Product Description

Amen Corner, London, 1864. Orphan Sarah O'Reilly has disguised herself as a boy so that she can work in the offices of Septimus Harding's newspaper, the London Mercury. She meets Lily Korechnya, a wealthy widow who writes a column for the paper under a pseudonym. Lily has been enlisted by Lady Cynthia Herbert to help catalogue her magnificent jewel collection. She is especially struck by several large gems that belong to the Maharaja of Benares, which Lady Herbert has promised to have made into a special charm. The gems include a fiery red diamond that seems to exert an unsettling influence over anyone who touches it. Then two gruesome murders take place -- first a customs officer at the docks and next a jeweller in Hatton Gardens, both of whom were strangled in an unusual, distinct way. A local simpleton, Holy Joe, is blamed for the murders but neither Lily or Sara are convinced the police have the right man. The trail of the missing gems leads them back to India, to ghosts, and the dangerous cult of the destroyer goddess Kali.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #555048 in Books
• Published on: 2008-01-10
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

THE GLOSS
"a very entertaining romp through a world of muckraking journalism, child labour and deadly cults... very enjoyable - perfect for curling up with on a miserable February day."

Review
"a very entertaining romp through a world of muckraking journalism, child labour and deadly cults... very enjoyable - perfect for curling up with on a miserable February day." (THE GLOSS )

"excels in presenting complex ideas such as fatalism and human frailty in the face of fear and desire" (DAILY TELEGRAPH )

"Fitzpatrick's eye for the details of the Victorian empire in commendable" (THE BIG ISSUE )

"an entertaining weaving of intrigue and rags and riches with some strong lead characters" (PRESS ASSOCIATION )

DAILY TELEGRAPH
"excels in presenting complex ideas such as fatalism and human frailty in the face of fear and desire"

Customer Reviews

Some nice ideas, but they weren't fully developed
I love Victorian novels and was quite excited by the 'blurb' of this novel. Sarah O' Reilly disguises herself as a boy and is taken under the wing of a wealthy widow, Lily Korechnya. Lily is asked to catalogue the jewels of Lady Cynthia Herbert another wealthy widow, who has connections with the Maharajah of Benares in India and who has been charged with organising for a special charm to be made for him. The charm, known as the 'navaratna' is made of nine different coloured diamonds, the rarest of which is the red diamond which is known to have links with the destructive goddess, Kali. This force seems to effect many of those who come into contact with the jewel as a number of people who have seen it turn up murdered.

Unfortunately, the blurb only accurately describes half of the novel. In the second half, Sarah is older and returns to India to try and find out what happened to her friend, Lily. In a sense this makes it feel like two separate novels, where the richness of the ideas are never properly or fully developed. Some of the key events and descriptions are glossed over (very Un-Victorian!) which was a real shame.

I did quite enjoy the book but found it dragged in the middle.

Atmospheric and Very Enjoyable

Kylie Fitzpatrick was born in Denmark but grew up in England, America, and Australia. She has worked as an actress, as a researcher for documentary films and as a freelance script editor. She lives in Somerset with her partner and young daughter.

Having recently read a book on Jack the Ripper, my mind must have become attuned to Victorian London, because when I saw this I grabbed it in eager anticipation of a good read and I wasn't disappointed. Add to that a side interest in typesetting and newspapers and this book could have been written especially for me.

The book revolves around precious stones, including one particular precious diamond that seems to have an unsettling influence on anyone who comes into contact with it. The synopsis printed above by Amazon gives a more than adequate resume of the story. Suffice to say that once again a new author (certainly to me) has come up with a winning formula that holds the attention of the reader from beginning to end. The sights and sounds of India a century ago bring both colour and enjoyment to the pages of the book.

The Ninth Stone
This is certainly a page turner, but also beautifully written and well researched. A very good read.