Love and Other Poisons : a gripping historical tale of scandal and murder, based on a true story

Author: Lesley McDowell

Historical mysteries

Published on 19 March 2026 by Headline Publishing Group (Wildfire) in the United Kingdom.

Paperback | 368 pages
199 x 130 x 27 | 266g

'A fascinating, forensic deep-dive' DENISE MINA'Beautifully written, richly evoked and utterly gripping' EVA DOLAN

'A seductive tale of sex and death' SARA SHERIDAN***1857, Glasgow.

Madeleine Smith, a young socialite, is on trial for murdering her lover. The scandal shocks the world, with intimate letters published in newspapers. The jury can't decide - delivering a rare 'Not Proven' verdict. Madeleine walks free.

1927, New York.

Hollywood scout Harry Townsend believes he's found Madeleine, now an elusive widow living under a new name. Once a dazzling figure in bohemian London, she vanished in 1890.

Could this quiet woman really be the infamous Madeleine Smith?She holds one last secret. Will Harry convince her to share it?***More praise for Lesley McDowell:'Riveting - a clever portrait of a fascinating, flawed heroine.' THE TIMES'An intimate and enlightening tale of one of Romanticism's forsaken muses.' SUSAN STOKES-CHAPMAN'An absorbing, intoxicating page-turner about a woman who deserves to be remembered.' JENNIFER SAINT'A must-read. McDowell brings to vivid, embodied life; a flirtatious, flawed woman fighting for her place in a man's world.' THE HERALD