Sarah Schmidt (1)

This book is delicious.

It's also so bonkers. But delightfully so.

This debut novel explores the infamous Borden murders, opening with when the first body is found. The novel then shifts to two days before, and eventually, the days after the murder, and the story unfolds through Lizzie, her sister Emma, their maid Bridget, and Benjamin, an itinerant stranger.

Everyone in this book -- save for Bridget -- are awful. If one couldn't think of a reason for the murders, Schmidt offers a handful. The show more novel is creepy but not gory (just right for me), and there's a wonderfully claustrophobic feel to the narrative. It's a story, too, about frustrated ambitions and passions, petty jealousies and dysfunctional love. (I was reminded a bit of Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle, which made me wonder if Jackson was inspired at all by the Borden murders and if Schmidt had been inspired by Jackson...)

My only complaint about this book is that Schmidt doesn't include any sort of historical/author's note detailing what is historical record and what is her own invention, so I don't know if the way she depicted the Bordens is "true" or if the things that happened before the murder occurred. (I'm too much of a whimp to Google, lest I come across gruesome details I'd rather not know/see.)

I read this book in one day; as I said on Instagram, I felt like I couldn't breathe until I finished. If you're vaguely intrigued, just get it and tell everyone to leave you alone for the day! show less

‘’Should it matter when it happened?’’

I’ve always been interested in true and unresolved crimes cases and ever since I watched a documentary about the Borden murders, I try to read as much as possible about this strange, horrific crime. So, I eagerly started reading Sarah Schmidt’s novel which was highly recommended and which I found to be every bit as haunting, mysterious, gritty as the real story.

First of all, can I just say that we’re living in blessed times for us readers, show more because the plethora of beautiful debuts, their quality and exciting writing is every reader’s dream.I don’t think there’s ever been a time when most of the debuts have made such an impact on our community. For the last 5-6 years, we have experienced great literary moments by up and coming writers and this should give us hope for the future.

Anyway, back to our book. We start our journey with a quite gruesome scene- but well-composed and intense- when the bodies of the Borden couple are discovered. From then on, we move back and forth in time and through the eyes of Lizzie, Emma, Bridget and Benjamin, we try to glue the pieces of a broken family together, to discover the events that led to the bloody epilogue. Now, this time technique is fascinating, but it also requires serious skills. Schmidt succeeds in this and presents the story in a way that makes you forget you actually know it. The book takes you with it and you cannot help but watching the events unfold with the same trepidation we’d have felt for any novel whose plot was unfamiliar to us.

The writing reminded me of Hannah Kent’s [b:Burial Rites|17333319|Burial Rites|Hannah Kent|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1384207446s/17333319.jpg|21943144]. There is the same combination of darkness and a strange tranquility underneath. There are domestic scenes described in realistic detail, moments of family dynamics that are uncomfortable, wild. Bloody images that are never over the top. There is a distinctive aura of Gothic, gritty and primitive at times, but always poetically beautiful. It is difficult to describe it, actually. Imagine a mist that covers every chapter, every paragraph and we have to wait for it to dissolve in order to discover hidden feelings and motives. And believe me, it isn’t easy and in certain moments, the mists remains still, unmoving.

This novel is an example of beautiful writing and equally well-written characters. It doesn’t matter whether they are likeable or not. (Frankly, ‘’likeable’’ is boring. Most of the times…) They are interesting, they drive the plot, providing dark company, revealing their souls to us. Emma and Lizzie, the Borden sisters, couldn’t be more different. Emma is the eldest, the sensible one, the daughter who wants to escape the family and yet is shuttered by the murders, because to her ‘’family is family’’, despite the fact that her father was cruel and unloving. Lizzie is the revolutionary, the child that doubts her father’s authority, the one who isn’t willing to compromise, she want to to punish what she considers to be cruelty and injustice. She may come across as petulant, spoiled and selfish. Bridget is the young maid of the household, the one who witnesses everything but is unable to intervene. She understands how heavy the darkness in the house is and tries to break free from Abby’s illogical, erratic behaviour. Abby and Andrew, the victims, the ‘parents’, are awful people.Judging by the way they come across in the novel, I couldn’t say that I felt any kind of pity for them, as harsh as it may sound. Benjamin, a man of ill repute, has his own father- caused traumas and his plans involve revenge, but they’re no well thought-out.

