The Vespertine -- Saundra Mitchell

Baltimore, 1889. Seventeen-year-old Amelia van den Broek has been sent from Maine to live with her cousin's family for the summer. She's been sent there by her older brother for one reason, and one reason alone: to find a husband.

For a girl who's in the city for the first time, though, Baltimore offers up a slew of distractions. Including the fact that she's started having visions of the future. As the people of Baltimore -- and everywhere else -- are currently fascinated with Spiritualism, her visions serve to catapult Amelia from Outsider to In Demand.

The most distracting distraction of all, though, is Nathaniel Witherspoon, a mysterious artist Amelia finds herself irresistibly drawn to, though she knows that he is, in no way, an eligible suitor. But drawn to him she is, even before she learns that they have more in common than their mutual attraction...

Oh, Saundra Mitchell, I do love your books.

I love how you just drop me into the story and let me figure out what's going on. I love how your prose in The Vespertine is both tight -- nothing overblown, overdone or unnecessary -- but still reminiscent of an old-school Gothic novel. That every time Amelia's voice got flowery, it felt right and true and real. I loved that I believed the dialogue, that I believed in the friendships, that I believed in the characters.

I loved the first line:

I woke in Oakhaven, entirely ruined.

I loved Amelia's taste of apple as she entered Baltimore, which could have come off as heavy-handed symbolism, but instead, just... worked. I loved that Amelia and Zora became immediate friends:

In that moment, I suppose we could have decided to be rivals.

Instead, Zora took my hand and said, "We're too grand to stay indoors today, I believe."

And I loved that Nathaniel flirted with impropriety:

He slipped his hand into mine, and I forgot how shocking and badly mannered that made him. I forgot everything but the mystery of his touch. He wore no gloves, and mine were only lace, so I felt his hand skin to skin.

but also worried when Amelia, who actually had status to lose, did the same. I savored every page, and I was disappointed when it was all over.

Definitely, definitely give this one to fans of Libba Bray's Gemma Doyle trilogy, as well as anyone looking for an atmospheric historical fantasy romance.

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Amazon | Indiebound

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Author page.

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Book source: ARC from Netgalley.

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Read for the 2011 Historical Fiction Challenge.

Comments

[karen]

Thanks for posting this review. I hadn't heard of _The Vespertine_ before and now I definitely want to give it a read. I can also think of at least two of my friends who I bet would adore it based on your comments.

[Gillian Hall]

Oooooh! So jealous! I can't wait to read this one!