Set in London and Monmouth in the late 1700s, this is an extraordinary novel about Mary Saunders, the young daughter of a poor seamstress. Mary hungers greedily for fine clothes and ribbons, as people of her class do for food and warmth. It's a hunger that lures her into prostitution at the age of thirteen. Mary is thrown out by her distraught mother when she gets pregnant and almost dies on the dangerous streets of London. Her saviour is Doll - a prostitute. Mary roams London freely with Doll, selling her body to all manner of 'cullies', dressed whorishly in colourful, gaudy dresses with a painted red smile.
Faced with bad debts and threats upon her life she eventually flees to Monmouth, her mother's hometown, where she attempts to start a new life as a maid in Mrs Jones's house. But Mary soon discovers that she can't escape her past and just how dearly people like her pay for yearnings not fitting to their class in society...
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No rags to riches tale here, but nor does the author allow the brutal circumstances of Mary's life to swamp her colourful and richly textured narrative. Mary is full of spark and cheek; her eye is sharp to the hypocrisies of privilege and religion, her speech deliciously expresses her disdain for her "betters". Only occasionally does the narrative slip into too much telling at the expense of showing, and thus loses some of its emotional impact and pace.
That said, Emma Donoghue's gifts as a storyteller are considerable: her unsparing accounts of small and large events, a wealth of detail and a wonderfully rich and fluent language makes this a vivid and moving slice from the underbelly of 18th-century life.--Ruth Petrie
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Book Description Hardback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR002074820
Book Description Soft cover. Condition: Very Good+. Uncorrected Proof. Signed by Emma Donoghue on the title page with no inscription; minor edge wear; otherwise a solid, clean copy in collectible condition. Signed by Author(s). Book. Seller Inventory # 004197
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. First Edition, reprinted 2000. Signed, Inscribed on Title page. Wrapped in mylar. Seller Inventory # 978186049828C
Book Description Small 8vo. Pp: 422. ISBN: 1860498280. Red cloth boards with gold gilt lettering on spine and publisher's illustrated dust jacket. A few bumps to boards, probably in production process, and light shelfwear marks to edge of paper block, but otherwise VG, with lettering bright on spine and contents unmarked. Good DJ is bumped at top and bottom with small water stains to inside spine of dust jacket (see photos). Seller Inventory # C64195
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. First edition first printing of historical thriller novel set in London in 1752. A hint of shelf wear. In near fine / near fine condition. Seller Inventory # 37829