Michel Faber explains in the Foreword of The Apple – Crimson Petal Stories that he received many letters from readers who had been disappointed by the ending that he had written for his book The Crimson Petal and the White. He included excerpts from some of the letters and they wanted him to write a sequel, something that he didn’t intend to do.

A lady from New York wrote: How dare you, sir! What an ending!

And a man in The Netherlands wrote: It is very clear why the story ends where it ends. You have made your point …. Still, I would like to request a sequel, for the following reasons:
I have grown attached to Sugar, your and my heroine. In my own real life there have been a number of sudden and irrevocable goodbyes, which have left lasting feelings of pain and guilt. Why do you make me suffer more?

But it was a man in Lancashire who really captured the feeling of ‘family’ that so many readers seem to have experienced. He wrote: A few days before Christmas I was half awake the first thought that came to me was what I could obtain as Christmas presents for Miss Sophie, Sugar and Mrs Fox. Then suddenly I realised who they really were.

Eventually Michel Faber wrote this book of seven short stories some of which are about characters from The Crimson Petal and the White. I didn’t read that book but I did watch and enjoy the TV series. This book was published in 2006 and I’m sure that it goes some way to satisfying some of his fans as we do indeed discover a bit more about Sugar’s life.

If you want a more detailed review of this book have a look at Jack’s thoughts on it here.