This is a beautiful, dark book. Attractive, gritty, exciting, emanating a deep sadness for a family that is destroyed by a tyrannical father and ill choices. I agree with a number of good friends in our community who said that this story isn’t for everyone. You need to invest yourself in the novel, to be willing to think beyond the words you read, to be open-minded. I loved the way Schmidt chose to end the story, it was so well-constructed and powerful.One more brilliant debut by an Australian author, one more brilliant example of Historical Fiction.

Many thanks to Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. show less

‘’Should it matter when it happened?’’

I’ve always been interested in true and unresolved crimes cases and ever since I watched a documentary about the Borden murders, I try to read as much as possible about this strange, horrific crime. So, I eagerly started reading Sarah Schmidt’s novel which was highly recommended and which I found to be every bit as haunting, mysterious, gritty as the real story.

First of all, can I just say that we’re living in blessed times for us readers, show more because the plethora of beautiful debuts, their quality and exciting writing is every reader’s dream.I don’t think there’s ever been a time when most of the debuts have made such an impact on our community. For the last 5-6 years, we have experienced great literary moments by up and coming writers and this should give us hope for the future.

Anyway, back to our book. We start our journey with a quite gruesome scene- but well-composed and intense- when the bodies of the Borden couple are discovered. From then on, we move back and forth in time and through the eyes of Lizzie, Emma, Bridget and Benjamin, we try to glue the pieces of a broken family together, to discover the events that led to the bloody epilogue. Now, this time technique is fascinating, but it also requires serious skills. Schmidt succeeds in this and presents the story in a way that makes you forget you actually know it. The book takes you with it and you cannot help but watching the events unfold with the same trepidation we’d have felt for any novel whose plot was unfamiliar to us.

The writing reminded me of Hannah Kent’s Burial Rites. There is the same combination of darkness and a strange tranquility underneath. There are domestic scenes described in realistic detail, moments of family dynamics that are uncomfortable, wild. Bloody images that are never over the top. There is a distinctive aura of Gothic, gritty and primitive at times, but always poetically beautiful. It is difficult to describe it, actually. Imagine a mist that covers every chapter, every paragraph and we have to wait for it to dissolve in order to discover hidden feelings and motives. And believe me, it isn’t easy and in certain moments, the mists remains still, unmoving.

This novel is an example of beautiful writing and equally well-written characters. It doesn’t matter whether they are likeable or not. (Frankly, ‘’likeable’’ is boring. Most of the times…) They are interesting, they drive the plot, providing dark company, revealing their souls to us. Emma and Lizzie, the Borden sisters, couldn’t be more different. Emma is the eldest, the sensible one, the daughter who wants to escape the family and yet is shuttered by the murders, because to her ‘’family is family’’, despite the fact that her father was cruel and unloving. Lizzie is the revolutionary, the child that doubts her father’s authority, the one who isn’t willing to compromise, she want to to punish what she considers to be cruelty and injustice. She may come across as petulant, spoiled and selfish. Bridget is the young maid of the household, the one who witnesses everything but is unable to intervene. She understands how heavy the darkness in the house is and tries to break free from Abby’s illogical, erratic behaviour. Abby and Andrew, the victims, the ‘parents’, are awful people.Judging by the way they come across in the novel, I couldn’t say that I felt any kind of pity for them, as harsh as it may sound. Benjamin, a man of ill repute, has his own father- caused traumas and his plans involve revenge, but they’re no well thought-out.

This is a beautiful, dark book. Attractive, gritty, exciting, emanating a deep sadness for a family that is destroyed by a tyrannical father and ill choices. I agree with a number of good friends in our community who said that this story isn’t for everyone. You need to invest yourself in the novel, to be willing to think beyond the words you read, to be open-minded. I loved the way Schmidt chose to end the story, it was so well-constructed and powerful.One more brilliant debut by an Australian author, one more brilliant example of Historical Fiction.

Many thanks to Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. show less

I picked this up to read and could not put it down. It was a tense read - I felt uncomfortable, throughout the book. The writing was impressive - it made me feel like I was right there watching everything. The characters were creepy. The atmosphere of the house felt dark, damp and depressing ... you could even smell and taste the sourness .... the stickiness .... I liked the use of the multiple narrators too, giving their different perspectives as events unfolded. I never gave much thought show more to Lizzie Borden or the old rhyme before reading this and have now gone to the internet to search for more information on the murder. show less