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ClareR (5869 KP) rated The Shape of Darkness in Books
Feb 21, 2021
The Shape of Darkness was well worth the wait! I’ve read two of Laura Purcell’s books on The Pigeonhole, so when this book came up on NetGalley, I knew that I had to read it. This has been one of my half term reads, and well worth the wait!
Agnes is a silhouette artist in Victorian Bath, and she struggles to support her sickly mother and her nephew - although his father does contribute some money to help feed and clothe him (and help Agnes and her mother too).
Shortly after one of Agnes’ clients leaves her studio, he is murdered. She then discovers that another client has also been murdered - there is an unnerving pattern forming here, because this is just the start. In order to get some insight, Agnes decides that she should consult a medium. This is where Pearl and her sister Myrtle, a mesmerist-in-training, come in. Pearl is ethereal, a child with albinism, and seems to genuinely possess the gift of communicating with the dead.
This is an unnerving, chilling and at times, quite a scary book. It’s full of the detail of Victorian life too: poverty, class distinctions, the hustle and bustle of a busy Victorian Bath. I loved the dark, gothic feel, too. It contained loads of details of life, of how technology was changing and affecting the lives of Victorians. And it was just a really excellent mystery that kept me guessing to the very end. If you’re going to read it (and I strongly suggest that you do!), just don’t read it with only the little light on if you’re spooked easily!
Many thanks to Raven Books for providing me with an e-book through NetGalley to read and review.
Agnes is a silhouette artist in Victorian Bath, and she struggles to support her sickly mother and her nephew - although his father does contribute some money to help feed and clothe him (and help Agnes and her mother too).
Shortly after one of Agnes’ clients leaves her studio, he is murdered. She then discovers that another client has also been murdered - there is an unnerving pattern forming here, because this is just the start. In order to get some insight, Agnes decides that she should consult a medium. This is where Pearl and her sister Myrtle, a mesmerist-in-training, come in. Pearl is ethereal, a child with albinism, and seems to genuinely possess the gift of communicating with the dead.
This is an unnerving, chilling and at times, quite a scary book. It’s full of the detail of Victorian life too: poverty, class distinctions, the hustle and bustle of a busy Victorian Bath. I loved the dark, gothic feel, too. It contained loads of details of life, of how technology was changing and affecting the lives of Victorians. And it was just a really excellent mystery that kept me guessing to the very end. If you’re going to read it (and I strongly suggest that you do!), just don’t read it with only the little light on if you’re spooked easily!
Many thanks to Raven Books for providing me with an e-book through NetGalley to read and review.
ClareR (5869 KP) rated Luckenbooth in Books
Feb 14, 2021
I love a book that takes me by surprise and is a bit off centre; something a bit different from books found on the bestseller lists (which is where I would hope this will end up!!), or the supermarket shelves. Luckenbooth is one of those books.
Luckenbooth piqued my interest as soon as I saw the cover photo - and then I read the synopsis. How could it possibly NOT appeal to me? I mean, the devils daughter rows to Edinburgh in a coffin to work for the Minister of Culture. I was hooked. It’s not all about her though. The book is split into three sections, each section revolving around three different characters, and we see glimpses in to their lives. There are people from all walks of life: strippers, spies, maids, a black human rights lawyer with a bone mermaid, drug addicts, poets, a medium. These are all people who live on the edge of society (within No. 10 Luckenbooth Close, anyway!), people who have little - and they live in a tenement that has been cursed by the devils daughter.
The stories seem not to be linked to one another, and their only link is the fact that they all live in the same tenement building. I really enjoyed these snapshots, any one of them could have been longer and I would have enjoyed them just as much. This fed my love of short stories though, and I really liked how reality was mixed with the more supernatural elements.
I will have to dig out my copies of Fagans books The Sunlight Pilgrims and The Panopticon, languishing in my Kindle library - this has really made me want to read her other books.
Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book through NetGalley.
Luckenbooth piqued my interest as soon as I saw the cover photo - and then I read the synopsis. How could it possibly NOT appeal to me? I mean, the devils daughter rows to Edinburgh in a coffin to work for the Minister of Culture. I was hooked. It’s not all about her though. The book is split into three sections, each section revolving around three different characters, and we see glimpses in to their lives. There are people from all walks of life: strippers, spies, maids, a black human rights lawyer with a bone mermaid, drug addicts, poets, a medium. These are all people who live on the edge of society (within No. 10 Luckenbooth Close, anyway!), people who have little - and they live in a tenement that has been cursed by the devils daughter.
The stories seem not to be linked to one another, and their only link is the fact that they all live in the same tenement building. I really enjoyed these snapshots, any one of them could have been longer and I would have enjoyed them just as much. This fed my love of short stories though, and I really liked how reality was mixed with the more supernatural elements.
I will have to dig out my copies of Fagans books The Sunlight Pilgrims and The Panopticon, languishing in my Kindle library - this has really made me want to read her other books.
Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book through NetGalley.
BookInspector (124 KP) rated The Missing Diamonds (Agent Zaiba Investigates, #1) in Books
Sep 24, 2020 (Updated Jan 26, 2021)
The protagonist in this novel is Zaiba, and the story I told from her perspective. Her “sidekicks” are her brother Ali and best friend Poppy. They all are very different, Zaiba is a born leader, who decides where the whole crew goes, Ali is a little nerd, he is very good when it comes to facts and information, and Poppy knows everything about celebrities, nice clothing and makeup. I think they make a really good team. I really liked that these series have a South Asian protagonist. There is still a lack of diverse characters in children’s literature, and I am thrilled to see, that South Asian children can relate to such a great character like Zaiba.
The narrative of this book was quite intriguing. I really enjoyed the investigation in this book. I really could not figure out who was the culprit, and the discovery was very surprising to me. 🙂 I really enjoyed how South Asian traditions and family was described, also, I really liked the fact that Zaiba’s parents have an interracial marriage. This thing is very common nowadays.
The writing style is very creative, and the language used is pretty easy to read. I really liked the illustrations, they make the whole reading experience more entertaining. The chapters have medium length, and to be fair, I would like them a little shorter. There is some extra material for the children at the back of the book, and I think it is very thoughtful and great for all the little agents to use for their future adventures.
So, to conclude, I really liked this mystery story, filled with diverse and entertaining characters, as well as very well written investigation during mehndi celebration in an old hotel. If your young one is into the mystery, I strongly recommend this series, especially if you are Indian, Pakistani, Bengali etc.
The narrative of this book was quite intriguing. I really enjoyed the investigation in this book. I really could not figure out who was the culprit, and the discovery was very surprising to me. 🙂 I really enjoyed how South Asian traditions and family was described, also, I really liked the fact that Zaiba’s parents have an interracial marriage. This thing is very common nowadays.
The writing style is very creative, and the language used is pretty easy to read. I really liked the illustrations, they make the whole reading experience more entertaining. The chapters have medium length, and to be fair, I would like them a little shorter. There is some extra material for the children at the back of the book, and I think it is very thoughtful and great for all the little agents to use for their future adventures.
So, to conclude, I really liked this mystery story, filled with diverse and entertaining characters, as well as very well written investigation during mehndi celebration in an old hotel. If your young one is into the mystery, I strongly recommend this series, especially if you are Indian, Pakistani, Bengali etc.
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