--- product_id: 1362963 title: "The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel" price: "$25.65" currency: USD in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.us/products/1362963-the-thirteenth-tale-a-novel store_origin: US region: United States of America --- # Top 150 in Gothic & Literary Fiction 432 pages of immersive storytelling First edition, 2007 classic The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel **Price:** $25.65 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Summary > 📖 Unlock the secrets of The Thirteenth Tale — where every page is a gateway to intrigue and timeless drama. ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel - **How much does it cost?** $25.65 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.us](https://www.desertcart.us/products/1362963-the-thirteenth-tale-a-novel) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - • **Accessible Yet Lyrical Prose:** Enjoy beautiful writing that balances sophistication with readability—perfect for the discerning reader. - • **A Masterpiece of Modern Gothic:** Dive into a richly woven tale that keeps you guessing until the last page. - • **A Must-Have First Edition Paperback:** Own a collectible first trade edition that’s both stylish and portable for your on-the-go lifestyle. - • **Complex Characters & Intriguing Drama:** Experience a cast of flawed, fascinating personalities that spark endless conversations. - • **Critically Acclaimed & Loved by Thousands:** Join over 13,000 readers who rated it 4.4 stars for its compelling narrative. ## Overview The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield is a 432-page first trade paperback published in 2007, ranking in the top 150 for Gothic and Literary Fiction. Praised for its immersive storytelling, complex characters, and lyrical prose, it has captivated over 13,000 readers with a 4.4-star average rating. This novel is a must-read for professionals seeking a sophisticated yet gripping literary escape. ## Description The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel [Setterfield, Diane] on desertcart.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel Review: Wonderful Story - Will Keep You Guessing Until the End! - This is the book I tell everyone about. Beautiful writing, interesting characters, and an immersive world of family drama and intrigue! Review: Pretty dang good - I did not expect to like this book. It had been recommended to me and is clearly popular, but I find myself shying away from super popular books because they're usually not very good. But then this one was on sale for $3 and that's cheaper than a sushi lunch and would take me longer to digest, so I bought it. And I'm glad I did. The story is certainly well crafted and grabs you. It is well written and lyrical. It has a plethora of well-fleshed out characters that keep you interested, and the ending is neat and tidy. Things that bugged me (note: I'm easily bugged): - The inter-generational abuse and neglect presented as normal. - Esoteric words chucked in there where simpler ones would do. .... Ok, OTOH, maybe the author fell in love with those particular words and needed to put them somewhere in homage. I can understand that. But it was still vaguely irritating. - The twin thing. Yes I know it was a major theme of the book, but really, I was happily truckling along, completely immersed in the story universe, and then there would be this whine about the twin and it totally yanked me out of the tale and plonked me firmly back into reality. Like seriously, maybe it's time to get over yourself, girl? This obsession is maybe not quite healthy? In that regard the very end had me rolling my eyes so far back in my head I nearly fell over. - There was something else but with my irritation about the twin thing I've forgotten what it was. Curses. The characters: I find it interesting that most of the male characters, barring Charlie, were extremely comfortable to be around. I liked Dr. Clifton very much. His amusement delighted me. I loved Aurelius not only because his name reminded me fondly of Marcus Aurelius, but because he was so caring and safe. Also the cake. That's pretty important. I liked John because he kept on doing the best he could. Charlie and Charlie's Dad, of course, both needed to be put out of their misery. Of the women, most of them were flawed. Even Hester, who brought cleanliness and order, also brought chaos. Missus cared and loved, but was inadequate. Isabella needed to be put out of her misery. And Margaret whined. I wonder what that was all about? The gender thing? Was it deliberate? Surely not. OH hey...Mrs. Love wasn't flawed. She was just lovely. <3 OH! I remembered what the other thing was that irritated me. The vague hints that this was going to be a ghost story. My mind stamped a firm "NOPE" on that one and I got inwardly snarly whenever it came up. Anyway, I recommend this book. It's a good one. Interesting, compelling, no bad language or explicit sex. Just a really good story. ## Features - Author: Setterfield, Diane. - Publisher: Washington Square Press - Pages: 432 - Publication Date: 2007-10-09 - Edition: First Trade - Binding: Paperback - MSRP: 17 - ISBN13: 9780743298032 - ISBN: 0743298039 - Other ISBN: 9781416540533 - Other ISBN Binding: print - Language: en ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #19,039 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #132 in Gothic Fiction #160 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction #686 in Literary Fiction (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.4 out of 5 stars 13,142 Reviews | ## Images ![The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81TVVmmO85L.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Wonderful Story - Will Keep You Guessing Until the End! *by S***R on February 21, 2026* This is the book I tell everyone about. Beautiful writing, interesting characters, and an immersive world of family drama and intrigue! