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Bodies of Water
After ministering to fallen women in Victorian London, Evelyn has suffered a nervous breakdown and finds herself treated by the Water Doctors in the imposing Wakewater House, a hydropathy sanatorium. Years later, Wakewater House is renovated into modern apartments and Kirsten moves in, fresh from a break up and eager for the restorative calm of the Thames. But her archivist neighbour, Manon, fills her head with the river's murky past and with those men of science and art who were obsessed with the drowned women who were washed up on its banks. As Kirsten learns more about Wakewater's secrets, she becomes haunted by a solitary figure in the river and increasingly desperate to understand what the water wants from her.
130 pages, Paperback
First published May 15, 2016
8 people are currently reading
2242 people want to read
About the author
V.H. Leslie
31 books29 followersI came to books early and enjoyed them so much that I’ve spent the best part of my life studying them. I taught English A Level for a number of years and I still write academic articles for a range of literary publications. Although I always knew that I wanted to write fiction, it was only recently that I began in earnest. I enjoy reading and writing fiction that focuses on psychological issues and perspectives, that blurs boundaries or takes place within liminal or marginal spaces. I like stories that are driven by setting and those that make connections to other texts, to mythology, folklore and art.
My short stories have appeared in a range of speculative publications, including Black Static, Interzone and Shadows and Tall Trees and have been reprinted in a range of “Year’s Best” anthologies. I’m a Hawthornden Fellow and was recently awarded a place at the Saari Institute in Finland, where I was researching Nordic myth and folklore. I won the Lightship First Chapter Prize in 2013 and was a finalist for the 2014 Shirley Jackson Award in the category of novelette. My debut short story collection Skein and Bone garnered comparisons to M.R. James and Shirley Jackson and was nominated for both the World Fantasy Award and the British Fantasy Award. My novel Bodies of Water, hailed a “feminist ghost story” was published by Salt Publishing and has just been translated into French. I’m currently studying for my PhD in English and Creative Writing at the University of Chichester.
My short stories have appeared in a range of speculative publications, including Black Static, Interzone and Shadows and Tall Trees and have been reprinted in a range of “Year’s Best” anthologies. I’m a Hawthornden Fellow and was recently awarded a place at the Saari Institute in Finland, where I was researching Nordic myth and folklore. I won the Lightship First Chapter Prize in 2013 and was a finalist for the 2014 Shirley Jackson Award in the category of novelette. My debut short story collection Skein and Bone garnered comparisons to M.R. James and Shirley Jackson and was nominated for both the World Fantasy Award and the British Fantasy Award. My novel Bodies of Water, hailed a “feminist ghost story” was published by Salt Publishing and has just been translated into French. I’m currently studying for my PhD in English and Creative Writing at the University of Chichester.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews
August 17, 2016
This is Leslie’s debut novel, or novela perhaps. It is written as a duel perspective, flitting between Kirsten in the 21st century and Evelyn in the 19th. Kirsten is recently single after the end of what was presumably quite a series relationship and has moved into a new flat on the outskirts of London along the banks of the river Thames. Evelyn is a wealthy but unmarried young woman who’s father has sent to her to a water treatment facility in the same building that will be remodelled almost 200 years later into Kirsten’s block of flats.
What initially drew me to this book was the partial setting in a 18th century, women’s mental health facility. I find the topic of women’s hysteria and it’s treatment incredibly disturbing and fascinating. It was historically a cruel, medical cover with which to control women; and there are definite allusions to the societal pressures placed on women and women’s sexuality running throughout this book.
Read the rest of my review here, on my blog: https://morejeansthoughts.wordpress.c...
What initially drew me to this book was the partial setting in a 18th century, women’s mental health facility. I find the topic of women’s hysteria and it’s treatment incredibly disturbing and fascinating. It was historically a cruel, medical cover with which to control women; and there are definite allusions to the societal pressures placed on women and women’s sexuality running throughout this book.
Read the rest of my review here, on my blog: https://morejeansthoughts.wordpress.c...
July 26, 2017
4.5/5. This was a surprisingly emotional read and I think I'll need some time to process it all. Bodies of Water is more of a novella than a full-length novel, but it packs a punch. The story focuses on two women: Evelyn, who lives in Victorian London and who's being treated for 'female hysteria' with the water cure in Wakewater House near the river Thames, and Kirsten, who lives in present day and who moves into Wakewater House which has been renovated into modern apartments. It's a tranquil, yet sometimes downright creepy story full of impressive imagery and poignant thoughts regarding the historical and, to a lesser extent, current treatment of women in society. I don't want to say much more, but if you have similar bookish buzzwords like me ('female hysteria', 'Gothic fiction' and 'Victorian London' was what did it for me :D) I'm sure you're going to like this one. Similarly, if you're a fan of books like Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf or Kirsty Logan's more recent fiction, this could also be the book for you!
