Review: The Good Wife of Bath by Karen Brooks

The Good Wife of Bath - A (Mostly) True Story by Karen Brooks is inspired by The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, but the only thing you need to know about Chaucer's classic written in the late 1300s is that it contains 24 stories told by pilgrims and that The Wife of Bath was one of them.

I read The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer before I started writing reviews here which makes it at least 20 years ago. It felt like quite the accomplishment at the time and I remember enjoying it a whole lot more than I thought I would. Chaucer's The Wife of Bath is the story of a woman named Eleanor who has been married five times and Australian author Karen Brooks brings her to life in this historical fiction re-telling.

It's 1364 and at the age of 12 years old Eleanor is married off to a sheep farmer against her will. I immediately admired Eleanor's young spirit and her attempt to embody her Papa's advice, even at such a young age:

"You have to create opportunities where you can. No matter what life hurls at you, child, catch it. If it's shit, turn it into fertiliser. If it's insults, throw them back. Grip opportunity with both hands and ride it like a wild colt until you've tamed it. You've come from nothing, and unless you make something of yourself with what you're offered, it's to nothing you'll return." Page 22

This advice is applicable to every reader and definitely forms the key to Eleanor's character which serves her well in life.

At 541 pages in length, The Good Wife of Bath is a long novel but it's broken down into each of the five marriages and each time Eleanor marries her life changes significantly; sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse.

As her circumstances were improving, I was just as giddy with possibility and optimism as Eleanor and equally frustrated and downcast when the wheel of fortune turned. Eleanor takes several pilgrimages and is a flawed character trying to learn from her - many - mistakes while protecting the people she cares about. There's much character growth and some moments that made me stop to contemplate, like this one I hadn't heard before:

"What's good for gander is not for goose to ponder." Page 232

Eleanor is very distantly related - by marriage - to Geoffrey Chaucer and calls him cousin. As a supporting character he pops up from time to time and as he catches up with Eleanor or they exchange letters, we hear about his career highlights and writing projects.

About halfway through the novel, we learn Chaucer has been writing several stories:

"I have. I'm using the idea of a pilgrimage to tie the tales together.' I slapped my thigh in delight. 'I've been on many of those!' 'Aye, and your letters have been most entertaining. Inspirational too. 'Twas you who gave me that idea as well. As you've so often noted, a pilgrimage brings together all manner of people in a shared adventure.'" Page 323

Those who know The Canterbury Tales well will enjoy the flashes of recognition and various easter eggs along the way, but those who aren't familiar with the classic or can't remember it won't experience an absence of understanding or enjoyment; Brooks cleverly includes all readers.

The Good Wife of Bath by Karen Brooks is extremely well researched and the author brings the middle ages to life in a vivid and engaging writing style. While it was a long novel, I would have happily spent more time with Eleanor if I could have.

I thoroughly recommend The Good Wife of Bath by Karen Brooks for historical fiction lovers and it's definitely a solid contender for My Top 5 Books of 2025. Thanks to my friend Andrea for the copy!

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: All That Impossible Space by Anna Morgan

All That Impossible Space by Anna Morgan is a young adult novel about Lara Laylor, a teenage girl in Year 10 at a school in Melbourne. It doesn't sound like the type of book I usually read does it? But when I tell you Lara's history teacher gives each of his students an unsolved mystery from history as part of an assignment and Lara chooses the Somerton Man, you can see the instant appeal.

The Somerton Man was an unidentified man found dead on a beach in Somerton Park near Glenelg, Adelaide in December 1948. He didn't have any ID and the labels on all of his clothing had been removed. His cause of death couldn't be determined, but he died propped up and reclining with his legs crossed which made him look like he was resting or sleeping with a cigarette in his hand. Police circulated a photo of the man's corpse in suit and tie in an effort to identify him but his remains were never claimed. A plaster death mask was also taken of his body from the shoulders up prior to burial to assist in identification. This cast still includes hairs from his body which have since been DNA tested.

Adding to the mystery, a tiny scrap of paper with the printed words 'Tamám Shud' (meaning it is finished or it is done) was found rolled up in his pocket. The scrap had been torn from the page of a book which was eventually handed into Police after being found on the front seat of a car. What are the chances? The book had a series of letters inscribed in the back which have never been decoded as well as a phone number. The phone number was traced back to a nurse who lived 400m from where the Somerton Man's body was found but denied knowing him.

