The Black Velvet Gown

There would be times when Riah Millican came to regret that her husband had learned to read and write, and then shared his knowledge with her and their children. For this was Durham in the 1830’s, when employers tended to regard the spread of education with suspicion. But now Seth Millican was dead and she was a widow with the need to find a home and a living for herself and her children.

The chance of becoming a housekeeper didn’t work out, but it led to a job in Moor House with a scholarly recluse obsessed with books and education. The effect of this environment on her daughter, Biddy, who was not only bright but willful, started a chain reaction that should have opened many doors to her future but instead created many problems for the pair of them.

The Black Velvet Gown is the compelling story of a mother and daughter, often at odds with each other, facing the need to challenge and fight the prejudices of an age – a narrative of great power and diversity that has become one of Catherine Cookson’s major achievements.