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4.2 out of 5 stars
244 customer ratings
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The Doll Factory
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- The Doll Factory
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Top positive review
A magnificent, thought provoking and THRILLING novel!
2 May 2019
This is a truly breathtaking read. I’m not normally one for historical fiction (but I’d say I might be now!!). The way the author captures the sights, sounds (and smells!) of Victorian London is incredible - utterly evocative without ever distracting from the story. And the characters - they are wonderfully cast, complex, with great depth. The story of Iris, the lead character, explores the societal constraints of class and gender, without ever feeling trite, anachronistic or contrived. Likewise joyful Albie, whose perseverance and optimism in the face of so many difficulties utterly wins you over. And Silas - well, he is as far from a two dimensional villain as their could ever be. He is disturbing and yet the author is able to build compassion for him, before whipping it away.
This complexity extends equally to the ‘good’ characters - their behaviour is not unblemished, and the consequences are writ large. It is wonderful to have such a cast of individuals whose stories thread together in the most wonderful way.
But for me, above all, this book really challenges the reader to see on the one hand how far we have come - in terms of growing equality, in terms of the constraints we put on groups of people - while also realising how the idea of a ‘doll factory’ still continues to bedevil so many.
A magnificent and thought provoking novel, and one I would heartily recommend to everyone I know.
This complexity extends equally to the ‘good’ characters - their behaviour is not unblemished, and the consequences are writ large. It is wonderful to have such a cast of individuals whose stories thread together in the most wonderful way.
But for me, above all, this book really challenges the reader to see on the one hand how far we have come - in terms of growing equality, in terms of the constraints we put on groups of people - while also realising how the idea of a ‘doll factory’ still continues to bedevil so many.
A magnificent and thought provoking novel, and one I would heartily recommend to everyone I know.
36 people found this helpful
Top critical review
Not for me
17 May 2019
The blurb inside has various comparisons to The Collector, The Scarlet Petal and the White , Fingersmith and so on. To be honest I don't believe the Doll Factory is anywhere near the same league as those notables. That doesn't mean it's a bad book, its just not a great one.
Plenty of good atmospheric writing, just found some of the dialogue on the trite side.
There are plenty of good reviews and obviously many people highly rate it, unfortunately it just wasn't for me.
Plenty of good atmospheric writing, just found some of the dialogue on the trite side.
There are plenty of good reviews and obviously many people highly rate it, unfortunately it just wasn't for me.
13 people found this helpful
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2 May 2019
This is a truly breathtaking read. I’m not normally one for historical fiction (but I’d say I might be now!!). The way the author captures the sights, sounds (and smells!) of Victorian London is incredible - utterly evocative without ever distracting from the story. And the characters - they are wonderfully cast, complex, with great depth. The story of Iris, the lead character, explores the societal constraints of class and gender, without ever feeling trite, anachronistic or contrived. Likewise joyful Albie, whose perseverance and optimism in the face of so many difficulties utterly wins you over. And Silas - well, he is as far from a two dimensional villain as their could ever be. He is disturbing and yet the author is able to build compassion for him, before whipping it away.
This complexity extends equally to the ‘good’ characters - their behaviour is not unblemished, and the consequences are writ large. It is wonderful to have such a cast of individuals whose stories thread together in the most wonderful way.
But for me, above all, this book really challenges the reader to see on the one hand how far we have come - in terms of growing equality, in terms of the constraints we put on groups of people - while also realising how the idea of a ‘doll factory’ still continues to bedevil so many.
A magnificent and thought provoking novel, and one I would heartily recommend to everyone I know.
This complexity extends equally to the ‘good’ characters - their behaviour is not unblemished, and the consequences are writ large. It is wonderful to have such a cast of individuals whose stories thread together in the most wonderful way.
But for me, above all, this book really challenges the reader to see on the one hand how far we have come - in terms of growing equality, in terms of the constraints we put on groups of people - while also realising how the idea of a ‘doll factory’ still continues to bedevil so many.
A magnificent and thought provoking novel, and one I would heartily recommend to everyone I know.