In the novel, Lara researches the mystery of the Somerton Man and considers the theories he was a European immigrant or a spy. Lara is ultimately glad the nurse chose to keep any knowledge she had to herself but I was yelling at the page while enjoying the reports and testimonials about the case interspersed throughout her first person narrative.

Naturally, the assignment takes a back seat as Lara negotiates problems in her social life, auditions for the school musical, deals with the absence of her older sister and looks into the mystery disappearance of her history teacher.

All That Impossible Space by Anna Morgan is a young adult epistolary coming of age novel but I'll admit being mostly there for the connection to the Somerton Man. Who do you think he was? I think he was a spy and knew the nurse.

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: Cuddy by Benjamin Myers

Cuddy by Benjamin Myers is an historical fiction novel told in a blend of writing styles, including: narrative prose, quotes from historical reference books, poetry, diary entries and even a play. Anticipating a novel about the life of Saint Cuthbert of Lindisfarne told in a fictional first person point of view, Cuddy was an unexpected story.

Born in 634 AD in Northumbria (modern day Scotland), Cuthbert had been a monk, a prior and a bishop and was a hermit at the time of his death in 687 AD. Beloved in life, many came to pray at his grave at Lindisfarne and were healed. Deciding to elevate his remains as relics on the anniversary of his death, his body was found intact - hadn't decomposed - and he was declared a saint. Pilgrims visited the shrine for decades until Viking raids threatened the area.

Cuthbert's body was transferred to a coffin and transported by a dedicated group of worshippers seeking a safe resting place for their beloved saint. On the move until the year 995, a site was finally chosen and a series of churches were built to house St Cuthbert's remains. Construction of Durham Cathedral commenced in 1093 and still houses the Shrine of St Cuthbert today.

Pieced together from the non fiction quotes in the book, I share all of this because it's a fascinating slice of history and if you're still reading, it means you agree. Myers has created characters from each of these periods of Cuthbert's history in the wildly different formats mentioned above.

We hear from Cuthbert (affectionately known as Cuddy) early in the book but he's already close to death:

"Well now. You should have been here a candle or two ago. The scenes of despair amongst the monks at my final days of retreat to this bluff in the foaming ocean was quite the picture." Page 7

I love that phrase, 'a candle or two ago.' In Book I we join the religious folk in 995 AD carrying Cuthbert's remains and an orphan girl who has visions regarding his final resting place.

In Book II we jump to the year 1346 and through the eyes of the fletcher's wife, meet a stonemason engaged in building the great Durham Cathedral. The work of the mason and the history of the stone - then and now centuries later - was beautifully written:

"In the stone is yesterday's sun and the stories it has seen, not only of wandering holy folk and the fiery Norse, not only old white churches and milkmaids, galloping Frenchmen and the green men that took to the trees but other details not always pressed to the page by monks. Everything the stone has borne silent witness to is held within it now...... Rainstorms and quarrymen, Picts, plague pits and paupers, hawkers and jesters, skirling new life and coughing old death, archers and anglers, devils and angels, sunrises and sunsets, courting couples sitting on stone walls watching snowfall, villeins and franklin and wandering freemen, nets of cuttlefish and pails of crabs, sores and scabs, bed-bound mothers and gaoled fathers, babies - a thousand wailing babies - and church bells, cabbage soup and nettles and worms and sacks and jam and garlic and knives and deer and murder and toll gates and caravans and soothsayers and plums and coffin-makers and lepers and laughter and ice and logs and oats and sex and sin and Cuddy and Jesus and God." Page 237

I know that was a long quote, but it perfectly captures the awe and wonder I feel when gazing at a Cathedral built more than 1000 years ago and I want to be able to revisit these words again, even if I no longer have the book.

Leaving those characters behind to leap forward a few centuries, the Interlude was based on a haunting and shocking account of history. In 1650, Durham Cathedral was used as a prison by Oliver Cromwell to house 3,000 Scottish prisoners of war. Suffering in the cold without food or water, the prisoners destroyed the pews and burned the timber in order to keep warm. Devastatingly, 1,700 soldiers died from battle injuries, dehydration and starvation and were buried in mass graves nearby.

This is a disturbing chapter of history I knew nothing about but certainly won't forget, as the author has created a macabre play for the Interlude, whereby several soldiers being held captive engage in dialogue with eachother and the cathedral. Yes, you read that right.

