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The Other Side of Mrs. Wood

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

For fans of The Lost Apothecary or the Mermaid and Mrs Hancock, a deliciously atmospheric historical novel about the rivalry between two female mediums during Victorian London's obsession with Spiritualism.

Mrs. Violet Wood is London's premier medium, a woman of supreme ambition whose unique abilities have earned her the admiration and trust of London's elite. Mrs. Wood is indeed a clever and gifted seer—her skill is unmatched in predicting exactly what her wealthy patrons want to hear from the beyond.

But times are changing. First, a nosey newspaperman has begun working to expose false mediums across London. Many of Mrs. Wood's friends—and, yes, some of her foes—have fallen to his merciless accusations. Worse yet, though Mrs. Wood's monthly séance tables are still packed, she's noticed that it's been harder to snare coveted new patrons. There are rumors from America of mediums materializing full spirits. . . . How long will her audiences be content with quivering tables and candle theatrics?

Then, at one of Mrs Wood's routine gatherings, she hears that most horrifying of sounds—a yawn. When a sweet girl with an uncanny talent for the craft turns up at her door, Mrs. Wood decides that a protégé will be just the thing to spice up her brand. But is Emmie Finch indeed the naïve ingenue she appears? Or has Mrs. Wood's own downfall come knocking at last?

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    • Kirkus

      April 15, 2023
      In Barker's witty debut, two mediums engage in a battle of wits in 1873 London. Violet Wood, pushing 40 and trying to keep a grip on the lifestyle her late husband afforded her following a hardscrabble childhood, is precariously holding onto her position as one of the most reputable mediums in the upper levels of London society. With the aid of her beleaguered assistant, Sarah Newman, who's showing signs of abandoning the unappreciative Mrs. Wood for a more rewarding life within the women's suffrage movement, the medium conducts increasingly predictable "grand s�ances" at her home as well as private meetings with some of her patrons. Mrs. Wood realizes that her fickle fans have begun to abandon her for younger, hotter talents, but she sees an opportunity to turn things around when pretty young Emmeline Finch begs to become her prot�g�. As Emmie increasingly inserts her own voice and presence into the s�ances, drawing attention away from her mentor, the stage is set for crafty confrontations between the two women. Barker--who doesn't stint on revealing the tricks of the supernatural trade--balances a comic sensibility with a real concern for the weight of her characters' secrets and problems so that Violet, a figure of fun at the beginning, becomes a character deserving of the reader's concern as the novel proceeds. The novel is set in a sumptuous--and sometimes sumptuously ridiculous--world full of colorful characters, where rooms are "crammed with taxidermied animals and silent clocks," crumbs cascade "from mouths to bosoms to carpets," and "illusion is everything." The plot unfolds at a leisurely but satisfying pace, and a twist at the end should tickle readers. A sly literary sleight of hand.

      COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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  • English

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