The Dark Days Club by Australian author Alison Goodman (
ISFDB,
Wikipedia,
SFE), a recipient of the Aurealis Award and a Tiptree Award honouree, is the 1st novel in her Lady Helen trilogy of YA historical urban fantasy set in a magical version of the Regency, this installment setting up the eponymous heroine's entry not only into London Society, but also the deeper underworld of the supernatural, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Walker Books.
This is also known by the alternate title of
Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club, as it was originally published by Australian publisher Angus & Robertson. Apparently this is being made free to promote the upcoming release of the 2nd-in-series,
The Dark Days Pact, slated for release in January.
Currently free @
Amazon UK &
iTunes UK &
Kobo (available to the UK, and also EU, Oceania, South America, and Japan when I spot-checked; these are out from a different publisher in North America)
Description
Jane Austen's high society and Cassandra Clare's supernatural underworld collide in the first book in the Lady Helen trilogy, perfect for fans of historical fiction and fantasy.
London, April 1812. Lady Helen Wrexhall is set to make her curtsy to Queen Charlotte and step into polite Regency Society. Unbeknownst to Helen, that step will also take her from the glittering ballroom of Almacks and the bright lights of Vauxhall Gardens into a shadowy world of demonic creatures, missing housemaids and deadly power.
Standing between those two worlds is Lord Carlston, a man of dubious reputation and infuriating manners. He believes Helen is destined to protect humanity, but all he can offer is danger, savagery and the possibility of madness. Not the kind of destiny suitable for a young lady in her first London Season. This delightfully dangerous adventure of self-discovery and difficult choices has all the unnerving dark magic of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and the swashbuckling action of The Scarlet Pimpernel.