Release Date: March 4th 2021
Publisher: Michael Joseph
Pages: 352
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me an E-ARC to review
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Synopsis

London, 1841.

The Rajah sails for Australia.

On board are 180 women convicted of petty crimes, sentenced to start a new life half way across the world.

Daughters, sisters, mothers – they’ll never see home or family again. Despised and damned, all they have now is each other.

Until the murder.

As the fearful hunt for a killer begins, everyone on board is a suspect.

The investigation risks tearing their friendships apart . . .

But if the killer isn’t found, could it cost them their last chance of freedom?

Based on a real-life voyage, Dangerous Women is a sweeping tale of confinement, hope and the terrible things we do to survive.

Review

Dangerous Women is the beautiful and heartbreaking story of 180 women convicted of petty crimes and sentenced to board The Rajah and live out the rest of their lives in Australia, never seeing their families again. On board all they have is each other, until a stabbing occurs and suspicions arise. Who is guilty and if they aren’t found, will they all survive?

This was such an incredible read, absolutely packed with atmosphere and beautiful writing. I completely fell in love with this story and the harrowing plight of the women on board. The story is based on an actual voyage and I ended up looking up the voyage online because the story was so fascinating. I loved every second of this book and I am definitely going to be picking up more books by Hope Adams in the future.

This is a truly thought provoking read, and follows multiple characters both on the ship and prior to them being convicted. It was really interesting to learn about their lives and what crime they were convicted of. Adams has created really incredible characters and each story was full of detail. The story is also a murder mystery, as they attempt to uncover who was behind the stabbing. It was a compelling read, and one I found myself thinking about even when I wasn’t reading.

Dangerous Women is quite a heart breaking read, but one that is incredibly well executed. I loved the characters and the amount of detail Adams put into the story. It felt really well researched and I enjoyed every second of it. This is a truly captivating story and historical fiction fans are going to absolutely adore this one.