Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

The Corset by Laura Purcell

37 reviews

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

The Corset by Laura Purcell is a fantastic addition to the Victorian Gothic genre, which I love. I picked it up immediately after The Silent Companions, and it did not disappoint. The character of Ruth is built up brilliantly—she believes her sewing has the power to harm others. Her story is tragic, and I found myself rooting for her, hoping she could finally catch a break, though the world seems determined to keep her down. The atmosphere of the novel is perfectly crafted; it immerses you in the dark struggles faced by women in Victorian England.

Although I didn’t find The Corset quite as compelling as The Silent Companions, it was still a great read. My only issue was with the ending, where
>Ruth may indeed possess a supernatural ability, as implied by the fate of Dotty’s father. There are subtle hints, such as Dorothea subtly encouraging Ruth to think of hanging while embroidering her initial on a handkerchief—later, we learn she left it outside her father's library before his death. This twist suggests Ruth had the power all along, and Dorothea may have used it to rid herself of a problem, reinforcing the idea of "murderous" lumps she felt on her own head.
I would have preferred the story left Ruth as an ordinary girl caught in a series of tragic events.

Overall, The Corset is atmospheric and haunting, with a thought-provoking exploration of fate, power, and women’s struggles.

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Ooooh this book was so satisfying!

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.

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Wasn't expecting this one to get as intensely violent as it did, not that I mind. There's just no real indication from the copy I have that it's pretty hardcore on blood and torture.

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. 

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challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style and the way it jumped between two wildly different perspectives - a rich debutante and a prisoner who has always known poverty. It kept the mystery alive of whether or not the magic of Ruth's sewing was real
but I didn't like the way it waffled at the end. I preferred the 3 pages we were certain she had no magic and was framed to the last page where it's proved she likely does have power

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

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dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes

This was one of my 12 recs from 12 friends and the second Purcell novel I’ve read. I was pulled in right away and didn’t want to put this one down!

The story is told through switching POVs between Ruth and Dorothea. I preferred Ruth to Dorothea, Dorothea’s storyline could be annoying and she doesn’t have as much depth  (her one personality trait is measuring people’s skulls to determine their traits and that constant narrative was irritating, although very Victorian).

The childbirth scene was gross and traumatizing-I had to look away and felt nauseous 🤢 But on that note, Purcell does such a good job with putting you in the novel. Very atmospheric writing and great job building the Victorian backdrop!

The twists were unexpected and well done. Pacing was also well done, as the tension slowly builds throughout as we hear Ruth’s story right alongside Dorothea. I did however feel slightly unsatisfied with the ending, it was a bit abrupt and wish we got an epilogue to wrap things up for Dorothea’s future after that final scene.

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)!

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