July 30, 2016
There are some really interesting themes and historical events happening in here. Unfortunately I didn't think the characters were deeply developed, nor did the Victorian time period feel tangible in those sections of the story. The climax of the stories were disconnected from the narrative that came before. And the ending felt spontaneous in that the author hadn't planned it before she started on the book. Those big issues knocked this book down two stars, but this is worth reading. I just wish it had been fleshed out a bit more so I could better connect with the story and characters.
May 20, 2019
I stumbled upon this book in a charity shop, and was drawn to the title, the picture on the front cover and the blurb describing it. Anything to do with Victorian ghosts, asylums or the water cure, I'm there!
The book jumps backwards and forwards in time with a duel narrative. Firstly to present day, where Kirsten has moved into a newly renovated block of flats, that originally housed the hydropathy sanitorium - Wakewater house in Victorian London. Kirsten is eager for peace and quiet after a nasty breakup, and believes that the calming properties of the Thames will help.
We then jump back into Victorian London, where a young woman named Evelyn has just arrived at the sanitorium after having suffered a nervous breakdown. She meets another resident named Blanche who carries a dark secret that Evelyn can only hope to uncover, at least she managed to take her favourite dress of beautiful green taffata to the sanitorium.
Back in present day, Kirsten meets the only other resident at the flats. An older woman named Manon, who is intent on filling Kirsten's head with stories of the past and all the poor women who committed suicide in the water. Kirsten has also started noticing a mournful looking woman standing in the dark by the edge river with long dark hair and dressed in an elegant green dress...
This was everything I wanted it to be. I was emotionally invested in the stories of both women, as well as being invested in the history of Wakewater House, and also desperately sad for all the women who were discarded like pieces of rubbish. I had only read the first page of this, and I was already ordering another of V.H.Leslie's books.
The book jumps backwards and forwards in time with a duel narrative. Firstly to present day, where Kirsten has moved into a newly renovated block of flats, that originally housed the hydropathy sanitorium - Wakewater house in Victorian London. Kirsten is eager for peace and quiet after a nasty breakup, and believes that the calming properties of the Thames will help.
We then jump back into Victorian London, where a young woman named Evelyn has just arrived at the sanitorium after having suffered a nervous breakdown. She meets another resident named Blanche who carries a dark secret that Evelyn can only hope to uncover, at least she managed to take her favourite dress of beautiful green taffata to the sanitorium.
Back in present day, Kirsten meets the only other resident at the flats. An older woman named Manon, who is intent on filling Kirsten's head with stories of the past and all the poor women who committed suicide in the water. Kirsten has also started noticing a mournful looking woman standing in the dark by the edge river with long dark hair and dressed in an elegant green dress...
This was everything I wanted it to be. I was emotionally invested in the stories of both women, as well as being invested in the history of Wakewater House, and also desperately sad for all the women who were discarded like pieces of rubbish. I had only read the first page of this, and I was already ordering another of V.H.Leslie's books.
April 17, 2017
There are two strands to the plot in Bodies of Water. In the first, newly single Kirsten moves into Wakewater Apartments, a development housed in one wing of a Victorian manor that was once a hospital. It turns out she's one of the first residents: her only neighbour is an academic named Manon who has an odd preoccupation with Wakewater's history and seems to think the place has a life of its own. In the second, set in 1871, a young woman named Evelyn is sent to Wakewater to receive hydropathic treatment for her 'hysteria'. She falls for another patient, Blanche, but is plagued by memories – and visions – of her former lover Milly.
I'd been craving a ghost story, and hoped this would fit the bill. It starts well: the first chapter is very engaging and the setting is instantly brought to life. There's a good strong mood to Wakewater, and I loved the scenes of Kirsten's first days there and her tentative exploration of the surrounding land (and the Thames). Everyone's obsession with water verges on silly, but on the whole, the is-it-or-isn't-it-real hauntings are effectively done.
The book is short, which means there isn't a lot of room for the characters or any of their relationships to be developed. A certain shift in Evelyn's personality happens too quickly to feel anything other than melodramatic, and I never got a sense of how Kirsten felt about her ex or how the breakup had affected her. Evelyn's work with prostitutes (or 'fallen women', as the narrative constantly has it) leads to a lot of moralising which I found rather tedious – one of those instances of modern attitudes being forced into a historical context. Finally, the ebook I read had a number of annoying typos and errors in it.
Good atmosphere, and I would be interested in checking out the author's short stories, but overall this was a bit of a disappointment.
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I'd been craving a ghost story, and hoped this would fit the bill. It starts well: the first chapter is very engaging and the setting is instantly brought to life. There's a good strong mood to Wakewater, and I loved the scenes of Kirsten's first days there and her tentative exploration of the surrounding land (and the Thames). Everyone's obsession with water verges on silly, but on the whole, the is-it-or-isn't-it-real hauntings are effectively done.
