The Bone Flower by Charles Lambert

 

Name of Book: The Bone Flower 

Author: Charles Lambert 

ISBN: 9781913547271 

Publisher: Gallic 

Type of book: 1880s, Gothic novel, ghosts, true love,  marriage, abortion, Romeo and Juliet romance, England, Italy, Roma heritage, Vicorian Era 

Year it was published: 2022 

Summary:

On a November evening in Victorian London, the moneyed but listless Edward Monteith stokes the fire at his local gentlemen’s club, listening to stories of supernatural experiences and theories of life after death. His curiosity leads him to a séance, where he falls under the spell of a beautiful flower seller. But Victorian society does not look kindly on love between a gentleman of means and a Romani girl, and when he faces being cut off by his family, Edward makes a decision with horrifying consequences.

Two years later Edward is married and anticipating the birth of his first child, in a beautiful house lined with orange blossom trees. But the wrongs of the past are not so easily forgotten, and the boundary between the living and the dead begins to thin… A deliciously chilling Gothic novel, The Bone Flower is a deeply human story about guilt, betrayal and the cruelty of social expectations.

A dark, uncanny love story from the author of Polari prize-shortlisted Prodigal and The Children's Home, The Bone Flower will delight fans of Edward Carey and Essie Fox.

Characters:

Main character is Edward Monteith, a dilletante young man who is restless and who doesn't know what he wants to do or to be. He is extremely worried about appearances and is much more tied up to hierarchy than he'd like to admit. He has interest in supernatural and often attends a social "club". He also lacks understanding and is very careless with human emotions. Secondary characters include Settie, a woman of half Roma half African American heritage who deeply falls in love with Edward and doesn't want to let him go. There is also Marisol, Edward's Italian wife who is easily excitable and cares deeply for her homeland and the superstitions. 

Theme:

Actions have consequences, love never dies

Plot:

The story is written in third person narrative from Edward's point of view and it begins in 1880s when Edward meets a woman of Roma and African American ancenstry whom he falls in love with. However, despite their love (I loved the exploration of power of love in America versus Great Brittain.) he is the son of a wealthy man while she is in the low caste. Feeling powerless, Edward makes a desperate choice that causes him to be parted from his love. In about two years, Edward marries a beautiful woman Marisol who is expecting their first child and it seems as if everything is going well until he returns to England from Italy. In my opinion, at least towards 1880s and Victorian Era norms the story is well researched and well done and there is definitely an atmosphere of wealth that Edward inhabits which feels all too real. 

Author Information:
(From goodreads)

Charles Lambert was born in the United Kingdom but has lived in Italy for most of his adult life. His most recent novel, The Bone Flower, is a Gothic love story with a sinister edge, set in Victorian London. His previous novel, Prodigal, shortlisted for the Polari Prize in 2019, was described by the Gay & Lesbian Review as "Powerful… an artful hybrid of parable (as the title signifies), a Freudian family romance, a Gothic tale, and a Künstlerroman in the tradition of James Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.” For the Kirkus Review, The Children's Home, published in 2016, was 'a one-of-a-kind literary horror story', while Two Dark Tales, published in October 2017, continues to disturb. Earlier books include three novels, a collection of prize-winning short stories and a memoir, With a Zero at its Heart, selected by the Guardian as one of its top ten books from 2014.

Opinion:

I really feel bad that I didn't review this book for Halloween because honestly it would have been a perfect fit for the spooky atmosphere as well as having a tinge of sadness at how much humans aren't aware of the future. In Europe,  aside from Jews, the Roma groups (gypsies) are perhaps the most exoticized and stereotyped people. As a child, I was even told the story of gypsies kidnapping children who stray too far from their parents, thus I am not sure how much of it is stereotype, or how much is rooted to the Victorian setting. The story does deliver heavily on supernatural themes as well as creating heavy foreshadow for the latter half, but oh, the heartbreak is just...there really isn't the words to describe it in detail. Still, perhaps for next year or for essence of 1800s novels like The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins, do give it a chance because its well worth the time. 

This was given for review

4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)