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A review by jaklyn_heath_reads
Opium and Absinthe by Lydia Kang
3.0
Thank you to @NetGalley for the ARC and opportunity to read this one!
Tillie (Mathilda) Pembroke is a determined, inquisitive, vibrantly independent young woman living in New York in 1899 when her life is turned upside down. She has a riding accident that breaks her collarbone and has her taking laudanum to help with the pain. The same day, her sister Lucy goes missing and is later found dead with 2 puncture marks on her neck and all of her blood drained from her body and a bottle of absinthe close by. Bram Stoker's "Dracula" has just been published and there is hysteria surrounding this death about the murderer being a Vampire.
Tillie is determined to find out exactly what happened to her sister and decides to investigate her the murder herself. She questions people who had seen Lucy in the hours leading up to her death and reads "Dracula" to find connections. Her addiction to the laudanum gets stronger and she starts taking more and more. She also takes morphine that sends her even higher and more foggy. Paranoia sets in as she no longer knows who she can trust and the hysteria and fear of a vampire on the loose does not help.
This novel is part gothic, part murder mystery, part coming of age (as Tillie continues to exert her independence through her determination to find out what happened to Lucy). It is a novel with a very interesting cast characters and you never know who to trust. There is heart pounding suspense and lots of mystery and intrigue. I really enjoyed it!
Tillie (Mathilda) Pembroke is a determined, inquisitive, vibrantly independent young woman living in New York in 1899 when her life is turned upside down. She has a riding accident that breaks her collarbone and has her taking laudanum to help with the pain. The same day, her sister Lucy goes missing and is later found dead with 2 puncture marks on her neck and all of her blood drained from her body and a bottle of absinthe close by. Bram Stoker's "Dracula" has just been published and there is hysteria surrounding this death about the murderer being a Vampire.
Tillie is determined to find out exactly what happened to her sister and decides to investigate her the murder herself. She questions people who had seen Lucy in the hours leading up to her death and reads "Dracula" to find connections. Her addiction to the laudanum gets stronger and she starts taking more and more. She also takes morphine that sends her even higher and more foggy. Paranoia sets in as she no longer knows who she can trust and the hysteria and fear of a vampire on the loose does not help.
This novel is part gothic, part murder mystery, part coming of age (as Tillie continues to exert her independence through her determination to find out what happened to Lucy). It is a novel with a very interesting cast characters and you never know who to trust. There is heart pounding suspense and lots of mystery and intrigue. I really enjoyed it!