26 May 2019
Striking, auburn-haired Iris Whittle works with her twin sister, Rose, painting the faces of china dolls in Mrs Salter’s Doll Emporium in Victorian London. Bored with the low-paid work and feeling stifled by the vulnerable, demanding Rose (whose previously beautiful face has been scarred by smallpox), Iris dreams of leaving the doll shop and of becoming an artist. When she meets Pre-Raphaelite painter Louis Frost, who persuades her to become his model in return for teaching her to paint, Iris is disowned by her family and moves to a furnished room paid for by the artist. Aware that she is in danger of losing her reputation and saddened by the loss of her twin sister, Iris is nevertheless excited at the prospect of learning from a talented artist and gradually begins to produce work that Louis believes shows promise. She also begins to succumb to Louis’s physical attraction towards her, despite being aware that, as a married man, there is no real prospect of a future with him. And then Iris meets the introverted Silas Reed, a taxidermist and collector of curiosities, who becomes dangerously and disturbingly obsessed with her and makes plans to ensure that Iris becomes one of his possessions.
Elizabeth MacNeal’s debut novel has been compared with John Fowles’ ‘The Collector’, Sarah Waters’ ’Fingersmith’ and Michel Faber’s ‘The Crimson Petal and the White’, and although this debut is not in the same class as the aforementioned, it is rich in Victorian atmosphere and Ms MacNeal has certainly researched her subject well. Filled with vivid descriptions of Victorian London and colourful depictions of characters from both ends of the social spectrum (such as: Cockney urchin, Albie, who collects dead animals for Silas Reed and who lives with his prostitute sister; certain members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, such as Dante Gabriel Rossetti and John Everett Millais; and the heroine, Iris, bears more than a passing resemblance to Lizzie Siddal in some respects) this made for an immersive and entertaining reading experience. However, I do have to say that, despite the Victorian atmosphere, some aspects of the story made me feel as if I were reading a more contemporary novel - both with regard to the heroine’s responses to certain situations she found herself in and with respect to the 'thriller-type' parts of the plot itself - but to discuss this further would reveal too much of the story for those who have yet to read it. Although not quite the literary feat I was expecting from the pre-publication publicity, this is certainly a good debut novel where the author’s enthusiasm for her subject shines through on every page and one which makes me interested in discovering what Ms MacNeal will tackle for her next book.
Elizabeth MacNeal’s debut novel has been compared with John Fowles’ ‘The Collector’, Sarah Waters’ ’Fingersmith’ and Michel Faber’s ‘The Crimson Petal and the White’, and although this debut is not in the same class as the aforementioned, it is rich in Victorian atmosphere and Ms MacNeal has certainly researched her subject well. Filled with vivid descriptions of Victorian London and colourful depictions of characters from both ends of the social spectrum (such as: Cockney urchin, Albie, who collects dead animals for Silas Reed and who lives with his prostitute sister; certain members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, such as Dante Gabriel Rossetti and John Everett Millais; and the heroine, Iris, bears more than a passing resemblance to Lizzie Siddal in some respects) this made for an immersive and entertaining reading experience. However, I do have to say that, despite the Victorian atmosphere, some aspects of the story made me feel as if I were reading a more contemporary novel - both with regard to the heroine’s responses to certain situations she found herself in and with respect to the 'thriller-type' parts of the plot itself - but to discuss this further would reveal too much of the story for those who have yet to read it. Although not quite the literary feat I was expecting from the pre-publication publicity, this is certainly a good debut novel where the author’s enthusiasm for her subject shines through on every page and one which makes me interested in discovering what Ms MacNeal will tackle for her next book.
17 May 2019
The blurb inside has various comparisons to The Collector, The Scarlet Petal and the White , Fingersmith and so on. To be honest I don't believe the Doll Factory is anywhere near the same league as those notables. That doesn't mean it's a bad book, its just not a great one.
Plenty of good atmospheric writing, just found some of the dialogue on the trite side.
There are plenty of good reviews and obviously many people highly rate it, unfortunately it just wasn't for me.
Plenty of good atmospheric writing, just found some of the dialogue on the trite side.