It was a relief to reach Book III covering the period in 1827 when an arrogant Professor from Oxford travels to the Cathedral to oversee the disinterment of the saint in order to verify his remains are uncorrupted. Diary entries tell this tale and the character is haunted by his complicity and fears for his sanity. I felt the author's outrage at the desecration and believe the character met a satisfying fate. 

Book IV brings us to 2019 and it was perhaps an unnecessarily long tale to deliver the reader to Durham Cathedral and the tomb of St Cuthbert.

Cuddy by Benjamin Myers seemed to me to be the story behind the building of Durham Cathedral over time told through the lives of a handful of individuals:

"My story, and that of Fletcher Bullard, just one story in a thousand million stories that combine to define a place, concludes thusly:" Page 263

While brief, each serves as a complete story and while the reader may be reluctant to leave a character or point in time, their stories reach a natural conclusion of sorts.

A word on the layout as there were several techniques that were used - presumably - to impress but which I found slightly irritating. In one case, a character's visions were presented in one continuous paragraph with font that slowly reduced in size until it was barely readable by the end. Elsewhere, poetry was presented with varying alignment choices that left me cold, with just one word or sometimes even one letter per line. I guess you could say that while I enjoyed the mashup of writing styles within Cuddy, the unconventional layout choices fell short of the mark.

The descriptions of the cathedral from characters across time were incredible, with the 2019 character of Michael describing the vast edifice before him as enrapturing. It certainly had me pausing at certain times in the novel to research a fact or take a virtual tour of the cathedral and I'd love to visit in person one day, even just to see the sanctuary knocker.

"The face of the Sanctuary Knocker then, is that of the lonely miscreant, the damned, the doomed, the cursed, the blasted, the blighted, the bedevilled, the fated; he who shall live their life seeking God's eternal forgiveness alone." Page 197

Now that I've finished reading Cuddy, I believe it to be the complex history of Durham Cathedral rather than the story of a saint. This unique blend of fact and fiction and multiple writing styles felt original and is recommended for fans of Ken Follett and his series beginning with The Pillars of the Earth.

Prologue AD 687
Book I Saint Cuddy AD 995
Book II The Mason's Mark AD 1346
Interlude The Stone Speaks AD 1650
Book III The Corpse in the Cathedral AD 1827
Book IV Daft Lad AD 2019

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald

I received a copy of The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald as a mystery book at a GoodReads Melbourne catch up and it's been sitting on my TBR pile since 2018. The reason it's been collecting dust is because it's a romance story with a bookish theme and I don't really enjoy the romance genre. The reason it hasn't been 'moved on' to a friend or free little library is down to the fact that this is also a book about books. Needing a light and easy read recently, I finally picked it up and was pleasantly surprised to finish it.

Sara Lindqvist lives in Sweden and has a penpal by the name of Amy who lives in a small town called Broken Wheel in Iowa. Invited to visit and stay a few months to continue their shared love of books and reading, Sara takes the plunge only to discover upon arrival that Amy has passed away.

Translated from Swedish, what happens next forms the body of this charming story and the letters back and forth between Sara and Amy are scattered throughout the novel. The inevitable romance made itself known early on, together with several other - predictable - romantic entanglements. Sara's internal chatter (what could he possibly see in me?) grated on my nerves as I'd expect, but thankfully it was somewhat tempered by the setting up of a bookshop and re-energising of the town. The inhabitants of the small country town are stuck in their ways and some are entertainingly cliched.

Published in 2013, my favourite character by far was George and I enjoyed the character of Caroline even more so than Sara. Here Caroline reflects:

"She had never been able to help people like Amy could. Amy always seemed to know precisely what people wanted to hear. Caroline knew only what they should hear, and the two were very rarely the same thing." Page 24

Sara is seeking a sense of belonging and exploring what constitutes a family and readers will need to suspend their disbelief at the ending but I'm sure many will readily do so. Obviously life doesn't work like that but this is a tale offering escapism and a HEA; reinforcing the reason this genre rarely features in my reading line-up.

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald is about finding a sense of belonging and will appeal to bookworms who enjoy novels about books and bookshops with a generous dollop of romance.

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: Daisy in Chains by Sharon Bolton

After reading three 5 star books in a row last month, I turned to some crime fiction from my back catalogue to change up my reading selection. Published in 2016, Daisy in Chains by Sharon J. Bolton is a crime novel with two main protagonists and a great supporting character.

Maggie Rose is a lawyer with a reputation for overturning murder convictions and publishing true crime books about their cases. Hamish Wolfe is a successful surgeon and convicted serial killer of plus sized women and is serving a prison sentence for his crimes.

