The Umbra Series
What if your life was mortally bound to another? And they lived in a war-torn world you could never visit…
That world is the unknowable Other Realm, home of the Umbra. Five centuries ago the Queen ‘neath the Hedge came from nowhere to conquer Britain and the Other Realm. Her Treaty still binds the two kingdoms together so that every Briton is paired with their Umbra at puberty – paired for life.
But the Queen’s Treaty is written in the language of Hedge – it changes with the seasons and is nibbled by caterpillars. Rumours say the Queen will come back from the dead to renew it. But no one wants to be ruled by a medieval warrior queen.
They will kill to stop her.
Meet your Umbra
Amorrie is an Umbra
Umbra are our shadow selves – the dark hidden part of us that makes us whole.
She lives in the Other Realm, but is bound to visit her human ally, Arthur, once a day. Some think she is the returning Queen, but Amorrie doesn’t think so… and there are plenty of other candidates.
Meet other Umbra
Click to flip
Click to flip
Click to flip
What people think
‘No one knows who, or where, or what she is – Everyone will try to stop her.’
Don’t miss news from
Book 1
The Queen ‘neath the Hedge
1790s: Britain prepares for war with France. But a greater threat is stirring. It starts with a ball. News comes that a heroic Umbra has been murdered in the Other Realm.
Young artist Arthur Tenebris wonders if his wilful Umbra, Amorrie, is involved. Earlier in the evening, she answered his summons, naked, injured and drenched in blood.
Sebastian Stanton, Pitt’s rising Minister for Umbra Affairs is ordered to investigate the killing, but how do you solve a murder in a world you can never visit?
Arthur is sent to paint four young sisters in the Fens. They are innocents who hold a dark secret that may link them to the long-dead Queen ‘neath the Hedge. Who is a foe and who a friend?
Who can you trust when even your Umbra could be an enemy?
Book 2
The Queen ‘tween the tides
Arthur and Amorrie travel to a coastal mansion to paint Lady Isabella Stanton’s portrait. But, rumours linking Amorrie to the returning Queen ‘neath the Hedge ensure assassins lie in wait. A half-drowned girl thrown up on the rocks by a storm tide only adds to the mistrust and mystery.
Sebastian Stanton’s marriage is also on the rocks, but duty prevents him following his wife to the coast. He knows young girls are being killed if they are even suspected of being the Queen.
Nine possible Queens are being discussed, but Lavinia Gracegirdle is the most likely. Stanton is sent to the Fens to persuade her and her sisters they would be safer in London. He finds the Fens haunted by tales of a ‘devil hound’. Stanton is outwitted by the sisters at every turn, but he knows they cannot save themselves.
Book 3
The Queen ‘twixt two realms
All London is agog at the wild headlines that follow the surviving Gracegirdle sisters into the city. Mobs besiege their aunt’s house, while assassins plot openly in the square beyond.
Surely, many say, Lavinia must be the returning Queen. Pitt and Grenville don’t need this distraction at a time of war. Stanton brought the girls to London, so he is ordered to smuggle them out. But how – when all eyes are on them? With their sisters now dead or helpless, it falls to little Naomi and gentle Tabitha to find ways to thwart the assassins’ plans.
In the Other Realm, Amorrie thinks her own death has been loosed into her realm to track her down. She is up against an enemy she can’t fight or outrun. Umbra lords are celebrating: the Queen neath the Hedge is surely out of time to return.
Best Quotes
Listen to the story
Get the Audiobook!
Umbra adventures brought to life by narrator Skye Alley!
“I really have been enjoying recording this! With so many different characters and being so far out of my normal repertoire, it was a challenge and I had a blast! I was extra proud of Maraziel and Hellekin. Let me tell you, I’m really good at seeing a twist coming ahead of time and calling it. I did not see this coming at all.”
Join the newsletter