Tor UK pre-empts sapphic Dracula horror

The synopsis reads:

1903. Sir John Seward, survivor of Count Dracula’s murderous campaign ten years before, takes up a post as a psychiatric doctor at an Oxford public asylum. There, a new patient arrives whose traumatic experiences resurrect horrors John has spent a decade trying to forget.

1884. Mafalda journeys from London to Budapest to care for her recently widowed Aunt Reka. She pines Lucy North, the secret love she left behind in England. But when Aunt Reka’s health worsens, Mafalda insists that Lucy – with her sweet, cheerful demeanour – should join them to brighten her aunt’s convalescence. 

Yet a young lady should never travel alone, especially not across the Continent. So, Lucy travels to her beloved chaperoned by former schoolfriend Eliza and her lady’s maid Alice. Only Alice, beset by nightmares and terrifying visions, notices the strange black-clad man who seems to follow them wherever they go. When Eliza is struck down with a mysterious wasting illness, her doctor orders her to take the healing waters of Transylvania, a journey with devastating consequences.

Sophie Robinson comments: ‘Devastating. That’s the word that kept coming back to me each time I’ve read this extraordinary novel. The reader knows how this ends for three of the women in the novel, but not who they were, their dreams and desires, before they were made into monsters. It gives voice to the ‘minor’ characters that made the classic novel what it was. And the dread, the sapphic romance turned toxic and the inevitable pursuit left me reeling. This is the gothic horror Dracula prequel I had always hoped for and will be beyond privileged to publish.’

Author Charlotte Cross says: ‘I’ve been a huge fan of Gothic fiction for many years, and The Brides is my love letter to the genre. Working with Sophie has been a true pleasure, and I couldn’t be more thrilled that The Brides has found a home with Tor UK.’

Agent Francesca Riccardi says: ‘Charlotte writes desire and longing paired with deliciously sinister undertones to give these previously silent women the perfect voice. Sophie and the wider Tor UK team’s enthusiasm for the book is wonderful to see, and I can’t wait for readers to meet The Brides.’

Tor UK will publish The Brides on Tor Nightfire on 2nd April 2026.

About the author
Charlotte Cross writes historical speculative fiction, having been fascinated by stories of the past since she was a child. She grew up in southern England in a small town with a rich history, and spent many happy hours at the local museum where her grandmother was a volunteer. Charlotte now lives in central Scotland with her partner and their opinionated ginger cat. When not writing, she enjoys yoga, reading Victorian novels, and exploring her adopted country. The Brides is her first novel.

About Tor UK
Tor UK specializes in speculative fiction and is a destination for the best in imaginative storytelling. A sister company to Tor Books in the US, Tor UK publishes an impressive array of award-winners, bestsellers, household names and talented debut authors. Tor’s mission is to publish out-of-this-world genre fiction and bring readers books that spark joy. It strives every year to increase the diversity of its list, publishing authors from minority backgrounds and increasing positive representation of gender issues through fiction. 

Launching in Spring 2025, Nightfire is a boutique horror list at Tor, showcasing the very best of literary and commercial fiction. (www.panmacmillan.com/tor)

About Pan Macmillan
Pan Macmillan is an international consumer book publisher based in the UK, publishing a very broad range of books in all formats, including print, ebook and audio, for today’s readers. Its adult book imprints include Bluebird, Macmillan, Macmillan Business, Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Collector’s Library, Mantle, One Boat, Pan, Picador and Tor. Children’s Book imprints include Macmillan Children’s Books, Campbell, Kingfisher and Two Hoots. (www.panmacmillan.com)

Pan Macmillan is part of Macmillan Publishers International Ltd (MPIL), a division of the Holtzbrinck Publishing Group (www.holtzbrinck.com), a large family-owned media company based in Stuttgart.