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Blood & Sugar cover art

Blood & Sugar

By: Laura Shepherd-Robinson
Narrated by: Ben Onwukwe
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Summary

Blood & Sugar is the thrilling debut historical crime novel from Laura Shepherd-Robinson.

June, 1781. An unidentified body hangs upon a hook at Deptford Dock - horribly tortured and branded with a slaver’s mark. 

Some days later, Captain Harry Corsham - a war hero embarking upon a promising parliamentary career - is visited by the sister of an old friend. Her brother, passionate abolitionist Tad Archer, had been about to expose a secret that he believed could cause irreparable damage to the British slaving industry. He’d said people were trying to kill him, and now he is missing....

To discover what happened to Tad, Harry is forced to pick up the threads of his friend's investigation, delving into the heart of the conspiracy Tad had unearthed. His investigation will threaten his political prospects and his family’s happiness and force a reckoning with his past, risking the revelation of secrets that have the power to destroy him.

And that is only if he can survive the mortal dangers awaiting him in Deptford....

©2019 Laura Shepherd-Robinson (P)2019 Macmillan Publishers International Ltd

Critic reviews

"A page-turner of a crime thriller.... This is a world conveyed with convincing, terrible clarity." (C. J. Sansom)

"Ben Onwukwe has one of the richest voices in audio, resonant, perfectly paced, whether he's reading Frank Bruno's autobiography or Nick Harkaway's sci-fi Gnomon. He rises effortlessly to the challenge of this searing, ingeniously constructed story of the London arm of the 18th-century slaving business." (The Times)

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What listeners say about Blood & Sugar

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Excellent

I listened to this over a few days and found myself stopping to see what happened next on several occasions. Facts woven in fiction.

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Excellent

An amazing listen. Very moving story. Very well read. A definite must. Would highly recommend.

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Needs an adult language warning

a compelling story with much historical interest.
The resolution of the story meanders quite a lot.
There is a lot of 'adult'' language which should be made clear before buying.

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Brilliant!

A wonderfully crafted novel with unexpected twists and turns. Difficult to put down. Thank you!

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Amazing Story

I loved and enjoyed every minute of this book. The intrigue and mystery have you glued from beginning to end.
The characters are many faceted making you love them one minute and hate them the next, although some are just nasty through and through!
A really good listen and the Narrator can certainly tell a story.

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Compelling & disturbing

An utterly exhaustive fictional (but factually accurate) account of our Nation’s great shame. How the human/Christian people could justify their monstrous actions is beyond the ken of the modern mind. I urge you to read this now.

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Brilliant Book

Beautiful written. Beautiful narrative. Fantastic characters woven together in an intelligent and interesting story. Just excellent

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Beautifully read! Beautifully written

Fantastic storyline. He made the characters came alive. Fantastic ! soothing voice! love it... !

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Fantastic!

This story was brilliant! Fantastic narrator and what a gripping storyline. Kept me at the edge of my seat all the way through. I loved Captain caution fantastic protagonist.

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Murder and Misery

A twisty who-dun-it which serves to illustrate the horrors of the slave trade and Britain's role in establishing it and reluctantly seeking it's abolition.

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