Having seen the trailer for the new film they are making of this book, I was quite excited when I was invited to read a review copy by the Publisher via Netgalley.
Set in London in 1880, it was obviously going to be very different to the usual modern day crime fiction I usually devour and I do have to admit to taking a wee while to really get into the swing of things. Not too long though as the author has the act of time and scene setting off to a fine art and it wasn't long before I found myself totally immersed in the era depicted in the book.
We start with the scene of a hanging. One Elizabeth Cree, convicted of killing her husband. The book then rewinds back to Elizabeth's childhood and we are given various accounts of the time leading up to the initial event. We see how Elizabeth grew up, how she discovered the wonderful world of the theatre and how she made a better life for herself. We see how she met her husband and what happened after they married. We also follow several other characters and see their interaction with true life characters from the era seamlessly injected into this story. I am not 100% familiar with all the real characters and their parts in history so I can't say it was all true and that no liberties were taken, but within my limited knowledge, all was completely credible.
The Golem of the title is a ripperesque character who is wreaking havoc around the London are of Limehouse. As the book progresses we see that the apparent random nature of these killings is actually not and, we see them committed by the killer by way of both narrative and also through excerpts from the killer's own diary and we also see the way that others are affected by way of what is being reported in the media. I found all these methods of imparting information to be very effective.
I've already mentioned the author's talent for scene setting but I have to expand and say that he did a great job with his depiction of London in that era. The sights, the smells, the poverty and ways of living really came through in the writing. Especially the parts depicting the theatre and music halls and it took me right back to the times I used to watch The Good Old days with my family. Happy days indeed.
All in all, a brilliant journey back in time with some familiar old faces and some great new ones. All playing their parts in a rather intriguing and interesting story which ended perfectly. I am now really interested in seeing what they do in the film version and can't wait to see how that turns out. Fingers crossed!
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Top reviews from other countries
Customer, male.
Interesting story of C19 grimy London.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 22, 2024
YvonneB
This is a book I enjoyed and would recommend to readers who like Gothic Fiction, Historical and Literary Fiction.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 27, 2017Derwood Angst
Brilliant and evocative
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 9, 2017Amazon Customer
A passable read if you have nothing else to do.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 10, 2021TOMMY
This book will be a blast.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 10, 2020