A Tip for the Hangman

"A Tip for the Hangman is simultaneously moving, unsettling, hilarious, and tragic—a debut that will linger long after the last page is turned." —Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Alice Network
An impious charity scholar dreaming of becoming a playwright, Christopher Marlowe keeps well clear of politics. Between lingering looks at golden-haired Tom Watson and his own penchant for recklessness, he has enough distractions to threaten his studies already.
Then the queen's spymaster arrives at Cambridge, enlisting Kit's help to take down a plot that threatens civil war. With little choice in the matter, Kit begins a secret career in codebreaking, deception, conspiracy, and death. He must deceive everyone around him, from queens to scullery maids, and gain the trust of people he will betray.
The horrible fates of the guilty haunt him, even as he delights in the thrill and challenge of the work. But as he risks his life for crown and country, Kit snatches victories for himself as well, writing scandalous dramas that make him the most celebrated playwright in London and chasing a daring happiness alongside Tom. But when a new threat rises just as Kit and Tom are most vulnerable, Kit will be tested as never before…
With high-stakes intrigue and effortless immersion into the time period, Allison Epstein translates the story of one of early modern England's most compelling personalities into a novel bursting with humor, anguish, and heart.
Praise for A Tip for the Hangman:
"Epstein presents Marlowe as supremely capable, something of a trickster, a consummate liar, a fiendish lover – and someone capable of murder . . . The suspense is palpable, as is the sense of doom, as Marlowe finds himself in thrall to a devil's bargain." —The New York Times Book Review
"[T]hrilling and romantic . . . Epstein successfully evokes both the beauty and the brutality of 16th-century England." —Historical Novel Society
"This is easily one of 2021's best historical fiction books to date." —The Michigan Daily
"Stunning. With wit and humor, Epstein expertly weaves in authentic social, political and religious details, creating a compelling and evocative story that soars. Fans of thrilling historical fiction will be highly engaged by this fast-paced read." —Susanna Calkins, author of the award-winning Lucy Campion historical mysteries
"Debut author Allison Epstein delivers an absolute tour de force. This masterfully researched, beautifully written novel takes the reader inside the spy networks, taverns, theatres, and halls of power of Tudor England, with the irreverent Christopher Marlowe as our guide. Epstein is a talent to watch!" —Alyssa Palombo, author of The Borgia Confessions
"Allison Epstein's imaginative take on Christopher Marlowe is virtuoso on many levels. Her London is perfectly rendered in all its pungence and pageantry. But the double-crossing, the moral ambiguity, and the bloodlust all give fresh legs to a literary mystery that has as...