by Ian McGuire
First published 2020
In 1870s Lancashire, John Ormerod transforms from a quiet mill worker into a radical temperance activist. After alcohol destroys his family—killing his father and driving his brother to ruin—Ormerod becomes a relentless crusader against local pubs and breweries. Using calculated intimidation and strategic legal challenges, he systematically targets alcohol sellers, disrupting entire community power structures. As his campaign intensifies, Ormerod faces increasing resistance from pub owners, local authorities, and even some temperance allies who consider his methods too extreme. His single-minded pursuit threatens not just businesses, but the social fabric of industrial Lancashire. The stakes escalate from personal vendetta to a broader battle over working-class survival and moral reform. Ormerod must decide how far he'll go to eliminate the liquor trade that devastated his world.
Genres: historical-fiction, addiction, 19th-century, activism
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: moral-dilemma, redemption
Setting: Lancashire
Period: 1870s
304 pages · Kindle Edition · Random House
Content warnings: alcohol-abuse