Alannah Tomkins, author,
The Experience of Urban Poverty 1723-82:
And then there is gin. The spirit for which the novel is named is present in all
its gut-rotting glory and in many of the scenes of Mary’s life. Her bottle is filled
and filled again from the hush-barrel kept by the turnkey of Chester prison, and
whole sections of the book must be viewed through Mary’s battle either to drink gin
or to abstain from it. Gin is nipped in secret, swigged on the street, and on one
occasion poured down the throat in a violent assault on the self. Gin speaks to
the characters, pledging ease and oblivion or threatening skull-splitting reprisals.
This is a vivid evocation of the pleasures and pains of alcoholism in a particular
time and place. It is as much a part of Mary’s life as the wooden floorboards of
the infirmary ward that she scrubs with herbs, or the grey, snow-laden sky which
threatens Chester in January, and it is intimately concerned with her fate.
What would it be like to inhabit a Hogarth print? To smell the gutters, run your
hand along the railings and taste the fare of eighteenth-century England? Caroline
Rance’s novel jolts the reader into Hogarth’s world with a vengeance – the prison,
the sick-bed, and above all the street – and like Hogarth’s characters her heroine
progresses from ignorance to awareness.
The story concerns Mary Helsall, a nurse by appointment if not by vocation, who takes
work at the Chester infirmary for strategic reasons of her own. Her past and her
motivations unfold slowly in chapters that intersperse the ‘present’ action, the
latter spanning the early months of 1756.
The most significant achievement is the character of Mary herself. An unknown woman
of apparently dubious morals at the start of the novel, Mary comes into focus as
a complicated, contradictory, and thereby an entirely believable character. The
reader has privileged access to her conscious thoughts from the start, so she is
visible as a flawed, sometimes gullible, initially immature person. Yet we do not
lose sympathy with Mary, and remain curious about where the rush of events will propel
her and how her choices will mediate the flow of her history.
This is an impressive first novel, based on a combination of historical accuracy
and imaginative verve. Readers can only hope that Caroline Rance returns us to this
Hogarthian world in future.
Elaine Dingsdale, The Bookbag:
This debut novel is by a very talented author indeed. The front cover bears the legend
jolts the reader into Hogarth's world with a vengeance - and this exactly encapsulates
the breadth of the novel....
As the central protagonist, Mary is wonderful. Initially overwhelmed by the city,
she gradually grows in boldness and stature. She's an extremely complex character,
and I was often surprised at her actions. Emboldened by her increasing reliance on
gin (the 'kill-grief' of the title), she becomes progressively more devious in her
fight for survival, and towards the conclusion of the novel, she is a very different
character to the almost timid girl of the outset. ..
Overall, this was a wonderful novel. The plot was well developed, and progressed
at a good pace - quick enough to keep the reader turning the pages, but slow enough
to keep us guessing. The characters were magnificent, encouraging us to sympathise
with their ghastly lifestyle, and simultaneously back away from the squalor they
represented. There was no part of this novel which I can fault - it was simply a
great read, and I do hope the author writes more in this vein.
There are men in her life determined to coerce her for their own purposes, from
the lecherous Dr Racketta to the unruffled and gentlemanly Mr Barnston, a hospital
subscriber. But the most dangerous men are much closer to home. Mary must hold her
real and her fantasy lives in balance, to understand and decide her future relations
with husband, sweetheart and would-be lover.
Anne Brooke, author, Maloney's Law:
From the very first sentence, this book wraps you round in a coat of darkness, tension,
low-life street horror and kick-ass descriptive poetry strong enough to obliterate
several countries and still have time for a gin or two...
Kill-Grief tells the story of Mary Helsall, who arrives in Chester in 1756, carrying
her own bitter secrets but determined to carve an independent future for herself,
despite the variety of men who lay claim to her, body and soul. Frankly, this is
how historical novels should be written – with the setting so densely and sharply
described that it becomes a character in itself. For it’s the quality, intensity
and sheer poetry of the writing that captures the reader and doesn’t allow them to
leave until the very end. In fact this key aspect of the novel reminds me of the
writing of DH Lawrence – and, like his work, it’s best to savour the experience of
reading rather than rush through it.
To read the full review, visit Vulpes Libris
Jackie Bailey, Farm Lane Books
This book transports you straight into the horrors of an 18th-century English hospital.
The problem was that I’m not sure it is a place I ever want to witness! The squalor
was vividly described, and I don’t think I have ever read a book which conveys the
smells of the scene so convincingly ...
The book follows Mary, a reluctant nurse, who has to deal with the all the bodily
functions thrown at her, on top of the secrets she is hiding. Mary is struggling
to become independent and is initially over-whelmed by her new life in Chester, as
she is used to a very different life by the sea. As the book progresses she gains
in confidence and her hidden past is gradually revealed. The book is very well paced
and the plot, although quite simple, is compelling.
To read the full review, visit Farm Lane Books
Scott Pack
A young nurse with a secret to hide starts work at a new hospital. This reminded
me of The Observations by Jane Harris and is recommended to anyone who enjoyed that
book.
Nicola Morgan, www.politicsteacher.co.uk
Caroline Rance’s debut novel is set in the mid-eighteenth century in the town of
Chester. She evokes the squalor and depravity of the area from the outset and doesn’t
spare our senses with the sounds and smells of the time. My history teacher once
told me that if I were to be transported back in time then, on alighting my time
machine, I would be physically sick at the smell; Rance’s narrative brought those
words of my teacher flooding back...
...Although this is a period piece, it still deals with contemporary issues: love,
loyalty, power, class, money, duty and independence. Particularly, the difficulties
face by a woman in a man’s world given that men often hold most of the economic power.
It is a triumph of an independent will in the face of challenge and adversity.
To read the full review, visit Red Room
Elliott Rodgers
Kill-Grief is set in 1756, in Chester, at an infirmary and tells the story of Mary
Helsall, who starts a job as a nurse. The infirmary is no sweet and charming Holby
City Hospital and nurses are far from Florence Nightingale. As the novel unfolds
we find out Mary has a secret and seeks solace in gin and an on off relationship
with Anthony, a hospital porter. A diseased beggar turns up at the infirmary and
it soon becomes obvious Mary has a whole collection of secrets to hide.
I really enjoyed reading Kill-Grief, I had expected it to be a kind of “story of
a nurse” set in the eighteenth century with a romantic twist, it was so much more.
Caroline so obviously spent an awful long time on research for Kill-Grief, it shows
in the small details that she includes, the language of the characters and which
transports you completely into the characters’ lives. In places Caroline writes eloquently
and beautifully about Mary’s feelings for Anthony while in others with a brutal sense
of coarse vulgarity that is sharp and precisely what is needed. There are places
with some blood and gore but Caroline doesn’t go over the top and use it when it
wasn’t necessary.
Kill-Grief for me was one of those books you start to read and you don’t want to
put down.
To read the full review, visit www.elliotrodgers.com
