The Purchase - Linda Spalding - Guest Book Review

Published by Sandstone Press

Guest review by Mandy Jenkinson

Quaker widower Daniel Dickinson is driven by his community from his native Pennsylvania after he marries a young orphan Methodist girl following the death of his wife. He sets off to build a new life for his family in Virginia and almost by accident he acquires a young slave boy. This impulsive act sets off a chain of tragic and ever more complicated set of events that profoundly affects both his life and that of his children. Deeply horrified by slavery he yet finds himself caught up in its snares, and can never quite manage to break free.

This is an extremely powerful and moving story with some unforgettable characters. Daniel himself is a good and moral man, but everything he does somehow goes wrong. Whether that is due to any intrinsic weakness in his character, or whether it’s a destiny he can’t fight against, is left to the reader to decide. For all his good intentions, he causes irreparable harm to those who are dear to him. Set in pre-abolition America, it’s an evocative and atmospheric account of everyday slavery and its effect on slave-owners. 

There’s some raw and powerful writing here. The author’s commanding use of language makes for an unforgettable portrait of a time and a place. Skilfully paced, and often surprising, the story moves on to its inexorable end and explores how devastating the consequences of one split-second decision can be. It’s an unremittingly bleak novel, with very few moments of joy or redemption, even though there is love and loyalty to be found here as well. Serious themes of family, religion and conscience pervade every page and I found it both totally absorbing and totally compelling.

Loosely based on the author’s own ancestors, and painstakingly and thoroughly researched, this is a book that will remain with me for a long time, and one that I very much enjoyed. 

Many thanks to Mandy for reading and reviewing this novel for The Little Reader Library. Mandy is an omnivorous reader who enjoys reviewing, for newbooks magazine as well as elsewhere, and enjoys discovering new authors.

Fire and Brimstone - Colin Bateman

I have read, and really enjoyed, many of this author's previous novels over the years, I love his writing and storytelling style. I think most if not all of them I read before I started book blogging/reviewing so I can only say that I enjoyed them so much and recommended them here there and everywhere by word of mouth. The first ones I read were Cycle of Violence and Divorcing Jack. You might have seen or heard of the film version of the latter novel too, featuring David Thewlis. As well as the novels featuring Dan Starkey, of which this (Fire and Brimstone) is one, I've  read and enjoyed some of the novels in the 'Mystery Man', bookshop-based series as well as others by this author.

Anyway, getting on to Fire and Brimstone properly, this is another entertaining and bumpy ride along with Dan Starkey. Dark, at times bleak and sad, at times very funny and witty indeed, sometimes violent, occasionally possibly near the knuckle to some (topics include drug wars, religion, and abortion), but the story is always very very readable and the author always keeps you wanting to turn the pages. 

This time around, Dan, now a private investigator, takes on the job of tracking a missing person, the daughter of a billionaire. Alison Wolff was last seen at a party, where terrible tragedy occurred. Has she been kidnapped, is she still alive? It's up to Dan to find out, and inevitably as per usual he gets up to his neck in it all, finding fresh and deeper trouble at each turn, this time getting mixed up in religious cults and drug gangs. Amazingly, for those who have been with them throughout the series of novels, Trish is still around despite everything. 

I love the dark humour, the writing style, the intrigue and twists in the story,  the close calls and near misses, the sharp, witty dialogue, and I'm always curious to find out what Dan Starkey will get involved with next. Do give one of his books a try if you've never read one before, ideally I'd recommend starting with an earlier novel, if for example you wanted to follow Dan's path from the start, though it's not a prerequisite for reading this one, but I think it does add to the enjoyment if you know the background. I think this is an author whose books you can get addicted to, and I'm always pleased to see a new one appear.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this novel via bookbridgr for an honest review. 

Author links - twitter @ColinBateman | website

Published by Headline

His Dark Lady - Victoria Lamb

'Lucy had come to realize in her time at court what a fragile thing reputation was, and how easily it could be lost...'

This novel is the second to feature the lead character Lucy Morgan, the first being The Queen's Secret (click the title to read my full review of that novel). 

