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Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Bullying, Torture, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment
Minor: Forced institutionalization
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Racism, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Classism
Moderate: Pregnancy
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Torture, Death of parent, Murder
We have two protagonists: Dorothea, an oddly progressive (by early Victorian standards) with an obsession with phrenology and Ruth, a seamstress and alleged murderess who seems to believe that she can impart curses with her stitches.
The two have had very different upbringings, but both have lost a parent to ugly deaths.
Dorothea becomes obsessed with Ruth's case, determined to prove that the young inmate can be reformed and, in doing so, change the very shape of her anatomy.
As Ruth's horrifying past is revealed, Dorothea comes to doubt some fundamental truths about her life and the nature of human morality.
The crimes are so layered and complex, the characters are deliciously complicated, and the ending felt so, so good.
I loved Purcell already, but I think I need to buy all her damn books now.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Murder, Pregnancy
Minor: Body horror, Bullying, Gore, Racism, Sexism, Blood, Religious bigotry, Classism
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder
This one is tough to review. Like a Shein tissue-paper dress inexplicably embroidered with masterwork Swarovski crystal beading, The Poison Thread takes great pains to evoke period details and clues to the central mystery, but is utterly slapdash in terms of overall construction. Ruth's narration is always in past tense, and is apparently in-character testimony given to Dorothea, but Dorothea's chapters waver between past and present tense without much reason, sometimes seeming to be an epistolary, sometimes in-the-moment narration. As the story picked up speed it seemed less and less likely there was even time for all of Ruth's lengthy confessionals.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Racism, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Pregnancy
Still, I liked it. It doesn't go into excessive detail on the torture the seamstresses go through which saves it from being gratuitous in my opinion and keeps the focus on the plot
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Suicide, Terminal illness, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent
Moderate: Racism
Minor: Domestic abuse
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Torture, Vomit, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder
Overall an ominous, creeping story in the vein of a Victorian gothic horror story! Purcell is officially a favorite author I’ll be reading more from 💗 I recommend for anyone wanting a gothic historical mystery with complex characters and atmospheric writing (but be wary of the content warnings because it’s very graphic and dark)!
Graphic: Child abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Self harm