*Review* : Fallen Grace - Mary Hooper

Book review of Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper
Fallen Grace
Series : No
Released : 6th June 2010
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Format : Paperback
Source : Publishers (With thanks!)
Finished : 11th June 2011
Overall rating

Grace Parkes has just had to do a terrible thing. Having given birth to an illegitimate child, she has travelled to the famed Brookwood Cemetery to place her small infant's body in a rich lady's coffin. Following the advice of a kindly midwife, this is the only way that Grace can think of to give something at least to the little baby who died at birth, and to avoid the ignominy of a pauper's grave. Distraught and weeping, Grace meets two people at the cemetery: Mrs Emmeline Unwin and Mr James Solent. These two characters will have a profound affect upon Grace's life. But Grace doesn't know that yet. For now, she has to suppress her grief and get on with the business of living: scraping together enough pennies selling watercress for rent and food; looking after her older sister, who is incapable of caring for herself; thwarting the manipulative and conscience-free Unwin family, who are as capable of running a lucrative funeral business as they are of defrauding a young woman of her fortune. A stunning evocation of life in Victorian London, with vivid and accurate depictions, ranging from the deprivation that the truly poor suffered to the unthinking luxuries enjoyed by the rich: all bound up with a pacy and thrilling plot, as Grace races to unravel the fraud about to be perpetrated against her and her sister.

I am not usually a fan of historical books but after reading Montacute House,which is also published by Bloomsbury, l definitely wanted to give Fallen Grace a go.
Fallen Grace is another book which is proving to me that l actually do enjoy historical books, not books with a lot of depth and explanation into the history but books with in depth characters and a good storyline which just so happens to be in past times. Fallen Grace is a great example of that.

Grace, the main character, is a character who you are straight away made to feel sorry for. Right at the beginning it takes you on a journey with Grace in which she loses her child who she then has to bury. Because of this very emotional beginning l quickly felt connected to Grace and wanted to help her. The story then continues with a quick pace, showing the reader how things were in the Victorian times alongside letting you get to know Grace and other characters.

When l first picked up Fallen Grace l was unsure if l liked how this was written as at a number of points l felt it was written from Graces point of view but then it suddenly went to someone else’s point of view. I felt this may have been why l didn’t enjoy the beginning as much but by the time l got halfway through the book l was used to this and actually seen it as an advantage due to being able to see things from more than Graces point of view.

As things unravelled l became gripped to this book and picked it up at any free minute l had. Even though l guessed a part of the ending half way through the book, l was still intrigued as to what Grace would actually do and there was so much more to the book than the thing l discovered. 

Overall this is an emotional book which took me on a trip back in time in where l got to know the harsh conditions in which poor people had to live due in the Victorian era and how they were treated. I certainly feel very lucky to live in the 21st century where there is justice and equal rights. 

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Ratings :

Plot : 4/5

Cover : 4/5

Page Turner : 4.5/5

Characters : 4/5

Ending : 4/5

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Series -

None

2011 Books Challenges -
-

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Book Depository

Amazon (UK/USA)