The book is short, which means there isn't a lot of room for the characters or any of their relationships to be developed. A certain shift in Evelyn's personality happens too quickly to feel anything other than melodramatic, and I never got a sense of how Kirsten felt about her ex or how the breakup had affected her. Evelyn's work with prostitutes (or 'fallen women', as the narrative constantly has it) leads to a lot of moralising which I found rather tedious – one of those instances of modern attitudes being forced into a historical context. Finally, the ebook I read had a number of annoying typos and errors in it.
Good atmosphere, and I would be interested in checking out the author's short stories, but overall this was a bit of a disappointment.
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November 19, 2018
This was nearly a one-sitting read for me: I read 94 pages in one go, though that may be because I was trapped under the cat at the time. The first thing I noted was that the setup and dual timeframe are exactly the same as in Barbara Kingsolver’s Unsheltered: we switch between the same place in 2016 and 1871. In this case it’s Wakewater House, a residential development by the Thames that incorporates the site of a dilapidated Victorian hydrotherapy center. After her partner cheats on her, Kirsten moves into Wakewater, where she’s alone apart from one neighbor, Manon, a hoarder who’s researching Anatomical Venuses – often modeled on prostitutes who drowned themselves in the river. In the historical strand, we see Wakewater through the eyes of Evelyn Byrne, who rescues street prostitutes and, after a disastrously ended relationship of her own, has arrived to take the Water Cure.
The literal and metaphorical connections between the two story lines are strong. Pretty much every paragraph has a water word in it, whether it’s “river,” “sea,” “aquatic” or “immersion.” Both women see ghostly figures emerging from the water, and Manon’s interest in legends about water spirits and the motif of the drowned girl (like the Lady of Shalott [“She was sick of shadows” recalls Tennyson’s poem] and Millais’ Ophelia) adds texture. The short chapters keep things ticking over, and I loved the spooky atmosphere.
(It’s just a shame that the book has been so poorly proofread. There are lots of missing or wrong words (“scold” instead of scald, “distended” instead of extended) and typos. The name Evelyn is even used by accident in one of Kirsten’s chapters! I know Salt is an independent publisher with a small budget, but these kinds of mistakes give an author and imprint a bad name.)
A favorite line: “Sometimes old places like this retain a bit of the past, in the fabric of the building, and occasionally, they seep.”
Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.
The literal and metaphorical connections between the two story lines are strong. Pretty much every paragraph has a water word in it, whether it’s “river,” “sea,” “aquatic” or “immersion.” Both women see ghostly figures emerging from the water, and Manon’s interest in legends about water spirits and the motif of the drowned girl (like the Lady of Shalott [“She was sick of shadows” recalls Tennyson’s poem] and Millais’ Ophelia) adds texture. The short chapters keep things ticking over, and I loved the spooky atmosphere.
(It’s just a shame that the book has been so poorly proofread. There are lots of missing or wrong words (“scold” instead of scald, “distended” instead of extended) and typos. The name Evelyn is even used by accident in one of Kirsten’s chapters! I know Salt is an independent publisher with a small budget, but these kinds of mistakes give an author and imprint a bad name.)
A favorite line: “Sometimes old places like this retain a bit of the past, in the fabric of the building, and occasionally, they seep.”
Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.
November 16, 2016
A couple of cutout protagonists that act as a convenient vehicle for exposition and didactic storytelling that explores the societal pressures placed on women across two different time periods wrapped in a lazy attempt to disguise it as a gothic ghost story. At 130 pages its existence specifically feels like one of Leslie's short story ideas dragged out to novella length or a much larger exploration of an idea - and I mean Wind-Up Bird Chronicle length and style - gutted and simplified for the shorter form. Ultimately disappointing.
September 6, 2018
I really wanted this book to be good. But it wasn't. Most drastically, this book somehow managed to convey the exact opposite of what it intended. It had more sexist scenes than anything else. Like Kirsten needing to deal with an oh so confusing folder of stuff now that her ex-boyfriend of ten years doesn't deal with it anymore? Or Blanche practically enjoying her doctor taking advantage of her, either that or fulfilling the "all bisexuals cheat"-trope? And in that very same scene, from Evelyn's point of view, the talk about the "lowest kind of women" like there is a ranking system in value - coming from the protagonist who spent her life saving prostitutes from cruel fates by the way - and the only solution to that "problem" being what, murder?! In not a single moment this read made me feel like the usual treatments for female "hysteria", like rape, torture, mutilation, was being depicted as anything more than a mild inconvenience and mostly administered with consent given. In addition to this, an abundance of spelling mistakes/typos (like Wakewaker) and grammatical errors you just could not ignore spoiled this read even further, and the author mixing up the protagonists' names just takes the cake. Didn't anyone proofread this thing? I won't even try to put into words how much i disliked the writing style. In the end i was just one more "Kirsten negotiated xyz" away from throwing this thing into the Rhine for someone to keep. I'd also like to add that the characters are shallower then the stupid water that's constantly on the floor and YES the redundancy of practically everything was overwhelming! This was only 130 pages, every second chapter starts the same, some bits of backstory are retold twice or even more often. I am not going to judge the historical accuracy of dialogue or setting because i don't know a thing about Victorian London, but at the very least something felt very, very off about those chapters and the way these people talked to each other. To conclude, this novel could hardly have been worse.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 26, 2018
This short book surprised me in its richness, I loved it! It had an unexpected feminist twist, which really aided the story. Beautifully written, a real page turner. It spooked me out, but I could not put it away. If you love your books Victorian, gothic and spooky, definitely give this one a go!
