Shrines of Gaiety: A Novel
Immersing us in the dazzling world of London during the Roaring Twenties, bestselling storyteller Kate Atkinson has created a captivating tale of seduction and corruption in Shrines of Gaiety—an homage to the glittering nightclubs of Soho and the colorful cast of characters who passed through their doors.
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thenextgoodbook.com
A fun work of historical fiction. Kate Atkinson just keeps getting better!
"Men talked in order to convey information or to ruminate on cricket scores and campaign statistics. Women, on the other hand, talked in an effort to understand the foibles of human behaviour. If men were to "gossip", the world might be a better place. There would certainly be fewer wars."
Full review on the site.
A fun work of historical fiction. Kate Atkinson just keeps getting better!
"Men talked in order to convey information or to ruminate on cricket scores and campaign statistics. Women, on the other hand, talked in an effort to understand the foibles of human behaviour. If men were to "gossip", the world might be a better place. There would certainly be fewer wars."
Full review on the site.
Historical fiction of the 1920s and 30s in London. The focus is on the empire of notorious Nellie Coker (based on a real life figure) who runs several prominent nightclubs in town. There are a few people who'd like to see her fail, including several cops, Mannix and Oats. Two girls from York are missing and Gwen Ridding, who has been asked to help look for them, forms a relationship with Nellie Coker. It is also a story about Nellie's children, and the two missing girls, Florence and Freida. Not the most compelling book I've ever read and it took me a long time to connect to the story.
Bizarrely I read this at same time as watching Dope Girls : they are very similar. Gritty drama with some unexpected twists!
I did enjoy the story but I don’t yet know whether I would go back and read it again. It took a while to get going whilst we were introduced to all the characters but though I began to get more involved in their stories there seemed to be a lot of loose ends. Why were the girls in the river and who was the invisible man are just a couple of them. The ending felt very abrupt and hurried and most unexpected. Superficial is the word for this book but I guess that is what it is saying about the bright young things and the shrines of gaiety.
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