The Golden Spider

On the foggy streets of Victorian London, secrets and spies hide in a world of gaslamp fantasy.


Lady Amanda blackmailed her way into a prestigious London medical school…


Not the preferred method of entrance, of course, but necessary, for it’s the only way to force Lord Thornton, a professor at the school, to help her perfect her invention: a clockwork spider capable of spinning artificial nerves.


And Lord Thornton is interested… but is he interested in Amanda, or simply the invention that could cure his own debilitating injury? Neither one can trust the other, but both know this: any attraction is a danger, any romance forbidden.


But when a foreign spy steals the spider and uses it to perform grisly experiments on human subjects, they must set aside both their differences and their growing attraction to capture the killer terrorizing the streets of London.


Enjoy this story by historical fantasy romance author Anne Renwick where you'll unravel mysteries and defy conventions in a world where danger lurks around every corner.



The Golden Spider is a steampunk-infused gaslamp fantasy romance set in an alternate Victorian London, blending mystery, high-stakes science, and smoldering enemies-to-lovers tension. When a brilliant woman in STEM is forced to collaborate with her academic rival, sparks fly amid secrets, spies, and deadly ambition. Perfect for readers who enjoy Gail Carriger, Bec McMaster, Jacquelyn Benson and Mary Robinette Kowal.


The first story in the Elemental Web world, The Golden Spider can be enjoyed as a standalone and delivers a steamy romance with a guaranteed happily ever after—where love is as dangerous, and irresistible, as the invention that could save—or doom—London.


ELEMENTAL WEB CHRONICLES: The Golden Spider, The Silver Skull, The Iron Fin, Venomous Secrets, Icy Betrayals


ELEMENTAL WEB TALES: A Trace of Copper, In Pursuit of Dragons, A Reflection of Shadows, A Snowflake at Midnight, A Ghost in Amber, A Whisper of Bone, Flight of the Scarab


ELEMENTAL WEB STORIES: The Tin Rose, Kraken and Canals, Rust and Steam, Black Sand and Blood