November 15, 2019
Unfortunately it was too repetitive and inconsistent.
February 5, 2017
Génial ! Intelligent, intense, un mélange passé-présent et gothique-moderne, bien mené, cultivé. Et je connais en tout cas une Bruxelloise à qui, à coup sur, il plairait ;-)
August 8, 2016
Loved this, it only a short book but is a really slow burn and has a slow creepy build. Loved it would definitely recommend I will be doing a full review on my blog https://paintandbutterfliesbooks.word...
October 14, 2025
This is what I wanted The Empusium to be.
June 9, 2019
I loved the first half of this - an eerie gothic tale of women and mental health in Victorian times. Atmospheric descriptions of the river and water throughout. But the second half was not convincing and as it was a short novel / novella the characters felt under developed. A shame as it had great promise!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 19, 2016
This is one of those books I finished and immediately had almost no opinion on: I didn't hate it, I didn't love it. I feel decidedly lukewarm on pretty much every aspect. Which is odd, because the themes (intense female friendship, bizarre antiquated cures for madness, mythology/magical realism elements, alternating past-and-present storylines, cats!!) are things I almost always love or at least can easily get involved with.
But Bodies of Water was decidedly bland. The writing was decent and had some sparks of beauty, but mostly came across as just adequate. The characters are quite flat. They have interesting backgrounds, but everything we see from their perspective makes them seem dreadfully dull. They also act in a way that drives the plot forward but makes no real-world sense. If you moved into a brand-new apartment and the ceiling started leaking, would you 1) visit your upstairs neighbor to ~investigate~ and then forget about it or 2) call the fucking super to fix it asap because it's DRIPPING ALL OVER YOUR BED. Our girl Kirsten takes #1 because yeah, that's logical. Their motivations don't line up with their actions at all, and it's a consistent issue.
I think one of the main problems was the length. It's so short but covers two stories with deep backgrounds. There's a LOT going on, and each story could have easily been 100+ pages. It wouldn't fix the other issues but it would make it easier to get invested. With this novella format, by the time I finally gave a damn about the plots it was over. Something interesting happened (there's honestly only one real 'event' in the book) and 10 pages later it's the end of the book? The pacing is quite poor.
I know this was going for a traditional Gothic atmosphere, and it had a great base to work with. The plot sounds so interesting on paper, and issues of mental illness and sexuality are just begging to play out on a weird Gothic water therapy stage. Yet this was just okay in almost every way. Super forgettable.
But Bodies of Water was decidedly bland. The writing was decent and had some sparks of beauty, but mostly came across as just adequate. The characters are quite flat. They have interesting backgrounds, but everything we see from their perspective makes them seem dreadfully dull. They also act in a way that drives the plot forward but makes no real-world sense. If you moved into a brand-new apartment and the ceiling started leaking, would you 1) visit your upstairs neighbor to ~investigate~ and then forget about it or 2) call the fucking super to fix it asap because it's DRIPPING ALL OVER YOUR BED. Our girl Kirsten takes #1 because yeah, that's logical. Their motivations don't line up with their actions at all, and it's a consistent issue.
I think one of the main problems was the length. It's so short but covers two stories with deep backgrounds. There's a LOT going on, and each story could have easily been 100+ pages. It wouldn't fix the other issues but it would make it easier to get invested. With this novella format, by the time I finally gave a damn about the plots it was over. Something interesting happened (there's honestly only one real 'event' in the book) and 10 pages later it's the end of the book? The pacing is quite poor.
I know this was going for a traditional Gothic atmosphere, and it had a great base to work with. The plot sounds so interesting on paper, and issues of mental illness and sexuality are just begging to play out on a weird Gothic water therapy stage. Yet this was just okay in almost every way. Super forgettable.
