It's true that the title of this blog does not look like anything to do with historical fiction, but the equilibrium between wildlife and humanity was not always so precarious as it is now. Finding the balance which existed at the time you're writing can be a very useful tool to setting a believable background for your writing. So here are a few mammal considerations... Wild mammals were everywhere - they still are, in fact! Whether you're writing about the middle of a city or the middle of nowhere, it should be a given that these animals will influence life. As well as the obvious and frequently maligned rats and mice, other mammals have cohabited our cities with us. Foxes have always had a partially urban existence, and the building of cities on waterways also often lead to otters and (depending on how far inland they were) seals being resident. Mankind knew how to find wild mammals - there is a continuous development in the scientific study of our wild mammals and this...
Review
After the disaster which was my last read for this Challenge, I immediately realised that this book was perfect for laying that ghost to rest, which is topical because that is the theme of this entire story: Brigid Cleary is driven to avenge the brutal torture and murder of her mother, Bridget Cleary, who was a real-life victim of extreme domestic violence in 1895. A historical note at the beginning of the book shares the facts.
Mathilda Zeller creates the world clearly and the characters are mostly very well developed. You find yourself longing for Brigid to find the peace that she's so desperate for; being thankful - or perhaps wishing - for friends like Florence and Adelaide, and falling in love with Edmund and willing him not to let you down. Perhaps the only character who convinced me less than entirely was Mr Baxby. I felt like the whole story could have been rewritten from his point of view and he would have been a sorry character. How lovely to be back with characters who you felt like you could properly invest in though!
The pace of the book is very good. I usually read one chapter a night and, occasionally, could absolutely not wait to find out what happened next so would need to keep reading. You always feel as though there is something happening, rather than just any chapters which are in as fillers. I also loved the use of chapter headings such as, "In Which Our Heroine Confronts a Villain," as they really give an added sense of time to the story.
This should have been a five star book: I loved it and was gripped from beginning to end (did I mention, the ending is spectacular!)
The reason is isn't a five star review from me is because it was like an almost-finished product. The copy I received was in need of a final edit and proofread, and there were occasions throughout where this jerked me out of the world which was created by the story. Mostly, they were typos or formatting errors (the use of italics is essential in the story because they demonstrate when Brigid is hearing the voice of her dead mother in her head) but there were a couple of historical inaccuracies too. The Ireland described in the books is more in line with 19th century rather than 1910, which I believe is when the story is set. Irish history is a passion of mine, so I am certain that some of the things which didn't sit right with me wouldn't bother anyone else.
Mathilda Zeller is a talented author and, in The Revenge of Bridget Cleary, she has cleverly created a world which draws you quickly and deeply into an adventure with a great deal at stake. It just makes me annoyed that good authors can't always access affordable editorial support - and this is something which we're attempting to address with Crowvus Piapiac.
Blurb
Are you a witch, or are you a fairy, or are you the daughter of Bridget Cleary?
Exiled for a murder her father committed, Brigid Cleary has until midsummer to gather what she needs for readmission to her home in the fairy mound: a chest of stolen gold and a chest full of her father's blood. With nothing but her own wits and an ability to be mostly unseen, she takes a position as a scullery maid in a country manor house, where stealing gold is easy as dusting the candlesticks.
When discovery of her thieving becomes likely, she scarpers, embarking on a madcap season in London. With midsummer fast approaching, Brigid must recoup her stolen gold in any way she can, even if it means modeling for a lecherous pre Raphaelite artist, posing as a young debutante to spy on other debutantes, and forming a clandestine Pugilism Club for Young Ladies.
With gold filling her pockets and her father newly released from prison, the path back to the fairies should be clear. Or would be, were it not for her growing feelings for Edmund, the gentle young lord who hired her to spy on his sister; her burgeoning sense of loyalty and friendship to Adelaide, the sister upon whom she was meant to spy; and the unsettling question of whether she should--or even could--bloodily avenge her mother's death.
Inspired by the actual 1895 murder of Bridget Cleary by her husband Michael, the struggle for Irish Home Rule, and events surrounding the late pre Raphaelite artistic movement, The Revenge of Bridget Cleary has been heralded by author Joanna Ruth Meyer as "equal parts haunting, compelling, and throughtful."
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