I was absolutely bowled over by The Room, which was stratospherically a best seller and nominated for innumerable awards, and well deserved it was. I therefore approached this book with a sense of trepidation and anticipation.
What a surprise this is a totally different kind of book. It is set in Victorian London and concerns an infamous divorce case that occurred in real life. This is Emma's fictional take on it.
It is absolutely brilliant. Of course, I love historical fiction but it is the relationships of the central characters that like Room dominate the book and carry it forward.
I found I just could not put it down, it was utterly fascinating and I was desperate to find out the conclusion of the trial.
There is masses here to interest a reading group, women's rights, marriage, divorce, female relationships, Victorian London, hypocrisy, and the list goes on. I can predict that this book will become the stalwart of reading group lists for many years to come.
