REVIEW: THE PECULIAR

Author: Stefan Bachmann
Series: Yes, #1
UK Publisher: HarperCollins
UK Release date: 18th September 2012
Genre: Steampunk faery fantasy
Kindly given by the publisher for an honest review

Don't get yourself noticed and you won't get yourself hanged.
In the faery slums of Bath, Bartholomew Kettle and his sister Hettie live by these words. Bartholomew and Hettie are changelings--Peculiars--and neither faeries nor humans want anything to do with them.
One day a mysterious lady in a plum-colored dress comes gliding down Old Crow Alley. Bartholomew watches her through his window. Who is she? What does she want? And when Bartholomew witnesses the lady whisking away, in a whirling ring of feathers, the boy who lives across the alley--Bartholomew forgets the rules and gets himself noticed.
First he's noticed by the lady in plum herself, then by something darkly magical and mysterious, by Jack Box and the Raggedy Man, by the powerful Mr. Lickerish . . . and by Arthur Jelliby, a young man trying to slip through the world unnoticed, too, and who, against all odds, offers Bartholomew friendship and a way to belong. (Goodreads)

In The Peculiar, Bachmann has created an alternative England where a door to the faery world was once opened. This alternative world incorporates elements of Victorian England, gothic steampunk and magical fantasy, and is both wonderfully vivid in its opulence but also darkly dangerous. Since the destruction of Old Bath and the introduction of faeries to the country, there has been an uneasy alliance between humans, changelings (half humans half faeries), and the different types of faeries from sprites and gnomes to Sidhe. Neither side understands or trusts the other. And it is unfortunately the half bloods or changelings that bear the brunt of this prejudice and mistrust. I do love this world that has been built, but I do feel more could have been done to add depth and development to the characters.

My feelings towards Mr Jelliby are a little ambivalent. He’s the kind of upper-class gentleman that doesn’t like to rock the boat and is rather ineffectual. But despite the fact that he can be indecisive and cowardly, he doesn’t just idly sit back and let events unfold without trying to intervene. I’m not fully convinced this was down to character development, and I did sometimes doubt the believability of his actions. Would such a nervous character really be able to step up as the hero without more persuasion than just thinking ‘well someone has to do it’?

Poor changeling Bartholomew and his little sister have been forced to live hidden away from everyone else. It is only when the curious Bartholomew spots a mysterious lady magically whisk away his young neighbour, that he sets out into the wide world. I felt I understood and liked Bartholomew a lot more, with his desire to have a fairy helper and yet even greater desire to protect his sister.

The story is written in third person from Bartholomew’s and Mr Jelliby’s perspectives. Occasionally the perspectives overlapped, to give an omniscient narration within the same chapter. I found this a little  disconcerting, as my preference is to keep third person perspectives quite separate. Something that also stood out about the writing was that the story gave no context straight away to what the characters' motivations were. You are plunged straight into the story and have to figure out what is going on as the characters Bartholomew and Mr Jelliby do, and decipher what Mr. Lickerish might be up to. I actually liked this though, as I had to keep guessing and wondering how their paths might all cross and come together.

Despite some of the narrative and character niggles, I enjoyed The Peculiar as a visually splendid Victorian delight, mixing up steampunk and gothic, faery fantasy to create something that children will love.

You can read an excerpt of The Peculiar on Goodreads and you can also listen to Peculiar Pieces, the music written by Stefan Bachmann to accompany the book.

Rating: 4*

LOOKING FOR JACK THE RIPPER WITH MAUREEN JOHNSON

Having seen this book on the blogosphere, I was SO excited to win the competition to go on the Jack the Ripper walk around London and celebrate the release of Maureen Johnson's forthcoming YA book 'The Name of the Star'. I love walking through London pondering what life must have been like for previous inhabitants, and was really excited to learn about a little slice of its Victorian history.

Arriving at London's Tower Hill, we met with Maureen Johnson, Rosi from Harper Collins, and lots of other lovely bloggers including Sarah from Feeling Fictional and Sammee from I want to read that. Our very theatrical and stylish tour guide Oliver led us through the darkening streets of London, pointing out historical landmarks and murder sites and weaving in plenty of gory details to his tales of Jack the Ripper.

In the 1880's Whitechapel was rife with poverty, crime and squalor. An estimated 1,200 prostitutes walked the streets in 1888, and it was these ladies of the night that fell victim to the Ripper. With their throats slashed and left brutally mutilated, the murders attracted the attention of the country and caused numerous rumours and questions as to who was behind them.