This is another very enjoyable historical tale weaving fiction with real characters and detail from history, most notably Queen Elizabeth I, and a certain young playwright going by the name of Will Shakespeare. The story is set in the 1580s. Lucy is the dark lady of the title, one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, liked for her singing voice, she met the young Shakespeare briefly in the first novel, and here she becomes his muse. Several other characters from the first book make a welcome reappearance here, including Lucy's guardian Goodluck, once more involved in danger and intrigue. We learn that Lucy witnessed the secret marriage of Robert Dudley, beloved favourite of the Queen, to her cousin Lettice Knollys, and concealing her presence there from the Queen weighs heavily on Lucy's mind. 

I enjoyed catching up with these characters again, they had stayed in my mind after the first novel in the series, in particular Lucy and Goodluck, and I was curious and excited to revisit their world and discover what adventures they would be involved in next. I was also gripped and intrigued by how the author portrayed Elizabeth during these turbulent times in her reign; her hopes and her health as she gets older, her ongoing feelings for Leicester, whose 'marriage was still a wound in her side', the threats on her life from those intent on removing her and installing Mary, Queen of Scots on the throne and the resulting doubts as to who in her circle she can really trust. It's always interesting to see how an author depicts people from history when creating fiction, and I was intrigued by Victoria Lamb's take on Shakespeare, although how he behaves here might not leave you quite so fond of him! 

I liked how the narrative moved between the different threads of the tale, focusing on the main characters Lucy, Goodluck, Shakespeare and the Queen; this added tension and kept me turning the pages to find out how each strand developed. 

It's an imaginative, entertaining and dramatic tale read on its own. Having said that, I'd recommend reading The Queen's Secret first ideally, so that you can follow through the stories of each character more fully. I liked the author's notes at the end separating the fact from the fiction. 

The third part in the trilogy is due to be published early in 2014 and is entitled Her Last Assassin (click the title to see the cover reveal on Victoria Lamb's website).

Source - publisher review copy

Published by Bantam Press

Visit the author's website here and follow the author on twitter @VictoriaLamb1.

The Cleaner of Chartres - Salley Vickers

Agnes Morel lives in Chartres, and is very much involved in the community, having several roles, including cleaning the floor of the beautiful cathedral, babysitting, sitting as an artist's model, and helping Professor Jones with his paperwork. Agnes comes over as quietly spoken, kind and independent, however, she is rather enigmatic and though she fulfills all of these different roles within the town, not that much else is actually known about her, her background or where she came to Chartres from. Slowly over the course of the story, her past is revealed, and we learn she has endured much sadness, but has also been on the receiving end of kindness too, and this has all shaped her life. One of the locals, Madame Beck, who is rather prone to gossip and making her often unfair and biased judgements about others known, takes against Agnes, and proceeds to influence events. The story is told in alternating chapters focusing in turn on Agnes life in the present day and then in her past.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and was so impressed by the writing and by the truly wonderful characterisation by Salley Vickers. The whole cast, from Agnes, to Alain the restorer working in the cathedral, to busybody Madame Beck and her accomplice Madame Picot, are brought vividly to life.  There's a lovely sense of place too, with the vivid, detailed descriptions of the architecture of Chartres cathedral making me eager to go and seek out more about this place after finishing the novel. 

There is gentle love, sadness, separation, strong bonds of friendship, faith and belief, trust and betrayal. This tale is well-plotted and by turns surprising, witty, deeply sad, and uplifting. Vickers captures and convincingly portrays such an array of human emotions and behaviour very well here; the good and the bad, highlighting redeeming features and flaws in her characters, and depicts both the behaviour people exhibit on the surface, and the deeper feelings, dreams and regrets hidden inside. I really liked how the storyline played out, how the lives of the characters intertwined, and how the past was fused with the present. I found the events in Agnes past very touching and felt it was all handled very well by the author; Salley Vickers has certainly got a strong grasp on what makes people of all types tick.

Truly a delightful, moving and beautifully written story and I am certain it will stay with me for a long time.

Published by Viking, an imprint of Penguin

This book was passed on to me by a fellow reader - thanks, Sam.

The View on the Way Down - Rebecca Wait

'He was fine some of the time, yes. But his mood could plummet at any moment. I wondered what that must be like for him.'

I was so very keen to read this novel when I heard about it. At the same time, I was very hesitant, because it deals with some things that affect me personally and that I strongly identify with. With this in mind, I did wonder how I would feel whilst, and after, reading it. The answer was that I was very moved by it and it did affect me, it made me cry and many times it made me think how astonishing it is, because the author has understood depression and has conveyed it as it is and can be; crippling, overwhelming, devastating, rendering a person so different from who they were and leaving those who love the person affected by it wondering what they can do. Aspects of the story were more close to home than I could have realised. 

The story tells of Emma, of her brother Jamie, and her other brother Kit, and of her parents Joe and Rose. One of Emma's brothers died five years ago, and the other left the family home on the day of the funeral and hasn't been back since. Emma's parents haven't told her what actually happened, and neither have they spoken to each other about it. The immense impact of what has happened in the past is finally exposed as events in the present bring it out into focus for all of them. Emma is a lovely character who drives much of the story forward. I liked her and I felt for her. She is sweet and sensitive and is being bullied at school and can't understand why Jamie hasn't been in touch since Kit's death. This separation of the younger sister from her older brother with her not knowing why broke my heart. Her memories of time spent with her brothers are so important to her, but she has begun to question them: 

'She clung on to memories like this, but it had occurred to her recently that perhaps they couldn't be trusted. If enough time went by, how could you be sure what was actually true and what you had imagined? Especially if nobody talked about any of it.' 

It's almost impossible for Emma to bring up the subject of Jamie, and of Kit's death, with her parents, because of the extreme reactions it provokes. So she has been left alone with her thoughts about them both. Rebecca Wait captures so well the complexity and pain of the feelings of those left behind, not just of Emma but of Jamie, Joe and Rose. Jamie has a great deal to cope with, and I was incredibly drawn to him through the way he was portrayed. I thought the portrayal of the father, Joe's feelings, was also particularly well drawn and convincing in showing how difficult it was for him to try and deal with what had happened; quite simply, he hadn't been able to deal with it. 

'...he did nothing, simply carried on as before. Head down, struggling through the days. Keeping going, getting through. He'd always known, without having to consider it, that there was no chance of recovery. Not for him, not for any of them. The passing years hadn't changed a thing. There was no getting over this.'

But I have written that the author has been honest and true in portraying this story and these people. So we know that doing nothing can't carry on forever, not without someone breaking or something having to give, and for them all to have to face what happened, at last. The conclusion felt right to me and I'm glad the story ended as it did.

The View on the Way Down is a beautifully written debut novel, and Rebecca Wait sensitively portrays painful, harsh truths about depression. But it remains throughout a compelling, vital story that the reader has to read to the finish. 

This story is sad, tender, raw and painful but it is also warm and hopeful. It is heartbreaking, vivid and it feels very real. I felt so involved with this story as I read it, I felt the agonies of this family, I was moved by the characters and I found myself thinking about them after closing the pages. I read the book in one day; it's very rare for me to manage that. 

Evidently Rebecca Wait knows the ins and outs of what she is writing about here; there were moments that I felt were so accurate, so heartfelt and true. It had a powerful effect on me to feel the strength and honesty in her words. It's an important story, told so, so well. The writing is light and understated and yet so incisive. The author has a deft touch whether writing about the everyday or the extreme.

So many sentences and passages stood out to me. There are moments that touched my heart and brought tears to my eyes because they were so simply stated yet so painfully true, such as the observation by Jamie's former girlfriend about the letter he once wrote to her; I will let you discover the details for yourself if you read the book. It made me think just how much the author has understood about people and life, how she has captured the reactions and realities that rang so true to me as I read. 

One of my principal thoughts after finishing this novel was that it's so special to read a book that actually reminds you why you love reading so much. To read a book that you connect with, that takes you away from your world and into the lives of others, into a story that you are deeply moved by and compelled to read, but a book that, when you put it down and return to your own world, makes you feel that you are not alone in that world or not alone with your feelings. 

I hope I have done this book some justice in my review. I think there is so much more I could say, but in the end all I can say is I thought it was an amazing, accomplished debut and please do read it. 

I don't use ratings on my blog anymore but if I did this book would get 6 out of 5.

Published by Picador

Thanks very much to the publisher for kindly sending me a copy of this novel to read and review. 

You can follow the author on twitter @RebeccaWait and visit her website here.


Other reviews from book bloggers:

| Being Anne Reading | Dog Ear Discs | And Then I Read a Book | Random Things Through My Letterbox | Fleur in her World

Amity and Sorrow - Peggy Riley

'She has had to run far and fast to pull herself loose from him, to rip those stitches, but still she can feel how bound she is...'

Amity and Sorrow are sisters, and we meet them as they are on the run with their mother Amaranth, from their home which is now on fire. It was the only place the two of them have ever known; they know nothing of the outside world. Their mother has driven for four days solid in a desperate bid to escape the life she has been living, to take them away from her husband, their father, and the polygamous cult that they have grown up in. When they come to a stop, crashing the car at a gas station in the Oklahoma countryside, feeling scared and hungry, they meet Bradley, a farmer, who is sad and lonely with his own life no longer with him, and although he is initially suspicious of the three women with their unusual clothing, and though he is not overly welcoming at first, he does offer them hope and a place to stay. 

The sisters react in contrasting ways to this dramatic change in their lives; whilst Amity enjoys her newfound freedom and all the things she is discovering, Sorrow wants nothing other than to return home, to her father. 

Interspersed amongst the main narrative recounting what happened to the three women having escaped are several chapters recalling events before they left the cult, so we gradually learn how life was there, Amaranth the first of fifty wives, and we begin to understand her motives as the past slowly unfolds to us and reveals its secrets. 

This is a captivating story that drew me in; I felt compelled to read on and discover what had lain behind Amaranth's choice to be part of the cult, and to find out how the sisters would react to this whole new world that they were suddenly exposed to. The relatively short chapters of episodes in their lives encouraged me to keep reading on and not put the book down. 

I was convinced by the contrast between the sisters; it is only possible to try and imagine their lives in the cult for anyone who has never been part of such a thing, yet I believed in both their reactions - Sorrow wanting to get back there, missing all that she has known and believed in and been a key part of, and yet also Amity embracing the new aspects of life offered to her now, so much that is unknown. 

This felt to me like a highly original story with characters that I grew to understand and care about more deeply as I read on. It's also a story that made me think and ponder the different lifestyles people lead and the difficult choices people make.  I liked the structure and pace of the story and I would very much recommend this fascinating debut novel to others. 

Published by Tinder Press

Thank you to the publisher for kindly sending a copy of this novel to read and give an honest review.

You can follow the author on twitter @Peggy_Riley and visit her website here.

Peggy Riley will be stopping here on a blog tour very soon with Amity and Sorrow, so do please come back soon!

The Land of Decoration - Grace McCleen

Judith is a ten-year-old girl who has embellished her bedroom with all manner of everyday items to transform it into 'The Land of Decoration.' She makes use of whatever she can find, turning ordinary bits and bobs that are essentially rubbish, into people, buildings, landscapes; whatever she imagines, she conjures it up somehow, and this is the place she retreats to. She lives with her father, her mother having passed away, and they have a fairly simple existence. They are fervently religious, regularly attending their meeting house every Sunday, believing that the End is on its way, and taking their message door-to-door. With only her father for company, eventually Judith beings to converse directly with God. One day Judith transforms the land she has created to look as if it has snowed, and wishes for it to snow the next day in the real world. When this actually happens, Judith believes she has performed a miracle, and that further miracles are possible. At school she is bullied for being different, by one boy in particular, and she begins to wonder if she can influence this too, with another miracle thought out in the Land of Decoration. Meanwhile her father has troubles of his own, as a strike at the factory where he works threatens to bring further problems to the family. 

This is a delightfully inventive and unusual story, and I loved Judith’s voice, at times sad, but always honest. There is such an innocence to her at times, yet the fatalistic beliefs that she has grown-up with via her father and their faith give her thoughts a much darker edge too, especially later in the book. Her father evidently also carries a deep sadness, despite his beliefs, and it is moving to see if, and how, their relationship will change. Whilst not intending to compare the two, or suggest they are the same, it reminded me a little of 'Room' by Emma Donoghue, in the way that the child narrator is key to the story. What happens to Judith affects everything, and it's through her insights into the confusing world around her that we experience her world. The chapters are for the most part very short and it's easy to get pulled into Judith's story. I was a little hesitant after reading some reviews and discovering the extent of the religious content, but actually this didn't affect the experience for me. In fact, there is a wonderful passage as she describes how she first hears God respond, and likens it to a long-distance telephone call. This novel may not answer all the questions it asks, and definitely leaves the reader wondering about certain elements of the story. It's a fresh, unconventional debut novel, and I found it an enjoyable, effortless and interesting reading experience. 

Published in the UK by Chatto & Windus on 1st March 2012. Hardcover edition.