There are plenty of good reviews and obviously many people highly rate it, unfortunately it just wasn't for me.
30 May 2019
For me not quite hitting the mark as I thought it would do. I was expecting more I think reading all previous blurb on this book. Yes you get the evocative Victorian England. A most unlikeable character Silas and the two headed puppies yes that has still stayed in my mind. You can almost feel the dark dingy lowlife of those who live downstairs, the have nots and those not even knowing there is more outside of their sad existences. I wouldn’t call it gothic horror more a macabre mad taxidermist sort of story. Glad I managed to get it on offer as at full price I would have wanted to stuff Silas myself.
14 May 2019
It was a real wrench finishing it! Such a great world, vividly realised with excellent characterisation, that it makes you reluctant to let it go. Immediately re-read. Can't wait for the TV series!
25 May 2019
A definite must for anyone one whose ever been fascinated not just by the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood but the Victorian period in general. The detail that is described in all of the wider scenes is extraordinary it’s almost like you can smell and hear the sounds of Victorian London in all its dirty noisy glory. This book keeps you guessing until the very end and the characters are all perfectly portrayed from Albie the lovable street urchin who you root for throughout to Silas the greasy, creepy loner who has more to him than meets the eye. Also the main character Iris and her love affair with both the painter and painting is extraordinary. Loved it!
7 July 2019
There was a lot of excited chit chat about this debut novel in the review sections, so, following my fairly recent determination not to bone up on books too much before reading them, I launched straight into it. It was both interesting, enjoyable and well researched. But - and you do sense a but, don't you? I had noted that it was the oeuvre of a star pupil of our most illustrious writing school. You can't but admire the fact that there is a whole raft of young writers who have been thoroughly trained in plot, simile, technique and so forth, but I did feel that in this case it rather showed. Plan A seems to be (vide "The Essex Serpent" - also criticised for being too much of the Writer's School, although in that case I did not feel it) to find a specialist topic around which to base your story. Then a period - Victorian London is terrifically popular, given all that topical social deprivation and hypocrisy, child prostitution and so on and so forth. Tracey Chevalier does this particularly well, and is possibly the mistress in chief of the fiction built around a work of art/specialist subject. My chief beef with this novel, however, was that having read a lot about the pre-Raphaelites I immediately recognised Iris as being based on Lizzie Siddal and Louis Wise as D G Rossetti (right down to the wombats). But the author is at pains to include Siddal and Rossetti as separate characters, thereby telling us that the main protagonists are fictional. But I felt it was a bit of a stretch - less fiction than faction. Iris did also occasionally lapse from Victorian girl in trying and limiting circumstances to feisty 21st century feminist in charge of her own destiny. The evil Silas was a really rather thrilling pantomime villain, and the descriptions of his mouse victims quite chilling. There was a lot of incident in this novel, and it all got a bit frantic towards the end, but there's no doubt that this was a very assured first work by a young author. It was certainly interesting, exciting and a proper page turner; I shall look forward to seeing what Elizabeth McNeal does next.
8 June 2019
I loved this book and feel like I’m missing old friends now I’ve finished it. Macneal evokes this period of history extremely well, from the sights, sounds and smells to the behavioural norms. I also liked the way she brought historical figures like Ruskin and Rossetti to life, weaving them seamlessly into her story. I’d thoroughly recommend this page turner, despite feeling a little bit cheated by the clever ending (I’d wanted all the details preceding it).
11 June 2019
This is a dark, gothic book which vividly captures aspects of Victorian London. Many of the characters would not be out of place in a Dickens novel from the endearing street urchin Albie to the sinister Silas. The development of these characters was truly superb and brought them to life in my mind. The story itself is gripping and well paced however I feel it was let down a bit by the ending which tipped into melodrama for me. The brilliance of Silas' obsession lay in his underlying madness and deluded view of the world. I felt that the culmination of these things could have been dealt with in a more original and understated way. Instead, Iris' kidnap and imprisonment felt contrived and did not fit the tone of the book. My other small criticism of the book is that many of the themes are a bit "on the nose". The contrasts of freedom versus captivity and creativity versus monotony are forced on the reader constantly in the book when often it could have been left for the reader to pick up on.