Although the grisly murders are still unsolved, the mystery and interest still continues. In Maureen Johnson's latest book, modern day London is plagued once again with Rippermania. If you haven't yet read The Name of the Star, go and grab a copy - I can't wait to read mine!

REVIEW: VELVET

Velvet

Author: Mary Hooper
Series: No, standalone
UK Publisher: Bloomsbury
UK Release date: September 2011
Genre: Historical YA
Kindly given by the publisher for an honest review

Saved from a life of hardship as a laundry girl in the early 1900's, Velvet is indebted to medium Madame Savoya. As Velvet learns that communing with spirits isn't always easy, she must decide whether she can trust the woman that she owes so much.

Review: Once again Mary Hooper manages to bring the Victorian period to life with such ease, from the luxury of carriages and jewels, to how Victorians spent their Christmas day, and the hardships of living from hand-to-mouth. So many details and historical facts are packed into the story making it feel so authentic and real.

We also get to see what the life of a medium was like in the height of spiritualism. Whilst more and more people were coming around to the idea that mediums were often fraudulently tricking grieving widows out of their money, there were still many ardent believers that they could commune with the other side. To keep their wealthy clients and fight off any suspicions, mediums had to be increasingly clever about the way they worked and the level of communing they performed. I wondered what parlour tricks Madame might be using, and would have liked to have learnt in more detail of the methods mediums used to 'prove' they were really in the presence of the deceased.

Madame Savoya's lifestyle is one of luxury and decadence. Like Velvet I couldn't help but be entranced by her charisma, pretty clothes, her royal Russian ancestry and apparent skill as a medium. But knowing what we know now about mediums, I often thought Velvet was naive and unquestioning of her new life. Considering she knew of tricks used by mediums and was warned by others, Velvet still lived in ignorance. Perhaps because she felt so indebted to Madame, and the alternative would be living back in poverty, I can understand why Velvet didn't want to think too much on the matter.

Also creeping into the story was baby-farms. A sad and horrific part of our history, baby-farms were unlicensed 'nannies' with whom young, poor women out of wedlock left their babes. To save money however these children were drugged and starved or even drowned. The fact that the young mothers were too ashamed to report the death of their children, meant that the farms continued to exist. The realities of these harsh times are apparent in the story, and what I like is that you learn so much about the time period, both good and bad, that history becomes interesting.

Velvet is another mysterious and fabulous historical YA from Mary Hooper who has fast become a top author in the genre.

Rating: 4*

THE LAUNCH OF MARY HOOPER’S VELVET

As you may well know Mary Hooper’s new historical YA book Velvet came out earlier this month. Yesterdays launch of this fabulous book at Bloomsbury Publishing was my first ever book launch at a publishers, and I was really excited and nervous to attend! First of all I have to say the Bloomsbury offices are just fab! Nestled in one of London’s most prestigious and prettiest areas, they feature stunning Georgian architecture and yes, the rooms have huge floor-to-ceiling bookshelves filled with wonderful books!

Having read and loved Fallen Grace, the story of a young girl who becomes involved in the funeral business during the Victorian period, I was really excited to find out more about Mary and the books she has written. I’m amazingly impressed that she has written over 100 books of varying sizes, the most recent of which are historical YA fiction. Researching the historical aspects for her books sounds like a fascinating process and insight into London’s past, which for the poor was overwhelming sad and shocking by our standards. Mary read out little snippets that she found out about people living in the 18th and 19th century, and I could instantly see why the time period interests her and why her stories and characters just jump out at you.

I was also very lucky to steal Mary’s attention for a while and have the opportunity to pepper her with plenty of questions which she answered very honestly and passionately. As I really enjoy learning about the writing process it was interesting to hear that she spends about a year researching and writing a book and really enjoys the whole process. There were also lots of familiar book blogger faces at the launch, as well as some new ones (for me at least!), but sadly I didn't have my camera to take pics of everyone.

I can’t wait to read and review Velvet, which is about séances and mediums in Victorian England, and if you haven’t gone out and grabbed yourself a copy, go now!

