Breaking the Mould? Sarah Waters and the Politics of Genre

Abstract

As many of the chapters in this book demonstrate, historical fiction has become increasingly prominent during the last twenty years. In this final chapter, I want to explore ‘historical fiction in action’ by providing an overview of one of its current, most visible and popular practitioners: Sarah Waters. My interest in this piece is to bring together some of the issues that have been raised throughout this volume in relation to the present condition of ‘women’s’ historical fiction and suggest ways in which we might read the self-reflective strain in contemporary works in this genre.