City of Crows

This book is beautifully written, which is no surprise because Womersley has wondrously clear prose and a deft sense of word choice. He also often gives me that slight, dizzying blur between what is real and what might be real and what might be magical, which is intriguing.
This book is close to five stars for me, only falling short because it is such a relentlessly dismal story, very dark, in which I couldn't find any redemption for anyone (unlike for example Womersley's previous post-WWI novel Bereft). Although set in Paris, the story appeared to be deliberately evoking so much of the misery, filth, cruelty and superstitions of medieval times, that the action could have taken place in any miserable benighted town in Europe.
At a show more different time in my own story/life, I might like this book better, but I was left feeling rather depressed and hopeless. show less

City of Crows by Chris Womersley is historical fiction (my favourite genre) and contains some of my favourite tropes in a novel: witchcraft and the plague. Set in late 1600s France, City of Crows is essentially a story of survival. Charlotte, recently widowed and trying to save her son from the plague and Monsieur Adam du Coeuret, a prisoner assigned to the galleys for his crimes are both seeking freedom from their harsh lives.

I'm not sure whether I should have picked this up straight after reading Ken Follett's A Column of Fire, as it could have dampened my enjoyment of Womersley's tale somewhat. Follett is an historical fiction writing wizard and in the shadow of that great tome, City of Crows failed to reach the heights I was hoping show more for.

A satisfactory and entertaining story, the City of Crows of the title is Paris and I absolutely love the cover art, don't you? Knowing the characters are based on real people and historical facts certainly added to my enjoyment and appreciation of the research involved. In a different world, I would have liked to have stayed with Charlotte and followed her journey through life for the next 50 years - without the involvement of Adam.

This is my first novel by the Australian author Chris Womersley, and reading it has made me determined to seek out his award-winning novel Bereft in the future.

* Copy courtesy of Pan Macmillan Australia * show less

City of Crows is a wildly atmospheric novel of 17th century France. After the plague kills most of her family, Charlotte Picot makes her way to Paris in search of her kidnapped son, becoming what seems to be a witch along the way - or is she? Like a love child of Les Miserables and Brotherhood of the Wolf, City of Crows is a great read. Pretty grim reading in places.

More from this author, please.