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The Nature of Monsters

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The Nature of Monsters

By: Clare Clark
Narrated by: Julia Barrie
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About this listen

 It is 1718 and, in a small parish near Newcastle, Eliza Tally, a headstrong girl of 16, embarks on a reckless love affair that will prove her undoing. When her lover casts her off, denying their union, she is forced to travel to London, a city that attracts and alarms her in equal measure. There, she takes up a position in the house of an apothecary, Grayson Black, whom she trusts to salvage what remains of her reputation.©2007 Clare Clark (P)2007 W F Howes Ltd. Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction

Critic reviews

"A sublime evocation of the 18th century...there was no way I was ever going to put this down." (Telegraph)
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I bought this book as I was trying to go for something I wouldn't normally buy. It is a good story and found that I could not put it down! Really wanted to know how it worked out, even though it is fairly predictable. Still a good story, ideal for holiday reading material, not too taxing!

Not too shabby

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Took a while to get into it, got better as the story progressed but nothing special.

Not what I expected.

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This was a fascinating story, although it did take me a while to get into and Clare Clark over does the description at times. It is a gruesome listen in parts and it's hard to believe that people were ever treated in this way, but they undoubtedly were and there are plenty of monsters in various guises throughout the book.

An intriguing story.

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This is a compulsive story and really lifts the lid on the dirty, gritty and unwashed London of the 18th Century. It's shocking premise of "monster" children being borne to women who were exposed to excesses of emotion and imagination is hard to credit in this day and age. Unbelievably it was thought feasable in 1720 when the novel is set. The feisty heroine seemed completely of her time, so often in historical novels the characters seem to think, speak and act in a very 21st century manner. Eliza is trapped by the constraints of both poverty and loss of reputation that kept women completely controlled. Lives are bought and sold with callous indifference that makes us happy to be living when we do! I thought the novel was read beautifully, you couldn't fail to be moved by the plight of the characters as they felt completely real. If you want to immerse yourself in historical London that you can almost smell and gasp at unimaginable horrors lurking in it's dank and closed courtyards, I think you will enjoy this as much as I did!

A grusome tale with a heart!

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I do not dispute that this author writes beautifully but the story was 'gross' and offensive to me. I could not listen beyond a few chapters .... sorry !!!

Not my "cup of tea"

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