April 6, 2017
Samuel Johnson once dismissed a book as 'both good and original' for 'the parts that are good are not original, and the parts that are original are not good.' 'Bodies of Water' fits this estimation very well. Aside from the thoroughly derivative Sarah Waters (appropriately enough) backstory, which is filled with the kind of clunky research that even BA creative writing students wouldn't flaunt so obviously, the book is poorly plotted, has desperately clichéd characters (past and present), and is written in such a way as to suggest an uncorrected draft. Successive sentences finish with the same word, the syntax is repetitive, the imagery generally botched, and the paucity of imaginative ability and resources is exposed on every page. Did she never think to read her prose aloud to eliminate such infelicities? Did she never read her dialogue aloud? Does she think people ever speak (or spoke) as they do here?
The modern 'haunted apartments' could have come from Hammer House of Horror in 1979, while the watery finale is part 'Woman in Black' and part 'I've read a few compilations of myths and legends and it'll probably be okay'. It isn't. Sometimes only a book as brief as this one can be quite so boring. Reading it was a wade through treacle. I didn't even like the cat.
Rant over, but I won't be spending my hard-earned cash on anything else by Victoria Leslie. Whatever you may think of her imagination, she needs to go away and practice the basic skills of literary composition. Only then will her prose be prose, rather than words on a page that are inexpertly moved around. Reading her is like watching a five year old trying to eat peas with a fork.
The modern 'haunted apartments' could have come from Hammer House of Horror in 1979, while the watery finale is part 'Woman in Black' and part 'I've read a few compilations of myths and legends and it'll probably be okay'. It isn't. Sometimes only a book as brief as this one can be quite so boring. Reading it was a wade through treacle. I didn't even like the cat.
Rant over, but I won't be spending my hard-earned cash on anything else by Victoria Leslie. Whatever you may think of her imagination, she needs to go away and practice the basic skills of literary composition. Only then will her prose be prose, rather than words on a page that are inexpertly moved around. Reading her is like watching a five year old trying to eat peas with a fork.
July 12, 2017
If you enjoy lesbian supernatural with forced feminist lecturing, then this is the book for you. This plot had potential, but it was an underdeveloped, waterlogged Amityville horror type tale replete with soap - box style lessons on the wrongs perpetrated by men against womanhood and a few literary references thrown in for good measure.
July 30, 2024
A few years ago I loved this book and I enjoyed reading it reading. There were a few inconsistencies in names that I hadn’t noticed before and thought the characters could have been developed more. Overall I still enjoyed it and enjoy the history of women’s rights and the water cure
July 23, 2016
This was quite different to what I was expecting, but it was a really eye opening and unique read. At times it was quite difficult too, but that's what I love. I'll try and have a review up soon!
August 16, 2016
ACTUAL RATING: 3.5 STARS
May 29, 2017
Der Einleitungstext klingt vielversprechender als das Buch tatsächlich ist. Hätte man sich auf eine Handlungsebene beschränkt (die Viktorianische wäre die bessere gewesen), hätte man die Story gut und knackig erzählen können.
Dem Gegenwarts-Handlungsstrang fehlt es leider an Sinn.
Schlecht geschrieben ist das Buch nicht, aber ein bisschen mehr Sorgfalt hätte dem Ganzen schon gut getan.
Dem Gegenwarts-Handlungsstrang fehlt es leider an Sinn.
Schlecht geschrieben ist das Buch nicht, aber ein bisschen mehr Sorgfalt hätte dem Ganzen schon gut getan.
April 30, 2021
4.5 stars! ✨
March 26, 2019
2.5/5 stars
Bodies of Water was a book I thought I was going to really love so it has been a slight disappointment. I certainly got more than I bargained for on the horror front. Many people whose reviews on GR and Youtube I trust talked about the intertwining storylines and the subtlety of the novella, but the overwhelming impression I got was of heavy-handedness. The constant use of water-related language when not talking about water or the river at all (there were many examples but the only one coming to mind right now is "swimmingly"), just to relate it back to water at all times, started to get on my nerves a little. Constant punning doesn't exactly leave you with the feeling of the book (or author) taking itself very seriously. Maybe that's what she was going for, idk. But the rest of the time the tone is quite serious so that's not the impression I got.
Similarly, I thought some of the symbolism and imagery was a bit laboured. The constant reminder of the orchard and the apples (i.e. Eve and the fallen woman - not quite as apparent in an out-of-context review), as well as some of the mythology and dogmatic reminders that yes, women and prostitutes drowned themselves in the Thames, I thought were just a little too repetitive. Leslie could have left some of the mythology and mythologic imagery up to the reader to work out rather than explain it all, and I don't think the book would have suffered.
I also thought that the two protagonists turned into psychopaths at the end, which wasn't really a natural development of their character arcs. Evelyn, of the 1800s storyline, suddenly made a U-turn on her caring and compassionate attitude towards the prostitutes and those much less fortunate than herself that she'd espoused all throughout the book, to suddenly start describing them as "sinners" and "really [belonging] at the very, very bottom" of society.
