Tag: historical fiction

#BookReview Under a Veiled Moon by Karen Odden

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Under A Veiled MoonAbout the Book

September 1878. One night, as the pleasure boat the Princess Alice makes her daily trip up the Thames, she collides with the Bywell Castle, a huge iron-hulled collier. The Princess Alice shears apart, throwing all 600 passengers into the river; only 130 survive. It is the worst maritime disaster London has ever seen, and early clues point to sabotage by the Irish Republican Brotherhood, who believe violence is the path to restoring Irish Home Rule.

For Scotland Yard Inspector Michael Corravan, born in Ireland and adopted by the Irish Doyle family, the case presents a challenge. Accused by the Home Office of willfully disregarding the obvious conclusion, and berated by his Irish friends for bowing to prejudice, Corravan doggedly pursues the truth, knowing that if the Princess Alice disaster is pinned on the IRB hopes for Home Rule could be dashed forever.

Corrovan’s dilemma is compounded by Colin, the youngest Doyle, who has joined James McCabe’s Irish gang. As violence in Whitechapel rises, Corravan strikes a deal with McCabe to get Colin out of harm’s way. But unbeknownst to Corravan, Colin bears longstanding resentments against his adopted brother and scorns his help.

As the newspapers link the IRB to further accidents, London threatens to devolve into terror and chaos. With the help of his young colleague, the loyal Mr. Stiles, and his friend Belinda Gale, Corravan uncovers the harrowing truth – one that will shake his faith in his countrymen, the law, and himself.

Format: ebook (336 pages)                Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Publication date: 11th October 2022 Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery

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My Review

Under a Veiled Moon is the second in Karen Odden’s Inspector Michael Corravan historical mystery series, the follow-up to Down a Dark River, a book I very much enjoyed. In fact, I ended my review of that book by saying I hoped it was the first of many cases for Corravan so it was a pleasure to be reunited with him, as well as other characters from the first book such as his former partner, the resourceful and diligent Gordon Stiles, his just a little bit more than a friend, novelist Belinda Gale, and the Doyle family who took him in many years before. Belinda is one of my favourite characters. She’s an independent woman who has made her own way in the world and who now has connections with influential figures in London society. Perhaps her greatest gift though is her understanding of Corravan’s needs – and not just his physical ones either. As he remarks at one point, ‘It certainly wasn’t the first time she had presented me with an insight that steered an entire investigation into a channel I hadn’t explored’.  (Notice the river-related metaphors by the way?)

Once again, the reader gets a clear sense of Corravan the policeman – determined, resilient and with a strong sense of justice. As he says himself, ‘My persistance usually yielded results.’  But we also get an insight into the man he has been, which includes pickpocket, prize-fighter and dockhand. His past life has not been without tragedy and he has regrets about things he has done, or failed to do. All this makes him a satisfyingly well-rounded character. Corravan’s Irish heritage also forms an important part of the story given that the political situation relating to Ireland is a key element of the book’s plot.

The real life collision of the Princess Alice pleasure boat with the collier Bywell Castle, which resulted in many fatalities, forms one strand of a story into which the author weaves political intrigue, racial prejudice, gang warfare and acts of breathtaking wickedness carried out as a result of a perverted philosophy.

As before, the River Thames plays a key role in the book, its filthy, murky waters providing an apt metaphor for the seedy goings on in the sprawling city through which it flows. It plays an instrumental role as well, with knowledge of its tidal ebbs and flows proving crucial to events. One memorable and rather moving scene sees Corravan take to the river to perform a particularly tragic homecoming. The vivid descriptions of the thoroughfares and alleyways of London – in particular Whitechapel – and of the sights, sounds and smells (ugh) of the city all help to create a great sense of place.  You wouldn’t necessarily want to have lived there yourself but you can definitely imagine what it would have been like for those who did.

If you love historical mysteries with an intricate plot and authentic period atmosphere, then I have no hesitation in recommending Under a Veiled Moon. Actually, I do; read Down a Dark River first.  To my delight, the book’s last line suggests more cases – and challenges- lie ahead for Corravan, and possibly an answer to a question that has haunted him.

My thanks to the author for my digital review copy.

In three words: Atmospheric, intriguing, assured

Try something similar: Death Makes No Distinction by Lucienne Boyce

Karen OddenAbout the Author

Karen Odden earned her PhD in English from New York University and subsequently taught literature at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She has contributed essays to numerous books and journals, written introductions for Victorian novels in the Barnes & Noble classics series, and edited for the journal Victorian Literature and Culture (Cambridge UP). Her previous novels, also set in 1870s London, have won awards for historical fiction and mystery. A member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime and the recipient of a grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts, Karen lives in Arizona with her family and her rescue beagle Rosy. (Photo: Author website)

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#BookReview All The Broken Places by John Boyne

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All The Broken PlacesAbout the Book

1946. Three years after a cataclysmic event which tore their lives apart, a mother and daughter flee Poland for Paris, shame, and fear at their heels, not knowing how hard it is to escape your past.

