I am so excited to share my latest read with all of you! I won an advance copy of
The Devil in the Marshalsea by Antonia Hogson on Goodreads, and made it my first priority during the Bout of Books 10.0 Readathon that is happening right now (check out my
Day 1 and
Day 2 posts for more information). I read all 380 pages within two days, and I am pleased to report it earned a full 5/5 star rating!
The Devil in the Marshalsea is a historical fiction book that takes place in 1727. The story is told through our main character's perspective. His name is Tom Hawkins, and he's a 25-year-old gentleman who studied to be a reverend, but was led astray due to his love for women, drinking, and gambling. The book opens with Tom scrounging together enough money to pay his landlord the debts he owes, but before Tom can pay his debts, he is robbed of every penny. The next day he is thrown into debtors gaol (pronounced "jail"), and the real excitement begins!
Gaol in 18th century England is truly hell. In order to avoid the dreaded Common Side, where prisoners are packed in tight quarters and dying of gaol fever, one must pay room and board to live on the Master's Side – a difficult task to accomplish when one is thrown into gaol for owing money in the first place. Tom meets an interesting fellow named Samuel Fleet, who pays his rent. But Fleet is not a favorite in the Marshalsea, the gaol where Tom now stays. In fact, Fleet's last roommate was brutally murdered and it soon becomes Tom's job to find out who did the deed, or he will be unable to escape the Marshalsea.
The Devil in the Marshalsea is thus a murder mystery story filled with twists and turns. Hodgson does an amazing job of building complex characters, and also educating the reader about life in a debtors gaol in the 1700s. I was amazed to find out that many of the characters in this book are based off of real life personalities, and I am now interested to learn more about this culture that I never knew existed. But aside from the fascinating history, the story of
The Devil in the Marshalsea is just pure awesome. If you're a fan of
Clue, you will love this book. The ending was shocking, and every time I thought I knew what was going to happen next, I was quite surprised. According to Goodreads, this is the first book in the new Tom Hawkins series, and I just need to find out what happens next!
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed
The Devil in the Marshalsea, and highly recommend it. It was definitely my favorite read of 2014 thus far. It comes out on June 10, so be sure to preorder your copy on Amazon
HERE. You don't want to miss out on this thrill ride!
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