• Mary Hooper’s webpage
• Velvet on Goodreads

REVIEW: FALLEN GRACE

Fallen Grace
Author: Mary Hooper
Series: No, standalone
UK Publisher: Bloomsbury
UK release date: June 2011
Genre: Historical fiction
Kindly sent by the publisher for an honest review

Orphaned sisters Lily and Grace struggle to survive in Victorian London, selling cress to keep a roof over their heads. At only 16, Grace is a fallen woman and must find a way to bury her stillborn child. In doing so she finds herself crossing paths with the Unwins, unscrupulous funeral directors who will not only save her from the workhouse but also try to rob her of much more.

Review: From the very start I was drawn into Grace’s world and her struggle to care for herself and her sister. Despite all the hardships and blows she suffers, Grace carries on and perseveres. Vulnerable, determined and plucky she shows a remarkable strength of character, and is one of the few characters I’ve come across that really tugs on my heartstrings. Told primarily from her perspective, Fallen Grace is a compelling story about this sweet young girl.

With a child’s mind, her sister Lily tries desperately hard to do the best, but is taken advantage of at every corner. As pawnshops and con artists trick her out of money for their own benefit, it made me think how hard it must have been to live in such times if you weren’t savvy and constantly vigilant.

The portrayal of the Unwin family and their funeral business is dark, sinister and slightly macabre. Emotionally blackmailing grieving families into paying beyond their means for a fancy funeral, they scam and scheme money from anyone they can. When Grace turns to them for help you instantly realise that they are truly manipulative and wicked people.

Victorian London is wonderfully portrayed in all its filth and finery. Little snippets at the start of each chapter from Dickens and newspaper adverts help build a picture of the splendor the rich live in as well as typical Victorian life and going-ons. There is a stark contrast between those living in poverty with no shoes on their feet and searching the streets for litter and those from the upper classes riding through Hyde Park in carriages and fine clothes. Rather than the romantic view of the rich, Fallen Grace looks at both sides and gives a very realistic and captivating perspective of daily life.

Mary Hooper obviously did a lot of background research into the historical element as they were so many facets of London and Victorian life that I never even knew about such as the different mourning stages and the steam train taking coffins to a cemetery outside the city. These details really help bring the story alive by adding authenticity and make me imagine what piece of history I could be walking past everyday as I walk the streets of London.

A delightfully dark and gripping read full of Victorian London slums and splendor, and the plight of Fallen Grace as she fights for what is rightfully hers.

Rating: 4*

REVIEW: HAUNTING VIOLET

Haunting Violet

Author: Alyxandra Harvey

UK Publisher: Bloomsbury

UK release date: July 2011

Genre: Paranormal, YA, Historical fiction

Summary: Violet Willoughby is the daughter of a fraudulent medium and incorrigible flirt. Living in Victorian London they swindle grieving widows by setting up ghostly parlour tricks, earning enough money for Violet's mother to seduce and deceive her way through genteel society.

When Violet starts seeing ghosts including one who wants her murderer to be discovered, she is not only shocked but rather perturbed that they would visit her. After all, Violet doesn’t believe in ghosts.

Review: Haunting Violet is a ghostly murder mystery set in Victorian times, where family respectability, social nobility and money is everything.

Violet lives with her mother, who will do anything to wear beautiful dresses, flirt with rich men and work her way up the social ladder. Violet is pressed into helping at séances as well as courting the young and rich Xavier, so she can marry well and drag the family out of poverty.

Despite having a controlling mother Violet has to pickpockets and scavenge to stay on the bread-line, which means she is capable and determined, not your typical swooning lady. Her circumstances and feelings of guilt over deceiving others, make her instantly likeable. The fondness and playfulness between her and Colin is exciting and heartwarming. He might not be rich, but he understands and cares for Violet. And who could dislike a man who says "I'm not good enough for you either."?

I loved learning about the different spiritualist tricks they used to make people think they were being visited by ghosts - Violet had a cumbersome pair of bellows strapped to her legs so she can produce blasts of cold air. Whilst there is an element of humour and excitement to the séances, you really feel for Violet who is so put upon by her mother as well as the unsuspecting clients who are deceived.

Whilst the plot wasn't filled with shocking twists, the pacing and mystery was gripping and the writing seamless. The Victorian setting and language is very well done - you can really feel the coal smog and grime of London and the opulence of the country manor and the women's dresses. It's a time period that I find fascinating, and Alyxandra Harvey really brought it to life.

A ghostly murder mystery packed with spiritualist illusions, sumptuous dresses and eerie apparitions, Haunting Violet is a Victorian extravaganza. 

Rating: 4*