Kill-Grief

by Caroline Rance

1756: Rotgut gin is the only thing that can get Mary Helsall through another day as an infirmary nurse. Her past is following her, and her volatile relationship with hospital porter Anthony is tainted by secrets.

But who is the mysterious patient who claims to know what she's hiding? He knows all about her infatuation with a thief-taker, about the reason she is frightened of the notorious Northgate Gaol, and about the shocking events she is trying to escape.

From the stormy seashore to the screams of the operating room, and from a backstreet gin shop to the fetid dungeons of the prison, Mary searches for an independent future. Before she can find it, she must fight the attraction of oblivion and decide whether addiction is a fair price to pay for love.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction

Paperback

First published March 16, 2009

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phenomenally well-written by a knowledgable historian. Rance takes you to 18th century Chester through the life of Mary, a nurse in an urban hospital. Experiences include life in a hospital, treating patients, and being a gin addict as well as dealing with a mountain of personal troubles that brings the main character to Chester. I'm not going to say more about the plot because the best part of the novel is the discovery of what actually happened to bring Mary to Chester. Rance's slow reveal of the plot is so well done that you can't stop reading just to piece together Mary's backstory while simultaneously wanting to see how she will deal with her latest problem. All of this takes place in such a rich atmosphere of sights and smells, I physically recoiled at the descriptive scenes. I cannot recommend this book enough for fans of historical fiction, especially of medical science history.

[Laurie Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good by any standards and exceptional for a first novel. It's quite densely written so if you're a book-gobbler you'll need to slow down. Worth it.

[abookandabadger · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing is brilliantly descriptive and I really enjoyed imagining the scenes of this book as they are so vividly expressed. Unfortunately I wasn't as taken by the plot line which dragged out but with little background. I would have liked a lot more of Mary's backstory to have taken up larger sections of the book. As it was, I found myself not caring so much for Mary.

[Jaffareadstoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this well reserched historical romp through Chester