Book review – Laura Purcell’s ‘The Whispering Muse’.
[usr 4]
Theatre people and those who like spooky Victorian Gothicky ghostly tales will love this. It is a gripping, compelling page turner. It is divided into five Acts, each a different play,(The Scottish play,Hamlet,Romeo and Juliet.and two versions of Faust) and there are thirty five chapters.
The scene is set in the nineteenth century London theatre world, and full of theatrical ghosts and superstitions, especially those around The Scottish Play. And obsession.
Our narrator is Jennifer (Jenny) Wilcox who knows when a job offer is too good to be true. However the actions of her profligate brother Greg who has vanished, means she has been falsely accused and lost her previous job, and she has a struggling family to support – young Bertie with a bad foot who pastes together matchboxes to earn his keep, and his older brother works in a hat factory.So when Mrs Dyer,the suspicious wife of the owner of the Mercury Theatre where her brother was employed, asks her to work there as a dresser and spy on Lilith Erikson, the new leading lady, Jennifer is not really able to refuse.
However rumours are already circulating of a curse in the theatre – it is whispered that Lilith has made a covenant with Melpomene, the tragic Muse in Greek mythology, in order to become the greatest actress to ever appear on stage.
When she first starts at the theatre working for Lilith, Jenny finds her almost unbearable, but does admire her astonishing acting – she impressively appears to become the character she is playing. While Lilith is cantankerous and possibly obsessed, she has had to struggle to get to where she is now, ignoring the ramifications.
As Jenny becomes embroiled working at the theatre and spends more time with Lilith, the more she has a creeping feeling that something is not quite right, with fatal accidents occurring and the hushed murmur of sinister arrangements. Odd events occur around the Mercury and Jenny questions if the rumours are in fact true, and worries that, if Melpomene demands payment,that the cost might be disastrous.
Readers also see how Mrs Dyer is a very multi-layered character. Outwardly she seems an unloved wife whose husband spends her money freely, a neglected wife who wants to protect her daughter Rachel,making Jenny her friend, Mrs Dyeris ruthless, jealous and devious, not quite as she appears – her largesse for Jenny and her family creates in Jenny a feeling of responsibility, and that she is heavily indebted to Mrs Dyer.
A theme running through the book is obsession and we see it from various standpoints. Mrs Dyer becomes determined to create Lilith’s downfall and will do anything to make that occur. Lilith herself has made performing on stage and giving a spectacular performance every time her obsession. Both have one major obsession which only leads to perilous concealment, and fatal consequences. Purcell shows how destructive obsession can be and how our world can come crashing down, leaving us totally shattered. We are never quite sure who is behind the strange goings-on at the Mercury, and Purcell blends the real and imaginary (or is it?) worlds spectacularly.
The dirty, shabby, dilapidated gaslit atmosphere of nineteenth century London and the theatre world is vibrantly brought to life. A wonderful Gothic horror story about envy, power, ambition,loyalty and overwhelming obsession .
A most captivating read.
Featured image : Author pic
Book review by Lynne Lancaster