einem Sturz vor vielen Jahren nicht mehr an ihre Kindheit erinnern; ihr Vater verweigert jegliche Auskunft. Connie sprt, dass etwas nicht stimmt, denn erste Erinnerungsfetzen kehren zurck, sie fhlt sich beobachtet und verfolgt. Als man eine Leiche in den Smpfen findet, holt die Vergangenheit Connie, ihren Vater und eine Reihe scheinbar unbescholtener Brger auf grausame Weise ein. "e;Kate Mosses bestes Buch."e; Daily Telegraph"e;Mosse entwirft eine bravourse Szene nach der anderen. Dieses Buch steckt voller Herzblut und grandioser Twists. Die unvergessliche Heldin und das spannungsgeladene Geheimnis wird Ihre Gedanken noch lange nach dem Umblttern der letzten Seite beschftigen."e; The Independent
Becoming A Mother
Combining medical and historical information with real life accounts of ordinary women, this book is an essential guide to the facts, feelings and emotions experienced during pregnancy and birth. It takes you week by week, from the decision to conceive, through to first impressions of life with your baby, offering invaluable information. Topics include: Conception - If and When; Feelings for Your Growing Baby; Your Career and Financial Position; Fear that Something May Go Wrong; Changing Relationships with Family and Friends; Choosing Where and How to Give Birth; How Others Felt - Women Relate their Experiences; The First Few Days with Your Baby
Die Frauen von Carcassonne
Voller Leidenschaft erzahlt Kate Mosse eine hoch emotionale Liebesgeschichte in Zeiten des Krieges - Der Nummer-1-Bestseller aus England. Carcassonne 1942: Jeden Tag sprt die junge Sandrine die Einschrnkungen durch den Krieg, doch ihre Lebensfreude lsst sie sich dadurch nicht nehmen. Selbst als sie berfallen wird, versteht sie die angstvolle Aufregung ihrer Freunde nicht: Bevor ihr Schlimmeres passieren kann, kommt ihr der junge Raoul zu Hilfe. Erst als sie erfhrt, dass die anderen lngst im Widerstand kmpfen, auch Raoul, begreift Sandrine die Gefahr, in der sie schweben ...
Wintergeister
In einem kleinen franzosischen Dorf lernt Frederick die geheimnisvolle Fabrissa kennen. Vom ersten Moment an scheint etwas Besonderes zwischen ihnen zu sein - doch dann ist sie plotzlich verschwunden, und niemand kann sich an sie erinnern. In einer Hohle findet Frederick einen jahrhundertealten Brief, der eindeutig fur ihn bestimmt ist ...
Das verlorene Labyrinth
Bei Ausgrabungen in einer Hohle des Languedoc entdeckt Alice Tanner zwei Skelette und eine labyrinthische Wandmalerei. Der Hauch des Bosen, den sie an dieser Statte spurt, weckt dunkle Vorahnungen in ihr. Als sich die Polizei einschaltet, verstarkt sich Alices Gefuhl, dass an dem ratselhaften Ort etwas geschehen ist, das im Verborgenen hatte bleiben sollen. Etwas, das weit in die Vergangenheit zuruckreicht ... Achthundert Jahre zuvor erhlt die junge Alas am selben Ort ein Buch mit fremdartigen Zeichen, deren schicksalhafte Bedeutung sie kennt. Sie wei dass sie das Geheimnis des Buches hten muss - um jeden Preis. Verlust, Intrige, Gewalt und Leidenschaft prgen fortan das Leben beider Frauen. Und immer wieder werden ihrer beider Schicksale durch das Labyrinth auf geheimnisvolle Weise miteinander verknpft
Die achte Karte
Als die junge Meredith auf der Suche nach ihren Wurzeln durch Paris streift, stot sie auf ein seltenes und unvollstandiges Set Tarotkarten aus vergangener Zeit. Die geheimnisvollen Abbildungen schlagen sie sofort in ihren Bann, denn eine Figur tragt unverkennbar Merediths Gesichtszuge. Was die junge Frau nicht wei: Die Karten erzahlen von einem schrecklichen Ungluck in ihrer Familie - und es scheint, als habe sie die alten Geister wieder geweckt ...