Bridie Devine-female detective extraordinaire-is confronted with the most baffling puzzle yet: the kidnapping of Christabel Berwick, secret daughter of Sir Edmund Athelstan Berwick, and a peculiar child whose reputed supernatural powers have captured the unwanted attention of collectors trading curiosities in this age of discovery.
Winding her way through the labyrinthine, sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won't rest until she finds the young girl, even if it means unearthing a past that she'd rather keep buried. Luckily, her search is aided by an enchanting cast of characters, including a seven-foot tall housemaid; a melancholic, tattoo-covered ghost; and an avuncular apothecary. But secrets abound in this foggy underworld where spectacle is king and nothing is quite what it seems.
Blending darkness and light, history and folklore, Things in Jars is a spellbinding Gothic mystery that collapses the boundary between fact and fairy tale to stunning effect and explores what it means to be human in inhumane times.
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As pale as a grave grub she's an eyeful. PROLOGUE
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(@canongatebooks, 1 January 2020, 417 pages, ebook, borrowed from @GlasgowLib via @OverDriveLibs)
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I've got other books by the author I haven't got round to reading. I really enjoyed this and look forward to reading more of her work. I've read a lot of historical crime especially with a gothic feel like this book so I was in familiar territory. It's never made clear what powers Christabel is supposed to have but there are hints that she may be some sort of mermaid as she can control water. I like that it's not pointed out in black-and-white, leaving your imagination free to run wild. The characters are well written and larger than life. I had a great time between the pages of Things in Jars.