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pretty dang good *by M***N on October 16, 2018* I did not expect to like this book. It had been recommended to me and is clearly popular, but I find myself shying away from super popular books because they're usually not very good. But then this one was on sale for $3 and that's cheaper than a sushi lunch and would take me longer to digest, so I bought it. And I'm glad I did. The story is certainly well crafted and grabs you. It is well written and lyrical. It has a plethora of well-fleshed out characters that keep you interested, and the ending is neat and tidy. Things that bugged me (note: I'm easily bugged): - The inter-generational abuse and neglect presented as normal. - Esoteric words chucked in there where simpler ones would do. .... Ok, OTOH, maybe the author fell in love with those particular words and needed to put them somewhere in homage. I can understand that. But it was still vaguely irritating. - The twin thing. Yes I know it was a major theme of the book, but really, I was happily truckling along, completely immersed in the story universe, and then there would be this whine about the twin and it totally yanked me out of the tale and plonked me firmly back into reality. Like seriously, maybe it's time to get over yourself, girl? This obsession is maybe not quite healthy? In that regard the very end had me rolling my eyes so far back in my head I nearly fell over. - There was something else but with my irritation about the twin thing I've forgotten what it was. Curses. The characters: I find it interesting that most of the male characters, barring Charlie, were extremely comfortable to be around. I liked Dr. Clifton very much. His amusement delighted me. I loved Aurelius not only because his name reminded me fondly of Marcus Aurelius, but because he was so caring and safe. Also the cake. That's pretty important. I liked John because he kept on doing the best he could. Charlie and Charlie's Dad, of course, both needed to be put out of their misery. Of the women, most of them were flawed. Even Hester, who brought cleanliness and order, also brought chaos. Missus cared and loved, but was inadequate. Isabella needed to be put out of her misery. And Margaret whined. I wonder what that was all about? The gender thing? Was it deliberate? Surely not. OH hey...Mrs. Love wasn't flawed. She was just lovely. <3 OH! I remembered what the other thing was that irritated me. The vague hints that this was going to be a ghost story. My mind stamped a firm "NOPE" on that one and I got inwardly snarly whenever it came up. Anyway, I recommend this book. It's a good one. Interesting, compelling, no bad language or explicit sex. Just a really good story. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thoroughly Absorbing *by P***H on May 30, 2007* It is so nice to pick up a novel and find that within a page or two you have become completely entranced. There are some authors who just seem to have a natural-born talent for this. (And way too many that don't). They take you into their world and before you know it, you find that nothing else in your life really matters. Ms. Setterfield has surely accomplished this with this clever, absorbing tale. It is written in the first person and narrated by Margaret, a contemporary Englishwoman, a sketcher of biographies, and a part-time bookseller in her father's store. Before going any further, it should be mentioned that this novel is a perfect example of the effective use of the first person narrative. Margaret immediately takes us into her confidence, giving us her innermost thoughts, sharing with us her firmly-held opinions, and perhaps most importantly, freely disclosing her vulnerabilities. Unfortunately, too many contemporary authors don't seem understand this concept, carelessly using the first-person in narratives that are utterly lacking in intimacy. Ms. Setterfield clearly does understand the concept, and as mentioned above, she has the reader wrapped around her finger in about two pages. The story has to do with an eccentric, popular and critically-acclaimed English author--Vida Winter--who has plucked Margaret out of obscurity to write her biography. Margaret finds her task greatly complicated by the fact that several attempts at this biography have been made by other would-be authors, and all ended disastrously when it became apparent that Ms. Winter was not going to relate anything even remotely approximating the truth. She is a storyteller, you see. But the strong-willed Margaret is not to be trifled with. She is insistent that Ms. Winter be straight with her and she is insistent on her right to verify the facts. The somewhat disdainful Ms. Winter agrees, and then proceeds to tell Margaret about the looniest story one could possibly imagine. It is, to say the least, a lot of fun. First of all, there are the conversations between these two very intelligent, determined women, filled with wit, word-play and confrontation; then there is the emerging story of Ms. Winter's childhood--the biography written by Margaret--her feral upbringing, her insane parents, the decaying, Gothic mansion; finally there is the story of Margaret herself, her lonely life, her scholarly father, her psychotic mother, and her independent investigation. All of these wind among each other seamlessly and are alternately engrossing and suspenseful. If there is a flaw here, it is that the ultimate resolution of Winter's fanciful story is almost too much to believe. It's a bit of a stretch, don't you know, but on second thought, perhaps not. Ms. Setterfield is a storyteller, you see. ## Frequently Bought Together - The Thirteenth Tale - Once Upon a River: The Sunday Times bestseller - The Lost Bookshop: The most charming and uplifting novel of 2023 and the perfect gift for book lovers! --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.us/products/1362963-the-thirteenth-tale-a-novel](https://www.desertcart.us/products/1362963-the-thirteenth-tale-a-novel) --- *Product available on Desertcart United States of America* *Store origin: US* *Last updated: 2026-05-17*