They say she’s a murderess. She claims she’s innocent. But Lucy has been known to tell lies… and a better life to the grisly murders themselves.
In a mysterious household of locked doors and forbidden affections, Lucy slips comfortably into the shadows, where she believes the indiscretions of her past will remain hidden. But when Lucy’s rising status becomes a threat to the mistress’s current companion, the delicate balance of power and loyalty begins to shift, setting into motion a brewing storm of betrayal, suspicion, and rage.
Now, with her execution looming closer, Lucy’s allies fight to have her sentence overturned as the tale she’s spinning nears its conclusion. But how much of her story can we trust? After all, Lucy’s been known to bend the truth…
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The narrator is riveting. The prose, gorgeous.
THE COMPANION by Kim Taylor Blakemore wasn’t what I expected, but, then again, I am not sure what I expected. In 1855 New Hampshire, Lucy Blunt is waiting for the hangman. While waiting, she is telling her story to a newspaper reporter. How did she get into this predicament? The story jumps back to when she joined the Burton household as a maid, alternating with the present and her life in jail, and sometimes jumping further back to explain how she got to the point of having to seek employment instead of being the lady of the house. All the while we are left wondering: who is Lucy?
As the novel develops things get murky and you realize just how unreliable Lucy is as a narrator. Did events really happen as she said or has she twisted the truth to make herself look better? Blakemore’s descriptions of the setting are done so well I can feel the cold and bleakness of the winter and the heat and beauty of the summer. The characters and their interactions are also well-written, you can easily visualize them. I didn’t ever come to like Lucy or any of the other characters, but I was intrigued and wanted to see where it was going and what happened next, or, at least, what Lucy said actually happened.
This is not a book to escape with, but the writing will keep you turning pages.
Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
#TheCompanion #LakeUnionPublishing #KimTaylorBlakemore
Dark And Depressing Period Accurate Love Story. This is a seemingly period accurate story of the travails of one woman circa 1855. Told in dual timelines of her time in prison awaiting execution for certain crimes and the tale of how those crimes came about, the overall tone here is fairly depressing but an overall intriguing read. (And at least the second story of this type set as historical fiction Lake Union has published in the last few months.) Set mostly in winter, this is a near perfect deep winter fireside read. Very much recommended.
The Companion by Kim Taylor Blakemore
Well written, dark depressing story set in the mid 1800’s that is told by a woman sentenced to death by hanging for the murder of two women. The story begins with Lucy Blunt being employed by the Burtons to assist the cook. Her story is told from that day forward with segments of her life in prison interspersed. As there were no clues to indicate which portion of her life was being told it was not immediately known if she was in prison or back at the Burton home.
After finishing the book I have to say that I came away feeling unsettled. I never really could relate to Lucy or any of the characters in the story. I am still trying to figure out why the story was written and what message it was trying to relay. Lucy was not a good person but one who used her wits to survive…until her wits failed her.
Did I like this book? Not really
What was the quality of the writing? Very good
Would I read more by this author? Perhaps – I would not tackle one this dark and depressing, though
Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Unioin Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review.
2-3 Stars
The Companion by Kim Taylor Blakemore
I really enjoyed reading this book. The premise is good. However, the story skips around a little bit, but once you get used it, the story really takes over and has you hooked.
Lucy has come upon hard times again. She becomes the dishwasher for a family and later becomes the “companion” to the blind lady of the house. But with each job comes its shortcomings and jealousy of the other workers.
The story also plays with your perceptions of things. What did one really see? How do you tell one perception from another? Who is correct? Does it matter?
This is a great read. Delve in for yourself and discover Lucy’s perception of the events.
/ 5
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from a book set in the 1850s since that’s not my normal type of read, but I really enjoyed The Companion by Kim Taylor Blakemore.
The Companion focuses on Lucy Blunt who I have to say is like the queen of the unreliable narrator. All through the book I was wondering just who she did and did not kill, and if she actually was a thief as well. The book flips between past and present as Lucy reflects on her life as she waits to be hanged for her crimes. There were quite a few moments that made me cringe, and this definitely isn’t a light read.
I really like the author’s writing style and I thought it was very fluid. I didn’t really know what to expect from the end and it came as a surprise to me which made me happy. While I don’t think the pacing is super-fast or anything, it was definitely engrossing enough that I read it in under 3.5 hours. This would be a great read for a cold, rainy day.