Despite these criticisms I did really enjoy the book and was gripped by the story and characters. The faults mentioned are what stopped me giving it 5 stars.
Despite these criticisms I did really enjoy the book and was gripped by the story and characters. The faults mentioned are what stopped me giving it 5 stars.
2 September 2019
I am quietly frankly obsessed with historical fiction, they sweep me up in a way that present books can never do. I always feel transported to the time and leave my current stress completely behind. The Doll Factory did not disappoint in these regards. Set in 1850s London – the dirt, the smells and the atmosphere of it all comes alive on these pages. I was utterly enthralled.
The two key characters in this story are Iris and Silas. Iris is a young lady who dreams of a life outside the day to day rigour of making dolls in a shop with her sister. Silas is a taxidermist who is desperate for his work to be recognised.
Now I’m going to make a warning to you all, if dead animals upset you, you’re going to struggle to read the scenes where Silas performs his work. I found the first scene on it quite a shock, and whilst I was never comfortable reading of it throughout, I did manage to look past it and also appreciate that in this era, taxidermy was extremely popular.
When Silas meets Iris, he is infatuated by her, he now begins to imagine conversations between them and his obsession means he’s blind to the truth – Iris doesn’t care for him and frankly forgets who he is after their encounter.
Louis seems to be the answer to Iris’ prayers as he whisks her away from the doll shop and opens up a world of possibility to her. She can finally be an artist! She’s finally got her own room! She can breathe!
Even with the happiness that the change has brought, it’s understandable that it brings along sadness too, as people are ruffled by the changes. In fact, Iris fears that she’s lost her twin sister; Rose, forever. Can she make her sister see past her bitterness?
With Iris focussed on her art work, her despair over her estranged twin and her ongoing friendship with Louis, she’s oblivious to the darkness building within Silas as his obsession turns dangerous…
This is a masterfully plotted book, no doubt about it! Macneal creates that instant spellbinding bond with the reader from the get-go and transports you to the era, the pages are alive with the sounds, the smells and the buildings of the times… it makes you feel like you’re observing it all from your window rather than reading a fictional tale.
With Iris having finished her masterpiece in the final pages, it felt like a wonderful parallel to the real world as I looked back on the masterpiece that Macneal had given us readers.
The two key characters in this story are Iris and Silas. Iris is a young lady who dreams of a life outside the day to day rigour of making dolls in a shop with her sister. Silas is a taxidermist who is desperate for his work to be recognised.
Now I’m going to make a warning to you all, if dead animals upset you, you’re going to struggle to read the scenes where Silas performs his work. I found the first scene on it quite a shock, and whilst I was never comfortable reading of it throughout, I did manage to look past it and also appreciate that in this era, taxidermy was extremely popular.
When Silas meets Iris, he is infatuated by her, he now begins to imagine conversations between them and his obsession means he’s blind to the truth – Iris doesn’t care for him and frankly forgets who he is after their encounter.
Louis seems to be the answer to Iris’ prayers as he whisks her away from the doll shop and opens up a world of possibility to her. She can finally be an artist! She’s finally got her own room! She can breathe!
Even with the happiness that the change has brought, it’s understandable that it brings along sadness too, as people are ruffled by the changes. In fact, Iris fears that she’s lost her twin sister; Rose, forever. Can she make her sister see past her bitterness?
With Iris focussed on her art work, her despair over her estranged twin and her ongoing friendship with Louis, she’s oblivious to the darkness building within Silas as his obsession turns dangerous…
This is a masterfully plotted book, no doubt about it! Macneal creates that instant spellbinding bond with the reader from the get-go and transports you to the era, the pages are alive with the sounds, the smells and the buildings of the times… it makes you feel like you’re observing it all from your window rather than reading a fictional tale.
With Iris having finished her masterpiece in the final pages, it felt like a wonderful parallel to the real world as I looked back on the masterpiece that Macneal had given us readers.
There are 235 customer reviews and 244 customer ratings.
