I’ve struggled quite a bit with writing this review as I’m not really sure what to say. I had high expectations of it as I absolutely loved Room, by the same author. However, whilst this was a good story and well written, I found I just didn’t really care about the characters and what happened to them!

The novel is set in the nineteenth century (probably another reason why I didn’t like it, as I only really like books set in the century they were written) and is actually based on a real life scandal. The main character, Fido, is caught up in a scandal involving an old friend, her husband and a number of extra man friends, if you get m’drift. As a good friend, Fido tries to help, but things are not all they seem and that’s all I’ll say… Where Fido is plain, intelligent and career-minded, her friend (Helen) is beautiful, passionate and fanciful. Their friendship is quite intriguing because of its unlikeliness and there is plenty of drama with secrets hidden and uncovered. 

One reason I didn’t enjoy the book so much was because it’s quite predictable. I could see quite a lot of the twists and turns coming, which makes them lose some punch. Furthermore, it’s a very long book, but it is easy to read so didn’t take me too long. As it’s such a long book, there isn’t really a quote I can pick out as a favourite.

So I apologise for the lack of depth in this review! If you like books set in Victorian England with drama, intrigue and the occasional bit of sauce, you may like this one. However, I would not recommend this book to just anyone.