3.5
Things in Jars
ByPublisher Description
In this “miraculous and thrilling” (Diane Setterfield, #1 New York Times bestselling author) mystery for fans of The Essex Serpent and The Book of Speculation, Victorian London comes to life as an intrepid female sleuth wades through a murky world of collectors and criminals to recover a remarkable child.
Bridie Devine—flame-haired, pipe-smoking 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 in this age of discovery.
Winding her way through the sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won’t rest until she finds the young girl, even if it means unearthing secrets about her 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 nothing is quite what it seems.
Blending darkness and light, Things in Jars is a stunning, “richly woven tapestry of fantasy, folklore, and history” (Booklist, starred review) that explores what it means to be human in inhumane times.
Bridie Devine—flame-haired, pipe-smoking 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 in this age of discovery.
Winding her way through the sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won’t rest until she finds the young girl, even if it means unearthing secrets about her 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 nothing is quite what it seems.
Blending darkness and light, Things in Jars is a stunning, “richly woven tapestry of fantasy, folklore, and history” (Booklist, starred review) that explores what it means to be human in inhumane times.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesThings in Jars Reviews
3.5
“The story moved like waves on a shore, dragging in and then letting you out. I think the characters had complexity to them, but not perhaps compelling warmth or depth. Throughout the book, I felt like I was swimming in dark water, not knowing which way was up and I would’ve liked something more to cling to, to give me a direction or a heading.”
“Storyline was engaging. Multiple characters introduced and reintroduce which caused confusion / difficulty to keep track of all players in the plot at times. The ending of the story drew together the characters significant relations. Very discriptive and beautifully written.”
Change and growDiverse representationMultilayeredOriginalStrong relationshipsClever plottingSatisfying conclusionSteady pacingSuspensefulWell-structuredBeautifulEerieExpansiveMagicalMysteriousRusticSetting fits the storyVivid descriptionsBeautifully-writtenDescriptiveHard to followAbuseChild abuseDeathExplicit sexual contentMurderSexual assaultViolence
“I loved this, glad I’m finishing the year with such a good book.
Ruby was obviously my favourite character”
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