Daphne du Maurier stole my life.

Bestselling author Rose Tremain invents the story of how a great novel of the past came into being and in turn creates a masterwork of her own.

Mrs Danowski – known as Danni – is the housekeeper of a grand mansion on the wild coast of Cornwall. When glamorous young writer Daphne du Maurier visits Manderville Hall to research her new novel, she and Danni are drawn into a clandestine and intoxicating affair. For Danni, it is an all-consuming love; for Daphne a submission to long-suppressed desires.

But their fragile secret is vulnerable to prying eyes and destined for heartbreak. When Daphne’s novel launches to triumphant success, Danni is distraught to find herself transformed into a malign and jealous character on the page.

She seeks respite from the hurt by telling her own story: The Housekeeper.