Leslie sets up Evelyn as a very sane, indeed forward-thinking woman, with at times a modern clarity of thinking (like a side-eye at the reader to share the absurdity of notions such as a 'water cure' and 'hysteria'). There is also the suggestion that the real reason she's at Wakewater for this therapy is her grumpy father and that she's completely fine, just a woman off doing her own work, which wasn't seen as the right thing at the time. (I'm guessing at this backstory based on what little information is given at the beginning of the story - I was fully expecting the name-dropped father as well as the reason for her having been sent to Wakewater to be more fully fleshed out, but it's never mentioned again and completely underdeveloped. All it would have taken was one more little chapter to explain the alluded-to reason for her being sent there and the book would feel much more complete. As it is it feels like a 3rd draft.)
Towards the end of the story, I felt the narration descended somewhat into man-hating. It was quite funny at some moments I'll admit ('why had nobody yet realised the solution to venereal disease and prostitution is castration') but as the anti-men tirade went on I was just left with the feeling that the author had a bit between her teeth.
Overall I think this could have been considerably better if it were much longer (double the size (which isn't saying much as it's only 130 pages)) and had much more exposition and filling out the characters' histories. She could really have shown the lesbian relationship between Milly and Evelyn blossom, and followed Milly from leaving Evelyn to committing suicide (did she go straight from her room to the river? or was there a long period in between, in which she went back to prostitution and that's how she wound up pregnant? we'll never know). Leslie jumps straight into the plot, giving both main characters I think one short chapter each to introduce themselves before the first eerie sighting of the woman on the riverbank, all of which had quite a rushed feel. Rather than diving into the plot from the very outset, in my opinion the author should have spent more time developing exposition and back story, and then going into the sightings and odd happenings. As I said, I think the book could have been much better if it were double the size and the plot diluted. (pun intended)
Bodies of Water was a book I thought I was going to really love so it has been a slight disappointment. I certainly got more than I bargained for on the horror front. Many people whose reviews on GR and Youtube I trust talked about the intertwining storylines and the subtlety of the novella, but the overwhelming impression I got was of heavy-handedness. The constant use of water-related language when not talking about water or the river at all (there were many examples but the only one coming to mind right now is "swimmingly"), just to relate it back to water at all times, started to get on my nerves a little. Constant punning doesn't exactly leave you with the feeling of the book (or author) taking itself very seriously. Maybe that's what she was going for, idk. But the rest of the time the tone is quite serious so that's not the impression I got.
Similarly, I thought some of the symbolism and imagery was a bit laboured. The constant reminder of the orchard and the apples (i.e. Eve and the fallen woman - not quite as apparent in an out-of-context review), as well as some of the mythology and dogmatic reminders that yes, women and prostitutes drowned themselves in the Thames, I thought were just a little too repetitive. Leslie could have left some of the mythology and mythologic imagery up to the reader to work out rather than explain it all, and I don't think the book would have suffered.
I also thought that the two protagonists turned into psychopaths at the end, which wasn't really a natural development of their character arcs. Evelyn, of the 1800s storyline, suddenly made a U-turn on her caring and compassionate attitude towards the prostitutes and those much less fortunate than herself that she'd espoused all throughout the book, to suddenly start describing them as "sinners" and "really [belonging] at the very, very bottom" of society.
Leslie sets up Evelyn as a very sane, indeed forward-thinking woman, with at times a modern clarity of thinking (like a side-eye at the reader to share the absurdity of notions such as a 'water cure' and 'hysteria'). There is also the suggestion that the real reason she's at Wakewater for this therapy is her grumpy father and that she's completely fine, just a woman off doing her own work, which wasn't seen as the right thing at the time. (I'm guessing at this backstory based on what little information is given at the beginning of the story - I was fully expecting the name-dropped father as well as the reason for her having been sent to Wakewater to be more fully fleshed out, but it's never mentioned again and completely underdeveloped. All it would have taken was one more little chapter to explain the alluded-to reason for her being sent there and the book would feel much more complete. As it is it feels like a 3rd draft.)
Towards the end of the story, I felt the narration descended somewhat into man-hating. It was quite funny at some moments I'll admit ('why had nobody yet realised the solution to venereal disease and prostitution is castration') but as the anti-men tirade went on I was just left with the feeling that the author had a bit between her teeth.
Overall I think this could have been considerably better if it were much longer (double the size (which isn't saying much as it's only 130 pages)) and had much more exposition and filling out the characters' histories. She could really have shown the lesbian relationship between Milly and Evelyn blossom, and followed Milly from leaving Evelyn to committing suicide (did she go straight from her room to the river? or was there a long period in between, in which she went back to prostitution and that's how she wound up pregnant? we'll never know). Leslie jumps straight into the plot, giving both main characters I think one short chapter each to introduce themselves before the first eerie sighting of the woman on the riverbank, all of which had quite a rushed feel. Rather than diving into the plot from the very outset, in my opinion the author should have spent more time developing exposition and back story, and then going into the sightings and odd happenings. As I said, I think the book could have been much better if it were double the size and the plot diluted. (pun intended)
August 5, 2016
This novella was awesome - a dark and eerie gothic tale with a focus on women characters and how women's bodies have been treated by men and male-dominated society over time.
