DNF’d at 13%… I really didn’t like the writing style, hated the protagonist, and wasn’t comfortable with all the antisemitism going on. The fog and the peculiarities were interesting, but too little focus was being given to that. I just couldn’t imagine sticking with this for another 11 hours of an audiobook.

Thomas Thresher is a Victorian gentleman who has never been asked to do much. He has lived the life of a wastrel, drinking with his friends in London pubs and dallying his life away. When his father dies, Thomas' life is changed. He is now under the supervision of his elder brother, Walter, who has never liked him. The will specifies that Thomas live with Walter and go to work in the Thresher family bank. Walter also insists that Thomas marry a woman whose father Walter wants to do business with.

But London itself is also not doing well. The Peculiarities, as they are called, have appeared. Individuals wake to find themselves turned into wolves or other animals. Women are reported to be having rabbits as babies. There are strangers walking the streets who are murdering prostitutes. Thomas is caught up in this as he has been sprouting leaves and is slowly turning into a tree.

Thomas goes to a magical society to see if they can be of help. There he meets Alastair Crowley, the renowned magician and enlists him to help. He also gets help from the woman he is to marry and a family of women turned into wolves. Thomas has also discovered that the bank is doing strange things and comes to suspect that it is connected to the Peculiarities in some fashion. Can he find out what is going on and can he reverse his condition?

David Liss is a well-known historical fiction author. His trademark is meticulous research. In this new genre for him, the story is still accurate historically while adding the fantastic elements that make the story fall more in the fantasy genre. Readers will cheer for Thomas as he grows from a feckless young man to someone ready to take on horrendous events. I listened to this novel and found the narrator to be a good match. The only quibble I had was that I found Thomas' voice too nasal to enjoy listening to. This book is recommended for fantasy readers.

3 stars

Not the best historical fiction or character development I’ve ever read, but I was entertained. I liked the urban fantasy elements, & some of the creative twists on magic.

[What I liked:]

•I loved the whole take on mathematical magic & esoteric algorithms! I mean it’s not fully explained how it all works in its technicalities, but I really appreciated the concept! I love algorithms, & they deserve more love & appreciation in this world 💙 It’s also cool how Thomas was able to apply his unique talents/skills to solve problems in innovative ways when the “standard” approaches to magic didn’t work out for him.

•I mean it’s pretty hokey & clichéd, but I genuinely appreciated the climax scene (when Thomas is all tied up)! It’s pretty much straight out of a classic 1930’s/pre-code Universal Studios horror film…! *cough* The Black Cat *cough* Which is an excellent homage/pastiche tribute imo.

•Some aspects of the characters, storylines, absurdities, & setting vaguely reminded me of a Dickens novel, which is a plus in my book.

•”The Elegants” is a pretty great term for vampire-esque creatures, I have to say 😁


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•In some ways the world building was unique & decently fleshed out (the mathematical magic concept is cool, the nuances of the social status dynamics of the “peculiars” in society, & how different “peculiars” felt about their changes, etc.). In other ways, it was a bit clichéd & half-baked (the whole astral-projection thing & how people got “infected” by peculiarities was never satisfactorily explained, & I can’t *tell* you how many books I’ve read recently where one of the main characters is in the process of becoming a tree—like it’s an interesting but kinda random trend lately?).

•Meh, Thomas is the textbook example of a casually racist, sexist, privileged white dude who is clueless about his shortcomings, yet is portrayed as vaguely well meaning (although tbf, it’s not an unrealistic portrayal, I reckon). I mean he’s not awful, but he’s also not great, & he definitely coulda used some more character growth by the end of the story.

•I was a bit underwhelmed by the (not so) big reveal about the character of Walter’s smarmy personal assistant dude. It felt like the story was building up to reveal a lot more substance to him than he ultimately had.

•I was bothered by how much this book at least borderline-objectifies women. Every time a woman character is introduced, Thomas and/or other men characters immediately ponder or voice their opinions on how physically attractive that woman character is, & then consciously evaluated their value based on how sexy or conventionally beautiful they were. Every. Single. Goddamn. Time. It felt like the writer—perhaps unintentionally?—was himself objectifying these women characters in the narrative. It’s really shallow & also gross, even though in the Victorian era this mindset was more normalized than it is now; it was still an uncomfortable & ultimately pointless thing to make such a big deal of, imo.

•This is a personal taste thing, but I am not a fan of sex magic (in books; I respect other people’s right to personally like &/or do that stuff if they so choose). I realize that weird sex magic was kind of Aleister Crowley’s whole thing irl, but I still find it weird & puzzling as a component of this particular story. Especially because it’s such a major plot point in this book despite the fact that the characters who engage in the aforementioned weird sex magic don’t actually believe in it themselves & didn’t intend for the act to have magical effects, when Aleister Crowley’s whole esoteric belief system was grounded in the need for focused will & intention to make a magical ritual or act effective? 🤷‍♀️

CW: sexism, racism, anti-semitism, weird magical sex, sexual assault, murder, animal torture/sacrifice, infidelity, human sacrifice, (attempted) forced marriage, child neglect, seriously messed up family dynamics

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]

Nothing like a Victorian story of strange magic an monsters. It took me a while to get into this book, but once Hannibal Hills droll narration caught me, it wouldn’t let go. London’s gray fog seems to hide the Peculiarities. Of course, well-bred London scoffs at this. Money can do that to you, allowing you to ignore problems that impact you because really it is the working people who seem to be most impacted. Except Thomas can’t ignore it, he’s turning into a tree and becomes enmeshed in a world of the occult. And the best part is Thomas turns into a decent person at the end.