Final Thought: I don’t want to say too much about The Companion because I think this is a great one to go into blind if possible. As long as you know this is a dark mystery set in the 1850s, with an unreliable narrator I think that’s all that really matters. There is a lot of evil and unlikable characters in it, but the plot was interesting, and I really enjoyed the setting. I will definitely be reading more books by Blakemore!
Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
Welcome, my fellow Book Dragons to Throwback Thursday. Let us start with a special welcome to all the new members of our Tribe, if you have recently joined us, please know you are appreciated and gather round the fire place as I tell you of our Gem this blustery January evening.Our Gem is quite beautiful. See as I hold it up to the fire light, the smokey glint? The fine facets? Similar to cairngorm in appearance, but with a touch of dark destiny when One holds it in the claw. The way it seems to act as a prism and reflect it’s surroundings and then suddenly goes dark and dim? Fascinating, isn’t it? This is “The Companion” by Gem Maker Kim Taylor Blakemore.Tonight this Gem takes us back in time to New Hampshire in the year 1855. The first thing we read is the start of a narrative from the New Hampshire State Prison. Our narrator is a comely young woman, who, though worn and stressed, has managed to keep not only her looks, but her wits about her. This is Lucy Blunt, lately a maid in the house of successful business man, Mr. Burton and his lovely, but blind wife. Lucy is speaking to her lawyer and explaining a series of deaths. He believes her to be innocent, but she does not seem to care for herself. Before becoming a maid, she was a mother to a baby boy who died of the ague at three days old.How has Lucy ended up in a dank, mildewed cell of the State Prison? How could such a quiet and once lovely young woman end her life’s journey on the gallows? Did she actually murder three people in cold blood, or is she a dupe? Will she die an innocent or will the State of New Hampshire free a murderer? This tale held me enthralled for six hours while I read and only took a break for another cup of tea.Kim Taylor Blakemore has woven as fine a tale in this story as ever I have read. It reminded me very much of the old Poe stories, but even more in it’s atmosphere and elegance of ‘Dragonwyck’ by Anya Seton. Ms. Blakemore may well be our modern Anya. This is American Gothic at it’s finest. I did not want this book to end and yet I could not wait to devour the last pages to find out our Lucy’s fate. Yes, OUR Lucy. It is very rare that I think of a character as mine, as someone I become endeared to, but Lucy hooked me from the very first paragraph.Ms. Blakemore has not wasted a single syllable here. Her characters are very realistic. Her dialogue – perfection. Secondary characters became real human beings. There is a scene where the cook is given criticism in the midst of a long, freezing blizzard that has prevented nearly the entire household from going outside for days. She does not react normally to this, but has a fit of ‘cabin fever’. If you have read old accounts of human going through a bout of this, it is more than just the urge to go outside and plant pansies. It can be violent, terrifying and has driven more than one grown man to kill even his family. Imagine being stuck like that for days on end. No radio, no TV, no internet and if you were someone like cook, you might not even have access to books.I will not tell you more, because as you older members of our Tribe know, I do not do spoilers. But I will tell you this..pre-order this now. Get it and when you begin to read it, make sure it’s several hours before bed or even Maxwell House is not going to help when you don’t get any sleep, because even after you finish it.. it sticks in your mind. It is currently available for pre-order on Amazon for free on Kindle Unlimited and is more than reasonably priced in other media
Until tomorrow I remain, your humble Book Dragon,
Drakon T. Longwitten
The Companion is a dark, atmospheric novel set in the mid-1800’s. It tells the story of Lucy Blunt, imprisoned for murder and sentenced to die by hanging. Lucy is the narrator and alternates between her time in prison awaiting death, and the events leading up to her conviction.
Set it Harrowboro, NH, Lucy arrives at the home of Josiah Burton and his wife Eugenie, to replace the recently deceased Mary Dawson as a servant. Though the house is huge, there is a small staff to tend to all the chores; cook, Mr. Beede, John Friday who cares for the stalls, Rebecca (cousin of Josiah and companion to Mrs. Burton), and now Lucy.
Days are long and filled with work. Rebecca is very protective of her enhanced status among the servants as companion to Eugenie and she is very watchful of Lucy lest Mrs. Burton take note of her. Her jealousy makes her one not to be trusted. But Lucy admits she, herself, is not to be trusted either. She is used to doing whatever it takes to survive and get ahead. Manipulations abound in the household, and relationships are not always as they seem.
Due to her character, Lucy is an unreliable narrator. The reader must discern what is true and what is not. The author is prosaic in her writing style, and good on creating the dark, boding atmosphere.
Steadily paced, this is an enjoyable read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for allowing me to read a copy of The Companion in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions expressed are my own.