The House on Vesper Sands

 The House on Vesper Sands (2018) by Paraic O'Donnell

Part mystery, part gothic, part paranormal--O'Donnell combines the best parts of each to create an absorbing story about late-Victorian England. We open with Esther Tull, a seamstress who has been employed by Lord Strythe to produce fabulous gowns for an unknown purpose. Well...Esther now knows what it's all about and has determined to make the ultimate sacrifice to try and put a stop to it. She destroys some mysterious bottles of dark fluid, has embroidered a message into her very own skin, and then plunges to her death from an upper story in Lord Strythe's house.

Next up is Gideon Bliss, a religious scholar at Oxford, who has come to London after receiving an urgent summons from his uncle, Reverend Neuilly. Rev. Neuilly has been on a mission of charity--saving young women from a life on the streets and finding them decent employment. But when Gideon gets to London his uncle is nowhere to be found. Gideon briefly encounters Angela Tatton, one of the girls his uncle had assisted and whom Gideon had formed an attachment to when last he visited the reverend. But she soon vanishes as well. Through a bit of misunderstanding, Gideon finds himself playing sergeant to Inspector Cutter who is investigating the death at Lord Strythe's house and he realizes the disappearances and the death of the seamstress are connected. 

In fact, a large number of young women and girls have gone missing--all from the lower classes--and there are rumors of Spiritists being involved. These Spiritists aren't just your run-of-the-mill spiritualists who hold seances and seek to contact the other world. There is an aura of evil surrounding the men and hints of the dark arts. Cutter and Bliss must determine who exactly is behind these men and what they might want with these young women. Meanwhile, Octavia Hillingdon, female reporter, is investigating the disappearance of Angela Tatton as well. All paths lead to Lord Strythe's country estate where our protagonists will have to deal with a man willing to do anything to possess the secrets the Spiritists have been pursuing...and that includes killing anyone who gets in his way.

This was an incredibly absorbing story--particularly so when one realizes that I am not especially fond of either paranormal books or those that keep switching points of view. We start out with Esther Tull. Then move on to following Gideon Bliss (and by extension Inspector Cutter); alternating with episodes with Olivia Hillingdon. This works pretty well, for the most part--but there are a few sections where it becomes difficult to piece together what is going on--we just jump into a scene without proper contextualization. 

The paranormal aspect is quite central to the mystery, so once you accept that what is said to be happening actually can (at least in O'Donnell's Victorian England) happen then all is well. A review from The Irish Times says that "he doesn't rely on ghostly happenings to explain or resolve his plot." That's not precisely true. Without the paranormal, we definitely would not have the ending we are given--the villain may have gotten his due, but certainly not as it was dished up, and one of our heroes would most likely not still be with us. However, having suspended my disbelief and accepted the paranormal aspects as presented, I find the denouement perfectly satisfying.

One of the most delightful parts of the story is the somewhat uneasy (at first) partnership between Cutter and Bliss. The introductory scenes where Cutter assumes Bliss is his new sergeant (and Bliss decides to just go with it) are very funny and I fully appreciate Cutter's sarcastic wit. It looks like the two are set to continue as a team and one must hope that there will be future installments in the duo's detective career. ★★★★★

First line:  In Half Moon Street, just as she came near to the house, Esther Tull felt the first gentleness of the snow.

A degree of suspicion is always warranted, Bliss. I wake up in the morning with a degree of suspicion. (Inspector Cutter; p. 186)

You will find everything present and correct, he said, which would be well and good if I had asked him. I had not asked him, however, and when a fellow volunteers a thing like that, you may take it as a certainty that something is missing. (Cutter; p,189)

Fate is a fairy tale, my darling. In life, there is only opportunity and advantage. (Lord "Elf" Hartington; p. 278)

Her vanished parts had been imperceptible before in daylight and by night only a faint and gaseous tracery had been visible. But they had brightened now, becoming distinct even in the strange dusk that the storm had brought, and she seemed formed in part of a gauzy tissue of radiance, sharpened at its edges so that it might have been etched into the air itself. (p. 375)

For my own part, I have endured this withered life for long enough. I am quite prepared to die today if I must, but if I do, then by God, I will go down swinging this stick. (Lady Ada; p. 376)

You have hardly given me a moment's peace in three months, but I can hardly fault you for it. It is in your nature to make a nuisance of yourself, just as it is mine. It is the rightful order  of things. (Inspector Cutter; p. 393)

Last line: It seemed impossible, even as it faded, to imagine it was anything other than eternal.

********************

Deaths = 14 (two fell from height; one strangled; one hit on head; one hit by train; one strangled; seven poisoned; one drowned)

~~A purely personal observation--the cover pictured at the top left is the edition I read from the library. But I much prefer the alternate cover pictured at the bottom left.