Summary: It’s London 1888, and
Jack the Ripper is terrorizing the people of the city. Evelyn, a young
woman disfigured by her dangerous work in a matchstick factory, who has
nowhere to go, does not know what to make of her new position as a maid
to the Elephant Man in the London Hospital. Evelyn wants to be locked
away from the world, like he is, shut in from the filth and dangers of
the streets. But in Joseph Merrick, the Elephant Man, she finds a gentle
kindred who does not recoil from her and who understands her pain.
When
the murders begin, however, Joseph and Evelyn are haunted nightly by
the ghosts of the Ripper’s dead, setting Evelyn on a path to facing her
fears and uncovering humanity’s worst nightmares. (summary and image from goodreads.com)
My Review: This book took me completely by surprise, meaning I didn't really expect
to like it as much as I did. I don't often delve into historical
fiction, but the premise excited me and from the moment I began reading,
I didn't want to put it down.
This is a proper ghost story, though as the book's tagline states, the scariest ones might not be the dead. I loved our main character, Evelyn--she is fully rounded and feels so vividly real and believable. We get to
experience this gritty world through her eyes in a way we don't often
think of.
Because this book was so visual. This is London in the late 1800s, the slums and
its peoples, their way of life. Kirby doesn't powder it up--I could just feel the grime of
the dirty streets, the degradation, the fear, hopelessness. Evelyn wishes to escape that, not only
because she's a woman and hopes to avoid prostitution, but because of
her facial deformity which makes everyone gawk and stare. And it is in
the London Hospital where she becomes a maid servant to Joseph Merrick
that she believes she's finally found safety.
What I love about how Kirby spun the narrative of this book is that he
took two simultaneous timelines, that of Joseph Merrick's stay in the
London Hospital, and the Whitchapel murders, and wove this theme of
monsters. We have Leather Apron (a name of Jack the Ripper), the killer
murdering and slicing up women in Whitechapel slums, we hear his
horrible deeds as the characters ponder on who it could be and if he
will be caught. This comes in stark contrast to Mr. Merrick, who has
been seen by the world as monstrous, put in freak shows as the Elephant
Man with a disability and disfigurement that keep him separate from the
world, and even exploited by his doctor, but was known to all as the most sincere, kind and guileless
man. This book showed how tender and gentle he was.
It further goes on to address the theme of monsters in our main
character, Evelyn. She sees herself as a monster, she has lived a difficult life that has hardened her, done things she's not proud of,
and we can see that fight in her demeanor--but that hard life has not taken away
her kindness. She is a stalwart if ever there was one, facing up to
her fears over and over again, caring only for the safety of her friend Mr. Merrick even over her own position or safety.
I must also add I like how Kirby humanized those who were murdered--often they are seen as merely victims, faceless names attached to a notorious killer--but this book gave us stories behind the women, let us see their hopes and dreams and eventual peace.
Gripping ghost story, murder mystery, and character piece.
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
For
the sensitive reader: The descriptions of the Whitechapel murders are fairy vivid. There are
numerous ghost hauntings, some more frightening than others. There is
also
an attempted (but thankfully halted) sexual assault, brief discussion of
men's
anatomy, and some mild language.
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