Nearly eighty years later, Gretel Fernsby lives a life that is a far cry from her traumatic childhood. When a couple moves into the flat below her in her London mansion block, it should be nothing more than a momentary inconvenience. However, the appearance of their nine-year-old son Henry brings back memories she would rather forget.

Faced with a choice between her own safety and his, Gretel is taken back to a similar crossroads she encountered long ago. Back then, her complicity dishonoured her life, but to interfere now could risk revealing the secrets she has spent a lifetime protecting.

Format: Hardback (384 pages)                Publisher: Doubleday
Publication date: 15th September 2022 Genre: Historical Fiction

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My Review

I have the feeling I may be one of the few people in the world who has not read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas or seen the film adaptation. I wondered if this would effect my appreciation of this, its sequel; the answer is a definite no. In fact All The Broken Places may be one of the most memorable and thought-provoking novels I read this year. It’s one of the reasons why I’ve found it so difficult to write a review that will do it justice. (I’m still not sure I have.)

Moving between past and present, we gradually learn about Gretel’s childhood and the impact her proximity to the horrific events of the Holocaust has had on her. Having had an early taste of what her identity becoming known might result in, the majority of Gretel’s life has been spent hiding her past, adopting new identities when disclosure is threatened, moving to new places and being in a constant state of watchfulness.

In addition, she has lived with a constant sense of guilt – at the dreadful things that took place ‘on the other side of the fence’ and her part in the death of a loved one.  ‘Guilt was what kept you awake in the middle of the night or, if you managed to sleep, poisoned your dreams. Guilt intruded upon any happy moments, whispering in your ear that you had no right to pleasure. Guilt followed you down streets, interrupting the most mundane moments with remembrances of days and hours when you could have done something to prevent tragedy but chose to do nothing.’ Managing those feelings of guilt has meant repressing unwelcome memories. There are photographs Gretel can’t bear to look at, a location she refers to only as ‘that other place’, a name she can’t bear to say.

There are a number of occasions on which Gretel is challenged about her defence that she was ‘just a child’ and had no knowledge of what was taking place. And, that even if it was true, she did nothing after the war to help bring the perpetrators to justice. In fact that she took deliberate steps to avoid this. When, soon after the end of the war, she is presented with indisputable evidence of what occurred and how close she was to that cruelty, the effect on her is so unbearable it results in a catastrophic act and the destruction of a relationship.

In the book there are not just broken places but broken people too. Gretel, of course, but also her mother, and Gretel’s new neighbour Madelyn.

There are moments of light amongst the darkness. For example, Gretel’s tender relationship with her vulnerable neighbour, Heidi, and the way she bonds with young Henry. And Edgar, Gretel’s late husband, whom we meet at the very beginning of their relationship, is a wonderful model of devotion, understanding and acceptance.

All the Broken Places is an unsparing exploration of how the sins of the past can weigh on individuals and the burden of complicity. ‘By doing nothing, you did everything. By taking no responsibility, you bear all responsibility.’ The book poses some difficult questions. If someone you love commits terrible acts is it right to still love them? Can anything you do ever make up for the sins of others? Is taking one life to save another justified?

I’m not sure the actions Gretel takes at the end of the book represent sufficient reparation given the scale of the evil that occurred in ‘that other place’ but I got the sense Gretel thought they did and she viewed the consequences of her actions as a kind of justice, as the punishment she deserved.

In his afterword, the author states his belief that, for all the mistakes in her life and her complicity in evil, Gretel’s story is still worth telling but it’s up to the reader to decide if it’s worth reading.  My conclusion is an unequivocal yes.

I received an advance digital copy courtesy of Doubleday via NetGalley.

In three words: Powerful, moving, thought-provoking

John BoyneAbout the Author

John Boyne is the author of thirteen novels for adults, six for younger readers and a collection of short stories. His 2006 novel The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas has sold more than 11 million copies worldwide and has been adapted for cinema, theatre, ballet and opera. His many international bestsellers include The Heart’s Invisible Furies and A Ladder to the Sky. He has won three Irish Book Awards, along with a host of other international literary prizes. His novels are published in over fifty languages. (Photo: Goodreads author page)

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