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wordsofclover 's review for:
The Corset
by Laura Purcell
I received this book from the publishers/author via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Ruth Butterham is awaiting her hanging in a women's jail, and is pretty secure in her crime. When rich do-gooder, Dorothea Truelove visits Ruth with an aim to study phrenology and use Ruth as a test subject, she ends up finding out the real truth behind Ruth's crimes, and the strange power with needle and thread that Ruth believes she wields. But is Ruth just a poor girl framed for murder, or does she really possess a wicked power?
I really enjoyed this and I think this is a great book to read during the Autumn months if you don't want something outright scary, but just a book that will leave you feeling a slight chill and raise some goosebumps on your skin. I really enjoyed the Victoria setting, and I think Laura Purcell always manages to capture a woman's lot at this time really well, be it a rich spinster like Dorothea or a young girl like Ruth forced to work like a slave to help her family. This book was dark and grimy but it a way that suited the tale really well, and I could easily picture a small home, lit with a single candle and a mother and daughter struggling to sew in the corner to earn their bread and butter - all in the shadow of rich women buying their wares, willfully blind to the suffering of those below them.
The way this book is written reminded me a lot of Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood. It's really up to the reader for the most part to decide if Ruth is guilty or not, and I love that questions are left hanging at the end. I actually enjoyed this book better than AG, and I found Ruth a skilled storyteller and she was easy to feel for. Dorothea was definitely harder to get along with, and was certainly high and mighty at the best of times but I did enjoy her interactions with people as well and the slight cheekiness she showed at times.
I do really recommend this book for anyone looking for a chilling tale, and one with a great foot in Victoria history that brings the era to life - not with colour but with shadows and death.
Ruth Butterham is awaiting her hanging in a women's jail, and is pretty secure in her crime. When rich do-gooder, Dorothea Truelove visits Ruth with an aim to study phrenology and use Ruth as a test subject, she ends up finding out the real truth behind Ruth's crimes, and the strange power with needle and thread that Ruth believes she wields. But is Ruth just a poor girl framed for murder, or does she really possess a wicked power?
I really enjoyed this and I think this is a great book to read during the Autumn months if you don't want something outright scary, but just a book that will leave you feeling a slight chill and raise some goosebumps on your skin. I really enjoyed the Victoria setting, and I think Laura Purcell always manages to capture a woman's lot at this time really well, be it a rich spinster like Dorothea or a young girl like Ruth forced to work like a slave to help her family. This book was dark and grimy but it a way that suited the tale really well, and I could easily picture a small home, lit with a single candle and a mother and daughter struggling to sew in the corner to earn their bread and butter - all in the shadow of rich women buying their wares, willfully blind to the suffering of those below them.
The way this book is written reminded me a lot of Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood. It's really up to the reader for the most part to decide if Ruth is guilty or not, and I love that questions are left hanging at the end. I actually enjoyed this book better than AG, and I found Ruth a skilled storyteller and she was easy to feel for. Dorothea was definitely harder to get along with, and was certainly high and mighty at the best of times but I did enjoy her interactions with people as well and the slight cheekiness she showed at times.
I do really recommend this book for anyone looking for a chilling tale, and one with a great foot in Victoria history that brings the era to life - not with colour but with shadows and death.