Quite an interesting satire and humor read. The narrator keeps the storyline interesting and I greatly enjoyed his input into the read. Anybody considering, take a listen or read as this is quite a ride!

The most British book I've ever read. A metaphor for how people will ignore a crisis unfolding in front of them, denying everything they see to make the world conform to their views (climate change?).

Unfortunately I just couldn't get into this one. A little too long for my tastes and a bit too out there on the fantasy side even though I did enjoy the alternate version of Victorian London. Great narration by Hannibal Hills and much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my ALC!

What a peculiar book lol Pun intended. This is my first book by David Liss and I am glad I picked it to get to know the author. I hear this is quite different from other works of David Liss but none the less I will be reading more. The book is full of magic and lovely interactions. Please give it a try.

The Peculiarities is a historical-fantasy-mystery-thriller chimera with many relevant themes to today's world.

"...but everyone is a rotten fellow these days, it is simply the new way of being. People have had their fill of religion and morality. There is nothing to do but enjoy oneself...'

Tedious is how I would describe lead character Thomas Thresher, as he would indeed probably describe himself upon reflection. A young man who is forced into the family banking business, he is as listless as he is privileged, and a bit anti-semitic by way of reflecting "the times," thereby altogether unsympathetic for me...HOWEVER, give it time. As a Jewish woman, believe me, he was hard to take at first, but I trust seasoned author David Liss (A Conspiracy of Paper; The Coffee Trader), enough to know there was a purpose for writing Thresher this way. Liss is Jewish and often writes about the unique struggles of Jewish identity in his historical fiction. In this novel he writes from the lens of how Jews have often been perceived by others with great prejudice, which sadly remains relevant today.

After his late father's death, Thomas Thresher has largely feigned interest in his work and finds himself being pressured into a marital arrangement by his brother that will be profitable for their family business; that is until he finds a ledger documenting certain debts the bank has acquired that don't appear to be particularly fruitful financial pursuits--so why then do they exist?

Determined to learn more, Thomas finds himself knee-deep in a mystery of debtors, their worlds and their widows; and the question of what, if anything, these transactions may have to do with "the Peculiarities"--the whispered about abnormal occurrences of late...biological metamorphoses and mythical creatures that everyone and no one is discussing. These oddities lend a very intriguing and mysterious backdrop to the novel--especially since Thomas himself is occasionally sprouting leaves.

As insufferable as Thomas was at the start, he goes through a wonderful character arc in a fully fleshed (or furred!) out world of well-developed characters in the heart of a surreal version of 19th century London. Liss is as ever a master storyteller, weaving mystery, magic, mythology and secret societies together in this engrossing and surprising (a big reveal I did not expect!) read.

Publication Date: September 7th, 2021

TW: Sexual Assault, Anti-semitism

Thank you to NetGalley & Tantor Audio for the advanced copy of the audiobook in exchange for an unbiased review.

#ThePeculiarities #NetGalley

The Peculiarities is such a unique book. I really enjoyed that it was intriguing and a little bit strange. The narrator did a fantastic job. Even with a whole cast of characters, everyone had different voices and personalities. It was a great read/listen.

While the narration was above average, overall, the narrator tries hard to distinguish the characters with voice, which was quite helpful. But I found myself unable to connect with any of the characters, especially the main character. The prose was not to my taste either. Lots of exposition feels like it’s trying to explain away lots of main character's actions, who doesn’t feel like a strong protagonist.

It’s not a bad read. I think fans of this kind of historical fantasy that is growing in popularity might find more here to connect with than me, provided they can stick it through the first half where the main character is a bit of a jerk.

This was just way too weird -- I couldn't get into it. I did not finish reading it.

(short review -- didn't finish)

I was so intrigued by the concept and blurb here, but I found myself lost fairly quickly in the archaic feel of the writing and the whining nature of the main character and narrator... Even the eponymous peculiarities themselves, a fascinating concept and a great construct, never really engaged my imagination so much as felt like an irritation thrust upon the society described therein with the express purpose of annoying everyone - readers included - with their inconvenient presence... The narrator is excellent and was almost enough to keep me in the (audio)book, but not quite.

The writing style just was not for me... There is nothing wrong with it per se, it just didn't resonate with me. I read to be entertained - and while I'm prepared to engage in some work to achieve that end, I felt like I was listening to the same thing over and over again in this one, and eventually that wore me down and I couldn't finish.

This author usually writes historical fiction, but in this case he has written a fantasy set in 1899 London. About a decade earlier, certain peculiarities began to appear. Women are giving birth to rabbits, there is an outbreak of lycanthropy, children have lobster claws instead of hands, a killer fog enters homes, etc. Thomas Thresher has been forced to work at the boring job of clerk in the bank founded by his grandfather. If he doesn’t work there, he won’t receive the inheritance left to him by his father, and he needs the money since he had been leading a pretty feckless life. Secretly, Thomas has his own peculiarity. He has begun to sprout leaves.

The book uses a very light touch to combine magic, the occult, astral projection, Greek mythology, complicated family dynamics, mild romance and mathematics. Thomas develops a backbone as he tries to save the bank, find the source of the peculiarities and discover why his brother William is forcing him to marry Esther Feldstein. Thomas is charming, the book has both humor and action and the plot kept me interested. Hannibal Hills was an excellent narrator of the audiobook. The voices he used for both the male and female characters were wonderful.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher.