Tag Archives: published

The Doll Factory: Historical Fiction for the ‘Me Too’ Era

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‘The Doll Factory’, by Elizabeth Macneal, is published by Pan Macmillan.

I’ve never really considered myself the jealous type. And yet, yesterday – having finished the altogether best book I have read in possibly years – I found myself to be unequivocally, admittedly just that. Jealous. But, also awed, inspired and (isn’t it always so with a favourite book?) almost satisfied.

Because, well, this. This is the kind of book I’d want to write. Because it’s exactly the book I wanted to read.

We follow Iris: twin, shop girl, would-be artist. Dreaming of escape from the drudgery of working-class respectability she feels imprisoned in. Enter Louis, a spirited young painter who could offer just that. But is that all she has to contend with? Silas, a taxidermist with an obsession, has developed other ideas. It is a tale of possession, power and intrigue, with just the right measure of romantic relief.

Set in the possibilities of 1850, smack bang in the time of the Great Exhibition, The Doll Factory captures all of the aspects of Victorian London that we are most familiar with. The poverty, the degradation, the prostitution. Charity, ingenuity, opportunity. The constant framework of class. And art. Lots of art. The nothingness and the excess.

Aside from personal penchant – as a long-time fan of neo-Victorian literature, this romantic thriller was bound to appeal to me – Elizabeth Macneal’s debut boasts all the ingredients of a stunning success. Compelling characterisation, clever plot lines, and the seamless blending of historical accuracy with imaginary detail. Macneal’s world comes vividly alive and the thrill is deliciously real.

And a success it is proving to be. Macneal’s novel won the 2018 Caledonia Novel Award, is a Sunday Times top ten bestseller, and the TV rights have already been sold. And it’s not even out in paperback yet.

But more than that. There is a very modern edge to this story. At its heart, it is a story of womanhood, it is a story of breaking bonds and forging new ones, and it is a story of escape. And of course, the universal themes; life, and death.

And it is perfectly on point for the post ‘Me Too’ consciousness that we are living in. One particularly poignant passage conveys the male power that Iris feels threatened by, the paradoxical standard that women are held to; one that women are pushing against even now, two centuries later:

 ‘… all her life she has been careful not to encourage men, but not to slight them either… an arm around her waist is nothing more than friendly, a whisper in her ear and a forced kiss on the cheek is flattering, something for which she should be grateful. She should appreciate the attentions of men more, but she should resist them too, subtly, in a way both to encourage and discourage, so as not lead to doubts of her purity and goodness but not to make the men feel snubbed.’

Macneal’s Doll Factory. It is romantic, it is considered, and it is thrilling. I’d go as far as to employ that feminist buzzword, ‘empowering’.

Yes. Must read.

Reviewed by Nadia Tariq

 

Crime Roundup – Books we Mean, we Haven’t Become Vigilantes

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It’s summer and Frost has had a great time reading some recent crime novels.

Angela Marsons, who lives with her partner, Labrador and swearing parrot has written a corker:

Silent Scream, a D.I. Kim Stone novel.

Crime Roundup – Books we Mean, we Haven’t Become VigilantesSILENTSCREAM

D.I. Kim Stone does not excel at people skills, it must be said, but her sidekick Bryant invariably saves the day at that level. However it is Kim who takes her team to the edge of what is allowed, and strays over in order to get to the truth of things. In doing so her past is revealed and explains her own demons. Though this novel has sold a million internationally as an ebook, this is Silent Scream’s first outing in print. Well worth reading, with a good twist at the end. I almost got ‘who dun it’ but not quite. Clever.

Brenda Novak has set Her Darkest Nightmare in Alaska, a place I’d love to visit, so on that level I enjoyed the novel.

Her Darkest Nightmare.

But I was also gripped by Novak’s writing and taut plotting. Not sure I could work with psychopaths as Dr Evelyn Talbot does, but she has learnt to live with fear, after being targeted and tortured by her boyfriend as a teenager.  Not one to read at bedtime perhaps unless you’ve locked all the doors and windows, and looked under the beds, all of them. But I am a bit of a wimp. It’s one that stays with you. This is the first in a new series from this New York Times bestselling author.

Christopher Farnsworth’s Kill File’s opening sentence made me laugh. I quote:

I know what you’re thinking. Most of the time, it’s not impressive. Trust me. 

