Lightborne

(Paperback, Main)

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Kit Marlowe: playwright, poet, lover. In the plague-stricken streets of Elizabethan England, Kit flirts with danger, leaving a trail of enemies and old flames in his wake. His plays are a roaring success; he seems destined for greatness.

But the queen's eyes are everywhere and the air is laced with paranoia. When Marlowe is arrested on charges of treason, heresy and sodomy - all of which are punishable by death - he is released on bail with the help of Thomas Walsingham, a man he presumes to be his friend, but who has in fact hired the infamous assassin Robin Poley to take care of Marlowe, fearing his own sins may come to light. Now, with the queen's spies, the vengeful Baines, and the double-crossing Poley closing in, Marlowe's last friend in the world is Ingram Frizer, a total stranger who is obsessed with his plays, and who will, within ten days' time, become first Marlowe's lover, and then his killer.

Richly atmospheric, emotionally devastating and heartrendingly imagined, Lightborne is a tender, thrilling tale of one of our most famous playwrights, and a love that flourishes within the margins.

Reviews

A wonderfully vivid and edgy piece of storytelling, the kind of brilliant writing that rescues historical fiction from the museum * Joseph O'Connor, author of MY FATHER'S HOUSE *
Imaginative, atmospheric, and heart-poundingly tense, time is running out for Christopher Marlowe in this excellent debut. He seeks refuge from his enemies in the arms of his new lover, but is Frizer as much danger as solace Forget all the polite queer historical novels that tell no truths - here is one boldly full of them. * Neil Blackmore, author of RADICAL LOVE *
A deliciously complex, vivid portrait of a violent and fascinating period, with an addictively charismatic cast of characters. Heart-wrenching, bold and earthy, this book gripped me and wouldn't let me go. * Leon Craig, author of PARALLEL HELLS *
Absolutely fantastic. It is a deeply impressive achievement, meticulously researched and fabulously rendered... Genuinely reminiscent of the likes Hilary Mantel or Ken Follett. * Niall Bourke, author of LINE *

Author Bio

Hesse Phillips' debut novel Lightborne was a finalist in the Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair 2022. Their poetry and prose have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. They have a PhD in Drama from Tufts University and are a graduate of Grub Street Boston's intensive Novel Incubator program. Hesse was born and raised in rural Pennsylvania but now lives in Spain with their wife and two rescue dogs.