SBD 31 Bond Street

Remember how I was on and on about not liking historical novels based on real people? Turns out I was wrong. Maybe it's okay if I've never heard of the people in the book.

I'm listening to 31 Bond Street and loving it. It's based on a sensational murder that took place in the 1850s and most of the characters were real people. The descriptions of New York would be enough to sell me--and the little snippets from the newspapers are great.

There isn't the deep POV I'm used to, so I haven't bonded with any of the characters. But that's fine. It's an elegant book and all the research she did makes it richer, not dull--or at least not for me. The descriptions of the clothes and other details seem a bit much now and then, as in not really fitting the moment, but I like 'em.

I'm off to see if Ellen Horan has written more books. If she has I bet she'll stick with that milieu. I think it fits her style of writing, solemn and slightly removed from strong emotion.

UPDATE Drat. No other books listed for her.
UPDATE again: I'm not sure I loved the ending. Also, I looked up the details of the murder and the author took huge liberties with the event and the people --I'm not sure why, because the truth was even more wild than her version. (She added slavers and Indians and whatnot)

Comments

  1. Rachel12:34 AM

    I really like historical fiction and am not all that picky as to whether or not it includes real people so I may not be the most reliable person to suggest another but have you read Katherine by Anya Seton? Katherine was real (as are all the people around her) and I thought it was a fabulous book and a really interesting story... to say nothing of the incredible reality of Katherine and her life.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kate9:17 AM

    Thanks, Rachel. I'm adding it to my list. I like Seton so it'll probably work for me.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kate Diamond12:26 AM

    My favorite recent "historical" read involves two time periods. It's "Daughter of Time," by Josephine Tey. It's set in 1950s England (when the book was published, actually). A detective whose been hospitalized is spending his convalescence trying to figure out one of history's mysteries: who really killed the princes in the tower?

    I'm a history geek, so this was right up my alley.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Kate6:48 AM

    I love that book! I went through a major Tey-glomfest and that was my favorite of her books.

    ReplyDelete

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