Detective Pete Weston was responsible for cracking the case that put Wolfe away and saw him convicted of the murders of three women. Wolfe remains the primary suspect in the case of a fourth missing woman fitting his modus operandi. Meanwhile, Wolfe's mother and support group are convinced of his innocence and beg Maggie to take on the case and work on his legal appeal.

I vacillated between Wolfe's guilt and innocence and there were plenty of red herrings throughout the plot to keep the reader guessing. Letters between characters and draft chapters of Maggie's next true crime manuscript are included throughout the text and manage to drive the narrative forward and keep the pace high.

This was a four star read until the big reveal or what some readers are calling the twist. Unfortunately it was a step too far and a bit of a stretch for me and I felt like I'd been duped as a reader. Having said that, the first three quarters of the book until that point was a fast moving crime thriller that had me going backwards and forwards questioning Maggie's motives and Detective Pete Weston's involvement.

Recommended for crime fiction and thriller readers.

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: That's Not How You Wash A Squirrel by David Thorne

Residing in USA, David Thorne is the Australian author behind the notorious Missing Missy and despite a scathing review of Look Evelyn Duck Dynasty Wiper Blades. We Should Get Them in 2020, I still owned two more of the author's books. At the time I expressed my irritation at the fat phobic content and uncertainty around whether Thorne uses creative licence in a self deprecating manner in an ironic attempt to further his unlikable persona in the pursuit of entertainment; or if he's just a dick.

Four years have passed and many books have been read since then and I believe enough time has elapsed for me to tackle the next one on the pile. Did it make me chuckle or frown? Short answer, both!

The author does write humourous dialogue, and I enjoyed this excerpt from an exchange with partner Holly:

"No, you're supposed to say something nice back."
"Your hair looks nice today."
"Thanks. I used your conditioner in the little red tube."
"That's foot cream." Page 20

The title story about rearing a baby squirrel was my favourite from the collection and it was very cute. But then the author churns out a comment like this one that left a sour taste in my mouth for a few pages:

"We did visit my sister a few weeks later but there were no secret passageways in her house and neither Seb or I gave a fuck about her origami owls or potplant hangers. Any halfwit with a roll of string and a few sticks can set up an Etsy shop." Page 39

There's no context about Thorne's sister and she isn't referred to often. That particular comment came off the back of a reunion with his estranged father who had a secret passageway in his house, but without context or knowing anything about the author's sister, it's hard to interpret that comment as anything other than rude. Who writes like that publicly about their sibling anyway?

If he's joking, then it's not a joke I can join in on. I found it rude and insulting and it made me wonder if this guy means every word he writes or if he's just an arsehole. I'm starting to lean towards the latter, but you be the judge:

"I fully support discrimination against fat people but if one sat next to me on a plane I wouldn't move, ask them to move, or talk to them. I'd just be quietly annoyed the whole flight and try to breath through my mouth." Page 52

Seriously? Is this guy the real deal? Published in 2015, thankfully That's Not How You Wash A Squirrel contains fewer fat phobic references, but the fat shaming was still there. At one point he refers to a 'crazed looking flabby woman in her thirties named Rian', but it's not just fat people and fat women who irk our author:

"Penguin represent my first book but my marketing person there is a small angry Asian woman who yells a lot so I have her number blocked." Page 147

Wow, blocking the Marketing Rep from Penguin on your phone when you depend on their representation, hilarious! Hopefully you could hear the drip of my sarcasm there. It's just not funny.

The occasional fat phobic content was off putting and while I enjoyed a somewhat amusing story about hunting for the first time in the USA, I can't tell if the content has been inspired or lifted from the author's lived experience or whether it's all fiction. Is this self deprecating humour written by a humble guy unafraid of being judged harshly? Or is he just a run of the mill arsehole, wandering aimlessly around a camp site so that he doesn't have to help his mates pack up? He sounds like a tool, but that's also what used to make his writing funny.

There's a fine line and I'm never sure how close to it we are, but it feels like we're getting further away from the author's core talent for entertaining the reader. In a different example, Thorne shares a section detailing the passing of a friend after a dramatic car accident that was incredibly moving, yet I'm not sure if he's 'taking the piss'* or not.

