Well, I can imagine that the above review is a bit short for a reader who wants to know why 'Nightshade' should be bought. I agree, and what follows is the extended version of the review.
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| [Buy the book here] |
'Nightshade' is already the fifth book of Elaine Thomson's that follows the intrepid Jem Flockhart (apothecary) and his/her* friend Will Quartermain (architect).
Quartermain has been ill, but on the mend. Because he likes being in the physic garden, Flockhart decides to somewhat redesign the garden which was originally designed by her mother, Catherine Underhill. Soon they discover, buried beneath the plot of deadly nightshade, a man's skeleton with a smaller, child-like skeleton curled at its feet. The skeleton has a series of knife wounds to its ribs and arms. In addition, Flockhart and Quartermain find a collection of macabre objects in the grave.
This strange discovery awakes somebody or something because soon the murders begin. Each victim is found with its mouth stuffed with deadly nightshade. As they move closer to discovering the truth, Flockhart and Quartermain must enter a dark world of addiction, sex, and ultimately, madness.
'Nightshade' is constructed as two intertwined tales, one situated in 1818 and the other in 1858. Elaine Thomson skillfully weaves both into a beautifully coherent mystery. So atmospheric are the descriptions of London and its ever-present mists that your senses almost think that it must be real. We were already acquainted with the gory and grime of early Victorian London, but now we discover that Elaine Thomson has managed to add an additional layer of Gothic horror.
As I said: Buy the book because it's bloody brilliant.
Buy the book here.
* You should read the books for an explanation.
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