Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Porcelain Doll / The Last Russian Doll | 2022 | Kristen Loesch | Buy |
| 2 | The Hong Kong Widow | 2025 | Kristen Loesch | Buy |
The Last Russian Doll (2022, published in the UK as The Porcelain Doll) follows two women separated by most of a century: Tonya, a young noblewoman whose choices during and after the Russian Revolution set off consequences that echo through decades, and Rosie, a contemporary Oxford student who begins uncovering a family secret that leads her back through the same history. The structure links the two timelines through objects, letters, and the gaps that families leave deliberately. It was nominated for the Edgar Award for Best Novel.
The Hong Kong Widow (2025) shifts the setting and register. Set in 1953 Hong Kong, it follows a young refugee from Shanghai who enters a competition among six spirit mediums organized at a notorious haunted mansion — six seances over six nights, each one narrowing the field. The historical atmosphere of postwar Hong Kong, the displacement of refugees from mainland China, and the city’s mix of British colonial order and older Chinese spiritual practice all feed into the plot. Reviewers described it as impeccably researched and gothic in the best sense.