The story has two narrative threads - one follows Evelyn, a young woman in 19th century England who has been diagnosed with a 'female complaint' and prescribed hydropathy, also known as 'the water cure', as treatment, at a hospital dedicated to this healing practice. Hydropathy basically included any range of watery activities - bathing, steaming, being chilled or warmed, cold compresses - even weird pouches of water worn beneath the clothes. The other storyline follows Kirsten, a woman in the 21st century who has moved to her new apartment in the old hydropathy hospital, which has been redeveloped into flats.
Both women are compelled and repulsed by the water, and water starts taking over their lives... there are lots of creepy and beautiful descriptions of water in all sorts of different scenarios, and a lot of references to the way water has featured in various mythologies and in folklore. Both Kirsten and Evelyn start seeing a strange woman emerge from the river, a woman who influences their lives in different ways, and the whole things leads to an interesting, sad, gory, and awesome conclusion.
The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars was that a couple of times at the start some of the prose was a little bit information dumpy (the rest of the writing was lovely, though). Otherwise, I loved this. If you want a strange, beautiful, feminist, and fairy-tale-esque Victorian gothic tale - read this.
The story has two narrative threads - one follows Evelyn, a young woman in 19th century England who has been diagnosed with a 'female complaint' and prescribed hydropathy, also known as 'the water cure', as treatment, at a hospital dedicated to this healing practice. Hydropathy basically included any range of watery activities - bathing, steaming, being chilled or warmed, cold compresses - even weird pouches of water worn beneath the clothes. The other storyline follows Kirsten, a woman in the 21st century who has moved to her new apartment in the old hydropathy hospital, which has been redeveloped into flats.
Both women are compelled and repulsed by the water, and water starts taking over their lives... there are lots of creepy and beautiful descriptions of water in all sorts of different scenarios, and a lot of references to the way water has featured in various mythologies and in folklore. Both Kirsten and Evelyn start seeing a strange woman emerge from the river, a woman who influences their lives in different ways, and the whole things leads to an interesting, sad, gory, and awesome conclusion.
The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars was that a couple of times at the start some of the prose was a little bit information dumpy (the rest of the writing was lovely, though). Otherwise, I loved this. If you want a strange, beautiful, feminist, and fairy-tale-esque Victorian gothic tale - read this.
October 20, 2017
Small book so quick read. Enjoyed the feminist type of message (as I read it), of women's treatment in Victorian times, by men, doctors, other women, and society in general. A ghostly story really, with an ending which seemed inevitable. I think I would have liked a bit more of a story to read,it was like a teaser in a way. Enjoyable and covered (to me anyway) a few issues in a condensed version.
May 4, 2021
I enjoyed this dual narrative of Evelyn: a queer Victorian woman being treated for hysteria and Kirsten: a modern-day tenant haunted by the hospital's and water's ghosts. It certainly made me appreciate a lot of the freedoms I enjoy today compared to women of the past. It's also good for people like me who don't mind a bit of ghosty, spookiness but can't deal with anything actually scary.
July 29, 2016
BooktubeAThon Book 7: read a book only after sunset.
Overall meh because it was waaaaay to repetitive for me. It had some interesting reflexions on the body and sexuality and the hydrotherapy element was intriguing but it's definitely not the best novella out there.
Overall meh because it was waaaaay to repetitive for me. It had some interesting reflexions on the body and sexuality and the hydrotherapy element was intriguing but it's definitely not the best novella out there.
June 24, 2023
I liked the setting and the mystery aspect. It was very descriptive, I could envisage every scene and sometimes it truly sent shivers down my spine. There were some interesting ideas and beautiful lines as well. However, it felt like it was lacking some further development.
January 31, 2017
One of my favourites of 2016, in the category 'Best Novella About Hydropathy & Feminism':
http://www.kirstylogan.com/best-books...
http://www.kirstylogan.com/best-books...
July 23, 2025
London im 21. Jahrhundert. Nach der Trennung von ihrem Freund kauft Kirsten ein Apartment im Wakewater House. Sie ist eine der ersten Bewohnerinnen, denn die ehemalige Klinik wird gerade zu Luxusapartments umgebaut. Außer ihr wohnt nur noch eine andere Frau hier. Schon bald nach dem Einzug passieren seltsame Dinge. Aus Manons Apartment scheint ständig Wasser zu kommen, ohne dass es eine Ursache gibt. Kirsten sieht eine Frau am Ufer der Themse, die aus einer anderen Zeit zu kommen scheint. Und wer sind die geheimnisvollen Wesen im Wasser, von denen Manon sagt, man muss sie zurückstoßen?
