The Memory Dress

By: Jade Beer

Narrated by: Annabelle Dowler, Gordon Griffin, Heather Long

An endearing story of loss and recovery, mystery and memory, heartache and love...completely captivating."—Shelley Noble, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiffany Girls and The Colony Club

A missing husband and a dress once owned by Princess Diana set two very different women on paths of discovery that will change both their lives forever in this dazzling new novel from the author of The Last Dress from Paris.

England, 2018: Jayne is quiet. She keeps to herself and has no grand expectations for her days. But after a chance encounter with her elderly neighbor, Meredith, Jayne is forced to reevaluate her determination to keep the world at a distance. Meredith's dust-covered home is chaotic and neglected. And slowly, Jayne starts to grasp that Meredith herself is quite lost. She can't seem to remember anything: what she last ate, when she last went out or saw her daughter, or even Jayne's name, despite what are becoming frequent visits.

But most alarmingly, Meredith can't remember where her husband is.

Unable to sit by and watch Meredith hurting, Jayne promises she'll find William. But how can she when the biggest clue Jayne has is a mystery itself: a stunning couture gown with a note declaring it a personal gift to Meredith...from Princess Diana.

England, 1988: Meredith is always calm. You have to be when working for one of the most iconic women in the world. Just as the stitches she uses to create Princess Diana’s wardrobe are steady and stable, so is Meredith. Until she finds herself feeling off-kilter and untethered by an unexpected connection with someone in the workshop. As Meredith finds herself swept up in life and love for the first time, everything she’s ever dreamed about seems in reach…if only she can be brave enough to take it.

"A moving exploration into how clothes make up the layers of our lives, as well as a wonderful insight into the worlds of dressmaking, royalty and friendship across generations."—Jessica Fellowes, international bestselling author of The Mitford Murders

©2024 Jade Beer (P)2024 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Jade Beer deftly interweaves the lives of neighbors who become friends, then family as they search for a missing husband and an elusive past. An endearing story of loss and recovery, mystery and memory, heartache and love—and dresses, The Memory Dress is completely captivating."—Shelley Noble, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiffany Girls and The Colony Club

"What a feat—​The Memory Dress is a moving exploration into how clothes make up the layers of our lives, as well as a wonderful insight into the worlds of dressmaking, royalty and friendship across generations. I loved it."—Jessica Fellowes, international bestselling author of The Mitford Murders

"Jade Beer's newest novel is a romantic, elegant story of two women who find they have much more in common than their Bath, England, apartment house. Uniting them is a gorgeous, historical dress that holds the key to their story. In glimmering, sumptuous details this exquisitely imagined novel unfolds in a way that leaves the reader completely captivated."—Jeanne Mackin, author of Picasso's Lovers