I decided years ago not to purchase any more of David Thorne's new work, but I still have Walk It Off, Princess on my TBR pile. I can hear some of you thinking 'don't read it if you don't like his work' but have you ever decided not to read a book you purchased? Published in 2018 three years after this title, I'm hoping the downward trend on insulting people continues and the sense of humour so prevalent in his earlier work resurfaces in fine form. There's hope yet!

Check out my reviews to some of the author's better books:
- The Internet is a Playground ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- I'll Go Home Then; It's Warm and Has Chairs - The Unpublished Emails ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Wrap It In A Bit Of Cheese Like You're Tricking The Dog ⭐⭐⭐
- Look Evelyn Duck Dynasty Wiper Blades. We Should Get Them ⭐⭐

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

 
*Australian slang term for 'having a lend'.

Review: The Miracles of the Namiya General Store by Keigo Higashino

Translated by Sam Bett, The Miracles of the Namiya General Store by Japanese author Keigo Higashino has an enticing premise. Three youths seek a place to lay low after carrying out a robbery and they break into the Namiya General Store. Seemingly abandoned and run down, they're surprised when a letter asking the previous shopkeeper for advice drops through the mail slot.

The young men quickly realise this isn't an ordinary shop, but what advice could they possibly have to give? They're certainly not upstanding citizens leading a successful and rewarding life are they? What should they do? And if they choose to answer the letter, what advice should they give?

The narrative expands as new and old letters are referred to and advice is both sought and received. The plot does get a little timey wimey in that time stops inside the general store and a connection between past and present is established although never adequately explained. This reader hardly cared (see my review of Under The Dome to see how I can ignore the 'why' of the premise and just enjoy the fallout), instead delighting in the various interconnecting characters in a cleverly spun narrative web.

In fact, I'd love to see a character map representing the interconnecting characters and their various overlapping narrative arcs, I think it'd be a beautiful sight indeed. It certainly seemed as though the entire plot was connected with silvery gossamer thread and Higashino took the reader around the web pointing out different patterns and individual stories.

In assessing the advice requested and the advice provided, we're given a glimpse into how that advice was or wasn't followed and how it all turned out. In doing so, the author raises the notion that many people are experiencing challenges in their lives, facing choices they don't want to make or decisions they can't seem to reach or make their peace with.

Similarly, the author seems to suggest that even a lowly delinquent may have advice worth considering to offer a fellow human being in crisis. Every individual has value to contribute and the innate ability to make a positive difference in the life of a stranger.

Employing a combination of magical realism, urban fantasy and science fiction, The Miracles of the Namiya General Store is a heartwarming, uplifting, positive feel-good read and I highly recommend it!

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: Miss Austen by Gill Hornby

I totally fell in love with the creative process behind the embroidered cover design for Miss Austen by Gill Hornby after watching this video created by Chloe Giordano.

I've been stitching - mostly cross stitch - on and off for years and Miss Austen was a complete cover buy. I hardly ever pre-order books, but went all out to pre-order this Waterstones signed hardback edition, with dust jacket showing the reverse of the embroidered fabric (so clever), sprayed edges and stunning endpapers. You can see a flip through of the book here.

Chloe Giordano went on to design and stitch the embroidered cover for Godmersham Park by Gill Hornby and I really admire the publisher for seeking a different design style and process for these historical fiction novels.

Miss Austen by Gill Hornby is a novel of the Austen sisters, focussing on Cassandra Austen. Being unfamiliar with the members of the Austen family and in-laws, the handy family list at the beginning of the novel was immensely helpful and I constantly needed to flip back to refer to it.

"And she decided that other families must be one of life's most unfathomable mysteries. It was no use sitting as an outsider and even trying to fathom them. One could have no idea of what it must be like to be in there, on the inside. She would share that thought later in her letter to Jane." Page 69

The primary thrust of the novel is discovering why Cassandra Austen burned so many of her sister Jane Austen's letters, thus depriving future readers and scholars from reading her words. The dialogue is witty and enjoyable, and despite only having read one book by Jane Austen, felt authentic to her writing style.

