The only beautiful thing in Ivy's drab life is her glorious red hair. At a young age, her locks made her the target of Carroty Kate, a 'skinner'. She recruited Ivy to help her coax wealthy children away from their nannies so that she could strip them of their clothes - clothes worth a fortune in the markets of Petticoat Lane. It is years before Ivy escapes and finds her way back to her in-laws. Once there, she finds respite in laudanum. But before she can settle into a stupor and forget the terrible things she has done, Ivy is spotted by a wealthy pre-Raphaelite painter. Oscar Fosdick needs a muse (until now he has had to use his domineering mother as a model, something not conducive to producing his best work, he finds). To him, Ivy is perfect, a stunner. Realising quickly that this painter has more money than sense, Ivy's in-laws order her to sit for him, and to do anything else he demands. But not everyone is happy. Oscar's mother is determined to get rid of Ivy. Oscar's famous neighbour is determined to paint her. Carroty Kate is determined to find her, and Ivy herself is determined to escape . . .

Hearn, Julie, 1958-

Oxford Institute for Energy Studies

German Historical Institute London

Oxford: Oxford University Press

OXFORD UP CHILDREN'S

United Kingdom and Ireland, United Kingdom

2006 Edition, US, 2006

Oxford, 2006

May 4, 2006

cut text back cover

332 pages ; 20 cm
Ivy has been spotted in a rough part of London by Oscar Aretino Frosdick, a rich Pre-Raphaelite painter in need of a muse. Thinking only of the money, Ivy's greedy cousins order her to sit for Oscar. But their "nice little earner" has sinister consequences, and Ivy's strange and troubled past is about to catch up with her. Suggested level: intermediate, secondary

2023-06-28