Pages: 403
Published: 4th April 2019
Genre: Historical Mystery/Paranormal
Content warnings: Sexual references, allusions to sexual assault, descriptions of gore
Bridie Devine—female detective extraordinaire—is confronted with the most baffling puzzle yet: the kidnapping of Christabel Berwick, secret daughter of Sir Edmund Athelstan Berwick, and a peculiar child whose reputed supernatural powers have captured the unwanted attention of collectors trading curiosities in this age of discovery.
Winding her way through the labyrinthine, sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won’t rest until she finds the young girl, even if it means unearthing a past that she’d rather keep buried. Luckily, her search is aided by an enchanting cast of characters, including a seven-foot tall housemaid; a melancholic, tattoo-covered ghost; and an avuncular apothecary. But secrets abound in this foggy underworld where spectacle is king and nothing is quite what it seems.
This is a highly unusual book which boasts a number of eye-catching ideas and concepts, but falls short of expectations by trying to be too clever for its own good. At times richly entertaining through a combination of inherent wittiness and a motley crew of uniquely unusual characters, an overly elaborate writing style and constant changes of perspective make it a rather confusing read.
At first glance this is a historical fiction as the setting is Victorian London, yet along with the element of mystery it also enters the realm of fantasy as mythical and paranormal creatures play a key role in the plot. It is a chaotic ride involving multiple strands that do not all fit together perfectly, while the technique of dual timelines is also added to the mix.
Bridie Devine is a detective who, still scarred by the tragic outcome of her most recent case, decides to investigate the disappearance of a mysterious girl called Christabel. The secret daughter of Sir Edmund Berwick, the missing Christabel is said to possess otherworldly powers and is apparently of interest to wealthy collectors of curious items.
With the help of her towering housekeeper Cora and the ghost of Ruby, a former boxer who sports an array of animate tattoos, Bridie finds that Christabel was only ever seen by her nurse, the family doctor and his daughter. The case is then made even more complicated by the discovery of the dead body of a woman near the Berwick estate that casts suspicion on the whole household.
As she travels across London looking for clues to Christabel’s whereabouts, it becomes clear that Bridie has to face some of the most unsettling aspects of her past if she is going to solve this particular mystery. Over twenty years have passed since she was taken in by the kindly Dr Eames, but now a familiar foe is coming back to haunt her.
The book starts off promisingly, creating intrigue over the mystery of Christabel, both in terms of what she is and what has happened to her. The concepts are arresting, but gradually the changes of focus in each chapter, not to mention the timelines, make it difficult to completely ascertain what is actually going on. As such, I struggled to fully engage with the plot.
In the end the timelines were knitted together, but some important things were not explained very clearly, such as Gideon’s motives and the question of why Ruby was haunting Bridie. It incorporates mythology into the story quite well and moves along at a swift pace, and at around the halfway point there is definitely a lot of promise. The problem is, after that it becomes hard to follow and the novelty of each character begins to wear off.
Everything is told in the third person present tense, mostly taking place in 1861 but with occasional flashbacks to 1843 where it focuses on Bridie’s past. She is a very feisty character who adopts many different personas, possessing a sharp tongue but also glimpses of vulnerability which gives her some depth, while you can detect the changes in her demeanour between the two timelines.
The presence of Ruby is an ongoing curiosity, so it was disappointing not to get a proper answer for that, especially when his interactions with Bridie were one of the highlights of the book. Cora was formidable and imposing but also quite entertaining to read about, and as Gideon’s backstory began to emerge, we are left in no doubt as to his insidious mind.
Sir Edmund and Dr Harbin are rather more complex, though they are not developed a huge amount and float in and out of the story without making much of an impression. However, the biggest frustration was not finding out much about Christabel as after all, the mystery is meant to revolve around her. Instead, her existence is treated as a mere plot device and we rarely get the chance to understand who she really is.
One thing this story does have in abundance is atmosphere, as it gives an immersive feel to the Victorian London setting with murky descriptions and Gothic undertones. It is also present in the way it indirectly refers to topics such as class divisions and gender inequality, although the addition of paranormal elements and blundering side characters means it never takes itself too seriously.
As far as the writing goes, an extravagant prologue is a sign of things to come as it is full of lurid phrases and a kind of restless energy. Every character is described in a similar way with an emphasis on their physical features, and despite its quirkiness it all becomes a lot to take in. So much so in fact, that it overshadows the plot.
Overall, there are a lot of prizes to be won here for originality, but in terms of a reading experience it fails to deliver. The premise behind the mystery and potential of the characters is undermined by constantly changing perspectives and a writing style that makes the story difficult to truly grasp, thereby rendering the outcome less rewarding than one might expect.
Born into a large family originally raised in County Mayo in the Republic of Ireland, Jess Kidd was raised in London and has gone on to become an author with a unique, idiosyncratic writing style. Her first novel Himself was published in 2016 and was shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards, before she went on to win the Costa Short Story Award.
That was followed by The Hoarder, before Things In Jars was released in 2019. Her next novel The Night Ship is due to be published later in 2022.
I had pretty high expectations coming into this one, but unfortunately they were not met as the writing style just overshadowed the plot and the whole thing became difficult to untangle, despite the positives.
My rating: ⭐⭐.5
Stephen Reads Books 