Alles beginnt mit der Geschichte von zwei Frauen, die zu unterschiedlichen Zeiten in Wakewater House leben. Kirsten sucht nach der Trennung von ihrem Freund ein Zuhause, in dem sie ein neues Leben beginnen kann. Mehr als hundert Jahre früher kam Evelyn nach Wakewater House. Sie hatte einen Nervenzusammenbruch, nachdem die Arbeit mit den "gefallenen Frauen" zu viel für sie wurde. Sie hofft, mit der neumodischen Wassertherapie wieder gesund zu werden.
Die beiden Frauen könnten gegensätzlicher nicht sein. Kirsten liebt den Fluss, während Evelyn ihn verabscheut. Der Grund wird erst im Verlauf der Geschichte klar. Da verändert sich auch die Einstellung der beiden Frauen zum Fluss. Evelyn beginnt, ihn zu lieben während Kirsten ihn immer unheimlicher findet. Das liegt zum einen daran, dass Manon ihr von der Geschichte der Themse erzählt, als auch an den Dingen, die sie im Fluss sieht. Evelyn wiederum sieht ebenfalls seltsame und beängstigende Dinge, während sie ihre Wasserbehandlungen bekommt.
Die Leben der beiden Frauen verlaufen nicht nur parallel, sie hängen auch zusammen. Das wird mit jeder Seite deutlicher. Genauso deutlich wird auch, dass Beiden Gefahr droht. Was genau, ist zunächst nicht klar. Sicher ist nur, dass die Gefahr aus dem Fluss kommt. Er zieht sie immer mehr in ihren Bann, wie wahrscheinlich schon unzählige Frauen vor ihnen.
Die Geschichte war ein ständiges Auf und Ab. Stellenweise war die Geschichte sehr fesselnd, aber genauso war sie oft sehr vorhersehbar. Ab einem bestimmten Punkt war Kirstens Geschichte erzählt, während Evelyns noch lange nicht vorbei war. Da hätte ich es schöner gefunden, wenn nur noch die Geschichte aus der Vergangenheit erzählt worden wäre, anstatt in der Gegenwart noch eine Wendung hinzu zu fügen, die künstlich wirkte. Ganz überzeugt hat mich das Buch nicht, aber trotzdem hat es mich gut unterhalten.
Alles beginnt mit der Geschichte von zwei Frauen, die zu unterschiedlichen Zeiten in Wakewater House leben. Kirsten sucht nach der Trennung von ihrem Freund ein Zuhause, in dem sie ein neues Leben beginnen kann. Mehr als hundert Jahre früher kam Evelyn nach Wakewater House. Sie hatte einen Nervenzusammenbruch, nachdem die Arbeit mit den "gefallenen Frauen" zu viel für sie wurde. Sie hofft, mit der neumodischen Wassertherapie wieder gesund zu werden.
Die beiden Frauen könnten gegensätzlicher nicht sein. Kirsten liebt den Fluss, während Evelyn ihn verabscheut. Der Grund wird erst im Verlauf der Geschichte klar. Da verändert sich auch die Einstellung der beiden Frauen zum Fluss. Evelyn beginnt, ihn zu lieben während Kirsten ihn immer unheimlicher findet. Das liegt zum einen daran, dass Manon ihr von der Geschichte der Themse erzählt, als auch an den Dingen, die sie im Fluss sieht. Evelyn wiederum sieht ebenfalls seltsame und beängstigende Dinge, während sie ihre Wasserbehandlungen bekommt.
Die Leben der beiden Frauen verlaufen nicht nur parallel, sie hängen auch zusammen. Das wird mit jeder Seite deutlicher. Genauso deutlich wird auch, dass Beiden Gefahr droht. Was genau, ist zunächst nicht klar. Sicher ist nur, dass die Gefahr aus dem Fluss kommt. Er zieht sie immer mehr in ihren Bann, wie wahrscheinlich schon unzählige Frauen vor ihnen.
Die Geschichte war ein ständiges Auf und Ab. Stellenweise war die Geschichte sehr fesselnd, aber genauso war sie oft sehr vorhersehbar. Ab einem bestimmten Punkt war Kirstens Geschichte erzählt, während Evelyns noch lange nicht vorbei war. Da hätte ich es schöner gefunden, wenn nur noch die Geschichte aus der Vergangenheit erzählt worden wäre, anstatt in der Gegenwart noch eine Wendung hinzu zu fügen, die künstlich wirkte. Ganz überzeugt hat mich das Buch nicht, aber trotzdem hat es mich gut unterhalten.
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