The Ornatrix

AN AMAZON RISING STAR

'Dazzling... a first novel of originality and, yes, beauty.' The Times

'A richly drawn cast of twisted characters... beguiling.' Vogue Best Summer Reads

Flavia was born with a birthmark across her face in the shape of a bird in flight. Ashamed of the mark, her mother has concealed Flavia's face behind a veil all her young life. A dyer's daughter, she grows up in a little house in the woods, far away from prying eyes. But on the night before her sister's wedding, Flavia does something borne of spite with repercussions that will draw her into a much wider and stranger world than she could have imagined: the convent of Santa Giuliana, just outside the city walls of Perugia. There she meets Ghostanza, a courtesan turned widow, whose white-lead painted face entrances Flavia, and whose beauty and cruelty are unmatched. Flavia becomes her hairdresser and personal maid - her ornatrix.

But just as white-lead paint rots supple flesh, so too is Perugia rotting beneath the shimmer of wealth and privilege - a place where Flavia is caught between desire and jealousy with devastating consequences.

'Exquisite, earthy, witty - this is a book of rare beauty, about beauty.' Wendy Wallace, author of The Painted Bridge