Kill File

 Oh, I do, I do, if I go by what I  read a great deal on social media. Thoughts put down unfiltered…

This contemporary thriller has its foot down all the way, and believe me, it’s driven by an expert:  great writing, interesting and refreshingly original concept. John Smith, the main character, has a special gift/curse, he can access other people’s thoughts. It is something John Smith has put it to good use in the past, only to find that his latest investigation lands him in deep water. I really liked this, bit like being on a roller coaster. Well worth taking on holiday.

Anna Smith’s Kill me Twice is a well trodden path, that of secrets threatening to destroy lives from the sink estates of Glasgow to the corridors of Westminster in another case for Rosie Gilmour.

KILLMETWICE Those who are already fans won’t be disappointed and it should gather in new ones as Rosie ducks and weaves to expose the truth of a presumed suicide – which wasn’t, and there’s sexual abuse too, linking powerful figures across the nation.

The Last Thing I remember by Deborah Bee is intriguing. Frost has already reviewed this, but I thought I’d have another look, and it stays crisp, the tension sharp, and all this right up to the last page.

The last thing I remember.

This is a debut thriller from the Creative Director at Harrods with TV rights already optioned by Alan Moloney’s Parallel Films. I  concerns a mugging victim who can’t move, or speak.

I have a friend who has been in just such a state: struck down by a virus she has been aware, but trapped inside her body. Fortunately my friend is recovering, but this is the clever plotting behind The Last Thing I remember.

Sarah has been mugged, and can hear, but not move, or speak. She has to piece together her life by listening to the people around her. Kelly is in the waiting room. She’s just a kid, a schoolgirl, but why is she there? Questions, questions, but slowly the picture is put together.

I really liked this concept. It isn’t an easy one to manage, but Bee’s done it, easy peasy.

Silent Scream by Angela Marsons pub by Zaffre

Her Darkest Nightmare by Brenda Novak  pub by Headline

Kill File by Christopher Farnsworth pub by Zaffre

Kill me Twice by Anna Smith  pub by Quercus

The Last thing I Remember by Deborah Bee pub by twenty7

 

 

 

Call For Entries: The International Nelson Mandela Poetry Tribute

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Nelson Mandela, quote, quotes, death

Credit: Wikipedia Commons

To mourn his death and celebrate his life, Poetry Zone have opened the International Nelson Mandela Poetry Tribute, as a fitting way to gather poetic tributes from around the world in an online collection – accessible to all. They welcome all contributions and would appreciate your support in alerting people to this global poetry initiative.

Nelson Mandela was a man to whom poetry and the poetry of words mattered. There’s the legend of his reading of Invictus to his fellow prisoners on Robben Island, but in every speech Mandela worked language to leverage its impact. He may not have formally published poetry, but Mandela was a poet.

On his death, the US State Department issued a poem by Maya Angelou in memory of Nelson Mandela and there have been earlier tributes by Thabo Mbeki and Tupac Shakur. At his memorial on Tuesday his Grandchildren showed the power of poetry, rousing the crowd with short electric stabs in a call and response tribute to Mandela’s modesty and power.

For the many people who write poetry around the world, an opportunity now exists to contribute their own poetry; to write a poetic tribute on the passing of a great historical figure. Sorrow, Gratitude, Appreciation, Love, Respect… You don’t need to be a poet laureate to take part – and it’s not a competition. It’s about personal responses. What did Nelson Mandela mean to you? How did his message affect the world? What do you feel on learning of his death? What are your personal memories and reflections? Did he inspire you? Maybe you took part, in any small way, to help end apartheid. Or you played an important role… How do you think his legacy will endure?

Nelson Mandela was a global figure who brought a message of reconciliation rather than retribution, despite his own suffering and the nature of the apartheid regime which he’d opposed. It was this that made Nelson Mandela a true inspiration to millions around the world, a man who was prepared to lay down his own life to affect the change needed to rectify the glaring abomination of apartheid.

It is free to post poems at www.PoetryZoo.com, or simply email poems to Mandela@poetryzoo.com and they will be included in the anthology .

As the world reacts, we are glad to be able to provide a fitting international tribute in poetry to Nelson Mandela: Madiba, Tata.