My favorite Laura Purcell yet! An excellent historical fiction that doesn't feel trite or "done". I always appreciate a Victorian novel that manages to be read so easily.

Unfortunate co-opting of disability for aesthetic purposes. People with albinism are visually impaired or legally blind, so neglecting to include this in Pearl's character development feels lazy and unresearched. I think it would have been more interesting to have a visually impaired character with spiritual gifts, what she lacks in the physical world is made up for in the spiritual. Or if this wouldn't suit the story, write the character to be very blonde and very pale, which is also acceptable. Giving a character a genetic condition and only using the pieces that work for your narrative and aesthetic is unacceptable..

Intriguing concept, well executed. Purcell delivers solid chills and suspense with this look at the obscure art of silhouettes. The pacing is very good and the tension builds throughout. I did not find this as spooky as some of her prior work, but overall it was a solid read.

Laura Purcell never disappoints! Satisfying gothic historical mystery. I love the atmosphere and the build up. The level of detail is truly divine. Purcell has become one of those authors who I will read everything she puts out.

Compelling and darkly mysterious, The Shape of Darkness is a Victorian murder mystery, woven through with threads of spiritualism and the supernatural.

Set in Bath, England, the novel follows two seemingly unconnected women as a series of murders haunt the town. Agnes Darken, silhouette artist, finds herself struggling to keep her family afloat after a series of tragedies strikes them. Pearl Meers, child medium and daughter of a dying man, meanwhile, finds herself the unwilling pawn of a sister determined to make her the messenger to spirits from beyond the veil. When Agnes begins to fear that the connection between the murdered souls is her own silhouette shop, the two will find that their fates have suddenly intertwined.

The Shape of Darkness is an unsettling read, in all the best ways. Victorians had, if not an obsession with death, then at minimum a thoroughly morbid curiosity. No wonder, then, that so many of their authors produced ghost stories very similar to this one, filled with glimpses of a world beyond our own and quietly but surely building to a terrifying climax. There’s a sense of menace and foreboding from the very first page of this novel, but Laura Purcell takes her time with the story and allows her reader to truly get to know her characters, until we invest ourselves in their lives, dreams, and fears. It makes for an immersive horror experience, one that’s all the more chilling for being so subtle.

Outside of the horror, too, there’s a lot to love here, though that shouldn’t be a surprise for anyone familiar with the author’s previous work. Historical details are perfectly researched, and the daily minutiae of life in Victorian England serves as a beautiful backdrop. And that ending – I’ve never yet spoiled a book in a review, and I don’t plan to start now – but that ending is the kind of scorpion sting in the tail that just takes my breath away. It was the perfect cap to what had been a very enjoyable book, and the finishing touch that I know is going to keep this story in my mind for a very long time to come.

Purcell has definitely made a name for herself as the reigning doyenne of Gothic fiction. In her latest, readers are whisked away to Victorian Bath, where we meet silhouette artist, Agnes. She barely makes enough to keep herself, her mother and young nephew fed, and when her clients begin dropping like flies, dead after they pose for her, Agnes needs to get to the bottom of the deaths. She wants to make contact with an infamous child medium to try to reach out to her dearly departed clients, hoping they will reveal who killed them. But once the door to the spiritual realm is opened, will they be able to close it? A book for snuggling under the covers with as the snow falls outside

Ohhhhh this is was exactly what I was wanting ever since finishing Mexican Gothic . This book is dark, mysterious, and you can never guess what will happen next! Laura Purcell brings Victorian England to life in this wonderful gothic mystery! It will make you want to sleep with the lights on!