Based on the scandalous true story of The Great Stork Derby, Prize Women is a gripping and deeply moving novel about desperate choices and the two unforgettable women forced to make them. 'Gorgeous. Prize Women took my breath away. I haven't stopped thinking about it' JENNIFER SAINT'Wonderfully evocative and intelligent. Sheds light on a scandalous moment in history I knew nothing about, told with great sensitivity and grace. I was entranced' EMMA STONEX'This heartbreaking story explores friendship, strength and the fight to survive' WOMAN'S WEEKLY___________It's the 1920s, a time of unparalleled excess. But for the rich to party, the poor must starve . . . Into the city arrives pregnant runaway Lily di Marco. She has nothing – and expects nothing. But soon she will find herself in a towering mansion just streets away. Confidante to, and best friends with, its glamorous owner Mae Thebolt. Until the competition. A childless millionaire leaves his fortune to the womanwho will have the most babies over ten years. Is it an eccentric contest?Or a horrible joke played by a rich man on the poorest women of the city?Either way, it will tear Lily and Mae’s friendship - and their lives - to pieces . . . ___________'A profoundly moving and absolutely gripping novel about the choices women face - and the choices they are denied. I cannot recommend it highly enough' ELODIE HARPER'This tale of two women resonates with what is happening in the world today. I was gripped by Lily and Mae's story, the desperate choices that women still face' LOUISE HARE'Fascinating historical fiction with a feminist slant' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING'A serious, thoughtful and epic journey into the trials of motherhood . . . With her contrasting female characters, Lea interrogates the fight for female agency across class divides, a struggle that continues to this day. A fascinating snapshot of another time, perhaps not as far removed from our own as we might hope' JANICE HALLET'Wonderfully researched and full of evocative historical detail' CULTUREFLY'Masterful. Caroline Lea is a superb storyteller, and Prize Women deserves a huge readership. So good, I had to pull myself away' ELIZABETH MACNEAL