Bleeding Heart Square
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Review
Taylor is the modern master of a very Dickensian underworld... A sense of brooding evil pervades the complex plot, handled with great assurance (Independent )
The period atmosphere, as in all Taylor's work, is flawless. He simply gets better and better (Daily Telegraph )
The period atmosphere, as in all Taylor's work, is flawless. He simply gets better and better (Daily Telegraph )
Product Description
1934, London.
Into the decaying cul-de-sac of Bleeding Heart Square steps aristocratic Lydia Langstone fleeing an abusive marriage. However, unknown to Lydia, a dark mystery haunts Bleeding Heart Square. What happened to Miss Penhow, the middle-aged spinster who owns the house and who vanished four years earlier? Why is a seedy plain-clothes policeman obsessively watching the square? What is making struggling journalist Rory Wentwood so desperate to contact Miss Penhow?
And why are parcels of rotting hearts being sent to Joseph Serridge, the last person to see Miss Penhow alive?
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I bought this on a whim upon realising Andrew Taylr was also the author of The American Boy, which I had read a few years previously. I'm a fan of gothic literature so was interested to read a modern take on the genre, set in an unconventional time period. I'll not recap the plot, but as a London resident I am familiar with the area where the real Bleeding Heart Square is, and that certainly helped with my visualisation. The story itself was really good, I enjoyed the characterisation of Lydia, I had thought from the outset I would dislike her as a protagonist but became very sympathetic to her plight. I also particularly enjoyed Taylor's recreation of the London 1937, the Blackshirts, the unemployment, the social unrest, the class divide all rang true and evoked the London of that time. Unlike some reviewers I did not find the first half slow, I thought the whole book ran along at quite a fast pace and I enjoyed switching between the views of Rory, Lydia and the other characters. I didn't give it a full 5 stars becuase I have to say I didn't enjoy the ending, in my mind the invisible reader of Mis Penhow's diaries did not ring true, logically they made sense, but did not really fit into the book as a whole. That said I think that is a personal preference and I would say that other people may disagree, and would throughly recommend this book to others. I will certainly be reading more Andrew Taylor as a result.
40 of 43 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
For anyone who enjoyed The American Boy, Bleeding Heart Square is going to bring you hurtling back to Andrew Taylor.
War is looming, Mosley's Blackshirts are at large and the old class order is disintegrating in the uncertainty and anxiety of 1930s London. The mystery of the disappearance of a middle aged woman touches a cast of displaced characters and strange, unsettling events unfold. Their epicentre is a dingy house in a square stranded on the edge of the City. It's not a homely place.
This is Taylor at his very best: gripping, immaculately well researched, cleverly plotted and literary. A great Gothic read which kept me up half the night. Strongly recommended.
War is looming, Mosley's Blackshirts are at large and the old class order is disintegrating in the uncertainty and anxiety of 1930s London. The mystery of the disappearance of a middle aged woman touches a cast of displaced characters and strange, unsettling events unfold. Their epicentre is a dingy house in a square stranded on the edge of the City. It's not a homely place.
This is Taylor at his very best: gripping, immaculately well researched, cleverly plotted and literary. A great Gothic read which kept me up half the night. Strongly recommended.
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is completely engrossing from page one as you get lost in Taylor's fluid writing style. The book is a rich treasure trove of real substance with menacing psychological undertones. The heroine is drawn into the politics of the time, providing a sophisticated and absorbing take on the violent Fascist world. The Square itself is a real place (Bleeding Heart Yard in London), and immediately after finishing the book I couldn't help paying it a visit - this really concreted how much I loved the book because the sense of place is so vivid.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Cracking read
Andrew Taylor is a recent discovery - I really enjoyed this modern period novel - better than the American Boy (my opinion) and right up there with Anatomy of Ghosts!
Published 1 month ago by teen reader
Curl up by the fire with this one on a cold winter night
The story opens in London in the mid 1930s. Lydia, a young married woman from a privileged background, comes to a crisis point in her marriage. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Alison McVey
A good read, but could be better
This is a curious book. I think the blurb is excellent, and it drew me in. I liked the book, but it was somehow lacking. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Hetty Smith
Excellent - as usual, Mr Taylor!
WOW - Andrew Taylor manages to write brilliant novels. I was introduced to Andrew Taylors writing a few years ago and I have not read one that is disappointing. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Tim
A gripping whodunit of the classical school
This is a very good book. A complicated plot, of which the author is in complete control throughout. Read more
Published 16 months ago by The Bagster
Extremely readable modern dickensian tale
As with American Boy i found Taylor's writing style a pleasure if a little lacking in real menace, given the dark subject matter. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Huck Flynn
Promised much
This book promised much but failed to deliver. I love books from this period and the historical detail was good. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Macavity
Not for lovers of classic gothic fiction
This book has disappeared into the jumble of books quickly consumed and thrown on the charity shop pile. Read more
Published 19 months ago by M Arif
Disappointing overall
I had high expectations for this book, especially after reading some of the reviews, but I did not love it. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Margherita Caporale
Surperb story
I am a huge fan of Andrew Taylor - have read every book he has ever written. This is without doubt one of his best. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Susanna Kelly
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