Laura Purcell

"First published in Great Britain by Raven Books...2021"--Copyright page.

The Shape of Darkness

"As the age of the photograph dawns in Victorian Bath, silhouette artist Agnes is struggling to keep her business afloat. Still recovering from a serious illness herself, making enough money to support her elderly mother and her orphaned nephew Cedric has never been easy, but then one of her clients is murdered shortly after sitting for Agnes, and then another, and another... Why is the killer seemingly targeting her business? Desperately seeking an answer, Agnes approaches Pearl, a child spirit medium lodging in Bath with her older half-sister and her ailing father, hoping that if Pearl can make contact with those who died, they might reveal who killed them. But Agnes and Pearl quickly discover that instead they may have opened the door to something that they can never put back."--Publisher.

Again, a very good story by Laura Purcell! Set in Victorian times, in a gloomy atmosphere, a mysterious plot, and with this always interesting old fashioned forgotten craft the main character has got as a skill or struggles with. I believe it’s a good “ingredient list”. The twist in this one is a bit predictable but I personally don’t care as I enjoyed the style, and the 2 sisters mirror stories.

My favorite novel by Laura Purcell is “the silent companions”. Still have “the whispering muse” left to read (in 2024).

Barbara

Again, a very good story by Laura Purcell! Set in Victorian times, in a gloomy atmosphere, a mysterious plot, and with this always interesting old fashioned forgotten craft the main character has got as a skill or struggles with. I believe it’s a good “ingredient list”. The twist in this one is a bit predictable but I personally don’t care as I enjoyed the style, and the 2 sisters mirror stories.

My favorite novel by Laura Purcell is “the silent companions”. Still have “the whispering muse” left to read (in 2024).

Jennifer

The Shape of Darkness happens to be the first Laura Purcell book that I've read. I have 2 of her books currently on my tbr which is why I really want to know what's in her writing that endows her the reown within the Gothic genre. Since I've been more interested in reading new releases (and I was kind of intrigued by the premise), I decided to read The Shape of Darkness this month. It's a dark and spooky story about ghosts, supernaturals, and spirits - set in Victorian England.

Anyways, I'm kind of let down by The Shape of Darkness. I think this is partially due to the timing in which I was reading the book (I happen to be reading another spooky book physically in the last few days) and also partially that horror isn't really my cup of tea. So while I thought the premise & historical concepts were pretty cool, I didn't feel really attached to the story overall.

N.B. This book contains following major content warnings: illness, death, corpse, vomit, and drowning

(2.5 stars out of 5)

Bad Girl Bex

Well that was a hoot & a half!

Purcell had me drawn in to this tale right from the outset with some gorgeously evocative descriptions of Victorian England and the peculiar fixation with spiritualism that fascinated many people during this time period. I won't go into a big description of the plot (a million others have probably already done that anyway) but if you've read any of Purcell's other gothic tales, you'll kind of know what it is you're in for: murder, mystery, strange (yet entirely believable) characters, dizzying twists, moments where you find yourself second guessing everyone and everything you've been reading about...and I mean all that in the best possible way.

This is the third book of Purcell's that I've read and whilst 'The Corset' (aka 'The Poison Thread) is still my absolute favourite, this one comes in a close second (followed by 'The Silent Companions' in third). The ending was perhaps a little less satisfying than I would have liked, but then it's always difficult to reconcile a plot which comprises elements of the supposed supernatural realm, as well as real world events. Is the final twist something you might see coming? Possibly. I had my suspicions about a third of the way in to the tale. Is the penultimate revelation somewhat trite and a little corny? Yeah, kind of. But the way the tone of the book is set out from the get-go somewhat allows for this to be a viable explanation.

I ploughed through the whole book in one sitting, because the story was incredibly engaging, well-paced and the peppering of antiquated terms, historical references and lush descriptions of 19th Century Bath, lent a feeling of authenticity to the tale. My only gripe is that the ending wasn't as strong as I'd have liked, but that doesn't take away from the sheer enjoyment of the whole story. This was the perfect Spooktober read for a chilly autumn afternoon and I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good Victorian gothic yarn.

Jana Pashovska

Not her best work, but the promised gothic atmosphere of murder and macabre mystery was certainly present, and the ambiguous ending further intensified the veil of secrets surrounding the story, so that despite the weak writing, it wasn't all together that bad. Neither excellent nor horrible, but an intriguing read nonetheless.

Joanna Rosenwink 

This Victorian gothic novel is oppressive and haunting and will no doubt stay in my head for a long time. Although the writing is clever I found it difficult to connect with the characters and was a little unsatisfied with the ending. 

If this is the kind of writing you enjoy you will probably love this atmospheric book but it wasn’t for me.

Lesley McNeil

Riya

Karen Scarlet 

Ella Keating

Kathy Rodger 

erin s

As the age of the photograph dawns in Victorian Bath, silhouette artist Agnes is struggling to keep her business afloat. Still recovering from a serious illness herself, making enough money to support her elderly mother and her orphaned nephew Cedric has never been easy, but then one of her clients is murdered shortly after sitting for Agnes, and then another, and another... Why is the killer seemingly targeting her business? Desperately seeking an answer, Agnes approaches Pearl, a child spirit medium lodging in Bath with her older half-sister and her ailing father, hoping that if Pearl can make contact with those who died, they might reveal who killed them. But Agnes and Pearl quickly discover that instead they may have opened the door to something that they can never put back...

The Shape of Darkness

Reviews