The Conviction of Cora Burns | 
pickThis historical novel raises the debate about criminality and ‘nature vs nurture‘. Richly woven with details of the Victorian life and times, it discusses themes like mental illness, motherhood, and class. I found this to be an engaging read with interesting twists. A clever debut and worth the read.
June stats: 9 books: 2 bails, 2 pans, 2 oks and just 3 picks! The Conviction of Cora Burns is defo the stand out. 👍 #junestats
pickNow that‘s what I call a Gothic Victorian Tale! Seriously dark, down right disturbing at times, full of atmosphere, grit, grime and suspense. From workhouses to gaols and insane asylums, it goes to all those terrifying places in Victorian history. I got completely lost in this, a cracking debut novel.
Sometimes historical fiction is just the thing...
pickA gothic Victorian mystery about a woman with a tragic past who lives with a man who is researching whether you can judge a person by their appearances. The book uses multiple timelines and journal entries to tell Cora's story and the story of her mother from when Cora was a child. The plot is extremely skillful and Cora makes a good central character as she starts off mentally quite violent and grows as a character.
pickThis is historical fiction with gothic feel, the dark atmosphere of the time, with women being admitted to asylums for depression or ‘hysteria‘ and generally treated poorly. The characters are well written and rounded and Cora for all her ‘issues‘ is likeable and you have such sympathy for her. The language of the book is beautiful, the intrigue believable with a truly satisfying end. I can see this being a must read. Due March 2019
“On her first walk through the asylum, the place had not seemed so different from the workhouse.”.....this is a bit freaky and who the hell is Alice?
“There was no telling how long he‘d be in that cupboard. But as she walked out of the studio and back in to the shop she let her hand linger on the soft woollen fabric of the walking dress.”
This is an interesting read and not sure yet how it‘s going to end....who is Alice Salt ? And just what is going on in that house...
”What happened next was never clear in Cora‘s mind. If a memory ever wormed through, or if the scene came back to her in a dream, the sequence would vary each time. The events inside the privy block were ever after cloaked in haziness “......getting into this now, a bit slow to start but now intriguing
Chemo and and Cora...
