Gilded Cage

A thrilling Orwellian vision of Britain, with a rebellious Hunger Games heart – an astounding debut from Vic James, and the first title in her gripping The Dark Gifts Trilogy.

A modern Britain. An age-old cruelty.

Britain's magically skilled aristocracy compels all commoners to serve them for ten years – and now it's the Hadleys' turn. Abi Hadley is assigned to England's most ruthless noble family. The secrets she uncovers could win her freedom – or break her heart. Her brother Luke is enslaved in a brutal factory town, where new friends' ideals might cost him everything.

Then while the elite vie for power, a young aristocrat plots to remake the world with his dark gifts. As Britain moves from anger to defiance, all three must take sides. And the consequences of their choices will change everything, forever.

About the Author

Vic lives in London’s Notting Hill, but her life is more action-adventure than rom-com She studied History and English at Merton College, Oxford where Tolkien was once professor. Relocating to Rome, she completed her doctorate in the Vatican Secret Archives (they’re nothing like The Da Vinci Code), then spent five years living in Tokyo as a Daiwa Scholar. There she learned Japanese and worked as a journalist. Returning to the UK, Vic became investigations producer for Channel 4 News, then began directing current affairs documentaries for BBC1 and BBC2.

She now writes full time. Vic has scuba-dived on Easter Island, camped at Everest Base Camp, voyaged on one of the last mailboats to St Helena, frolicked with sea-lions in the Galapagos, slept in a shipping container in the Falklands, driven a dog-sled in the Arctic, hang-glided across Rio de Janeiro, and swum the Hellespont from Europe to Asia. But there’s still little she loves more than lying in bed till midday with a good book and a supply of her favourite biscuits.