"Half of Caroline's story was plainly ridiculous. The girl had always had a strong imagination, as well as a talent for embroidery, and was employing both quite liberally here." Page 161

'Well, what a lovely confection of nothing at all that was, my dear,' she began... 'Most charming, indeed; so charming I almost wish it had happened.' Page 161

The bond between Jane and Cassandra ran deep, with both seeming to sacrifice their happiness and future prospects for one another. The lack of female agency, the bonds of family and the relationships between women formed the base of this historical fiction novel:

"Now, here, in this vicarage, Cassandra had found another; most unexpected, excellent woman. She had quite forgotten the feeling, that deep, joyful and satisfying feeling brought by good feminine companionship. What a blessing to enjoy it once more." Page 170

In reflecting on Jane's death, the author highlights the importance of inheritance and legacy, noting:

"... these are the things by which most of us are remembered, these small acts of love, the only evidence that we, too, once lived on this earth. The preserves in the larder, the stitch on the kneeler. The mark of the pen on the page." Page 20

Jane's temperament and moods were mentioned throughout Miss Austen, although I'm lacking any opinion as to how close to her true medical history the author was steering us. Having only read Pride and Prejudice, I felt somewhat ill prepared and poorly equipped to enjoy all of the subtleties and easter eggs no doubt on offer here in Miss Austen.

Fans familiar with the Austen canon or the author's life in any detail, will no doubt recognise plot points, locations (Godmersham Park, Chawton House), family members, engagements, marriages and deaths mentioned throughout, however these were unfortunately lost on me.

Not knowing how much of the narrative in Miss Austen is based on history and fact and how much was fictionalised, I wasn't able to enjoy the novel at the level it was intended. Instead, I chose to read Miss Austen as a stand-alone novel of sorts, knowing as I did so that I was missing many layers by being unfamiliar with the Austen canon. 

The constant moving of the family members was a surprise although I did enjoy Mrs Austen's dialogue, especially when it concerned her own health:

'My bowels feel much steadier now, thanks be to the Lord, after what was, as you of all people know, Cass, the most frightful evacuation. I think I shall like this apothecary. He has a good feel for my system.' Page 198

Love it! Miss Austen by Gill Hornby will be remembered by this reader for having one of the most attractive cover designs I've seen and was an enjoyable read.

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: The Murder of Harriet Monckton by Elizabeth Haynes

This Victorian historical crime novel is based on the true story of young Harriet Monckton, who was murdered in Kent in 1843. Harriet was 23 years old and was found poisoned in the privy behind the chapel she regularly attended in Bromley, Kent. Sadly, Harriet's murder remains unsolved, however Elizabeth Haynes has attempted to show us who Harriet was, why she may have come to harm and who might have been responsible for her untimely death.

Elizabeth Haynes is better known for writing psychological thrillers, and you might recall my reviews of Into the Darkest Corner (5 stars) and Human Remains (4 stars). With many more crime novels under her belt, writing historical fiction is a first, and I think she nailed it! Drawing on historical records and archives, including the content of two inquests, coroner's report and witness testimonies, The Murder of Harriet Monckton by Elizabeth Haynes is a convincing historical fiction novel by an author who has clearly done their Victorian era research.

The novel is presented in alternate chapters from several character points of view, and it took me a number of chapters to adjust to the regular shift in narration as a relatively large cast of characters began cycling through. One of the characters appeared guilty from the get go, but some of them aren't telling the truth:

"Trouble is, the truth is plain and easy to remember. Lies, though, that's different. You lie once, you have to remember the lie, the truth doesn't fade when time passes, but a lie does." Page 242

Harriet seems charismatic and is loved by many and envied by some, with characters seeing different sides to her personality:

"I felt my heart twist a little, at that. It reminded me of something Harriet had said to me once. That she should not meet anyone she loved as well as me. But that was the old Harriet, of course. The good, kind Harriet. Not the hypocrite, the harlot, the betrayer." Page 301

In the novel, we learn Harriet was pregnant, despite being single and unwed. Identifying the father of the child is a mystery just as compelling as the guilty party behind her murder. Are they one and the same?

"If I am spared, of course. It is at this time of night that I feel the most afraid; it feels that death and damnation lurk all around us, in the darkness, waiting to claim us. In the morning I shall feel foolish for these thoughts, of course, but now it seems that nothing good lies ahead for me." Page 405

Coming in at just over 500 pages, it was a little long, and Harriet's chapters did start to become a little tiresome as she fretted about her situation. A suspect is revealed by the end of the book, although of course we have no way of knowing if this is truly what happened.

If you'd like to give The Murder of Harriet Monckton by Elizabeth Haynes a try, you can read a free excerpt of the first 21 pages on the publisher's website here. You might also like to check out my 2014 interview with the author.

The Murder of Harriet Monckton by Elizabeth Haynes is a slow burn, historical whodunnit based on a true story. Recommended!

My Rating:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★