Read 2020 - 49 - Sanctuary by Robert Edric

Everywhere I went the engines sat at their rest like giant creatures,

hissing and leaking steam and pouring smoke.

 

 

 

Sanctuary by Robert Edric is the story of Branwell Bronte's last year, of his fall into debt and into depression. It is very much a tale of a wasted life in respect to the success his sisters were to achieve, which is lightly touched upon. This is a story of a man who no longer fits easily within his family and who is testing the patience of friends.

 



Sanctuary is the second book by Edric that I have read this year (the previous being The London Satyr) and I thoroughly enjoyed every word, fair raced through it. After loving the previous book so much, the Bestwick bought this for me in January. He's a love.

Book 3 of 2020 - The London Satyr

It was going to be a tough job following The Essex Serpent but The London Satyr by Robert Edric held its own. I don't know how long this book sat on my to-read-shelf because it was deposited there by the Bestwick. 

Again, we visit 1890s London with fictional and real-life characters (Henry Irving, Ellen Terry and Bram Stoker), set in theatre-land and in a seedy underworld of pornographic photography, with a side-trip into spiritualism. An interesting look at 19th century London. Highly recommend.

 

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I'm enjoying allowing a random number generator to pick my books for me. It's also encouraging me to read faster than usual.