Currently reading
Gunmetal Magic
I Am Pilgrim
Four Summoner's Tales
Churchill Versus Hitler: War of Words
Pinked
Fury's Kiss
Untitled Downside Ghosts
Before Dark
The Lies of Locke Lamora (The Gentleman Bastard, #1)
Mom of the Year
Kudos to the author for bringing attention to Josephine Tey aka Elizabeth MacKintosh, scottish writer of murder mysteries and a successful playwright.Upson has created a main fictional character based on the image, I presume, that Upson has of Tey. That in itself would have been a challenge, as Tey was multifaceted and also elusive as a person. Tey actively avoided the pres and public attention.The story suffered on occasion from drawn out descriptions and purple prose, which made it slightly long-winded at times.At the same time it was the intricate detailed descriptions of the gardens, buildings and the cottage that gave the book a comfortable feeling of deja-vu. Even the plants, windows and furniture had a part to play in the overall scheme of the storyline.Upson has used a notorious nineteenth century true crime as the basis for this story. She has given a previously unheard voice to the murder victim and to a young girl who worked for the murderer. Obviously these voices are completely fictitous and yet simultaneously plausible. I think that is what made the story so intriguing. It wasn't outlandish or unbelievable.The author has also highlighted the role of the single female in that era. The strong independent type that tends to end up caring for the elderly parents or siblings, as opposed to the married or male siblings who are eager to pass on the responsibility. These selfless acts are rarely acknowledged, even now in our day and age.I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley.
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