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I don’t think the dual timelines worked very well to frame or push the story along. And some of Maud’s reflections as a child used kind of grotesque language and imagery that made for an uncomfortable read, even if it was fitting for the whole historical gothic vibe. But I did love the multiple POVs. In particular, Edmund’s misogynistic journal ravings were as captivating as they were mindnumblingly enraging.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Abortion
I listened to this book through Libro.Fm and the audio book reader absolutely knocked it out of the park - I was blown away by her ability to alter her voice, to make you forget this was one woman reading. The micro changes to her reading whenever she read Edmund Stern's voice, or the softness that slowly hardened as Maud aged, the delicate notes of Maud's mother, and the roughness of the village folk's voices.
Kudos to Jaunita McMahon for her mastery of telling an already-good story and making it BETTER.
You know when you read a book, and it transports you? Not just because it is written well (although that too), but because the author KNOWS the setting so well that they can forcibly pull you into it?
I have never personally known the English Fens. I have never been to a Sussex wetland and smelt it, or seen the water the reeds move. But thanks to Paver, I feel as though I have.
This was such an incredibly atmospheric book.
If you like vibes, getting chills when nature is described, yearning, and tragedy all wrapped up in gothic trappings, this is for you.
If you like a quick plot, clever and quick-paced dialogue, or snappy happenings...its probably not for you.
This book is like the fog, slow and rolling...but arriving surely and arriving with an unexpected magic and weight.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry
Moderate: Child death, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Religious bigotry
Minor: Blood
Graphic: Miscarriage, Misogyny, Death of parent
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Blood, Religious bigotry
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Miscarriage, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy
Minor: Bullying, Vomit
Graphic: Child death, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Medical content, Abortion
This is a strange read. It consists of chapters from Maud's point of view, alongside chapters which details the entries from her father's diary. Maud is a difficult character to like at first, she's very spiky but when you consider her childhood experiences it's not surprising. Maud sees herself as extremely plain and unattractive, and when she falls in love with the under-gardener, a young man called Clem Walker, she can hardly believe he feels the same, unfortunately it ends in tragedy. Edward Stearne is one of the most loathsome characters I've ever read about - a complete narcissist who thinks all women are brainless, money grasping whores (even his daughter). The supernatural side of the story is less believable than the idea that someone is slowly driving Stearne mad, and I think the author did a good job of showing how women were completely at the mercy of their male kin at that point in history. Overall I liked parts of it, but other aspects were frustrating, therefore I rate this one 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4).
Thanks to NetGalley and publishers, Head of Zeus, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death