While it seems bizarre from a modern perspective, folk tales and the like were how people understood the world in a period of drastic change and upheaval, a metaphor for the problems of the time perhaps. I enjoyed that we got to read each of their stories and really understand what makes them tick.Īs well as having interesting main characters, the novel also works as an exploration of superstition and fear in the 18th Century. Louise is more of a conventionally likeable character, in her youth she was strong willed and determined, but due to a traumatic event she changes drastically in her old age and becomes superstitious and fearful. Hester is a complicated character, on the one hand you want to root for her and see her change her life around but on the other hand she has a disturbing and obsessive side to her personality which is her undoing.

Purcell writes two very different but equally intriguing leading ladies, Hester and Louise respectively. The gothic setting and writing is definitely the strongest element in this novel and it works wonderfully to create a truly atmospheric tale. Throughout the course of the story, readers are taken on a tumultuous journey of wondering whether the strange events are human or something all together more sinister… The setting is the harsh and unforgiving Morvoren house, perched on top of a cliff, where there is talk of malevolent fairies and other supernatural folk who wish humans harm. Laura Purcell uses a dual narrative, set 40 years apart – the former focusing on Hester Why a maid who is in disgrace and running from her difficult past and the latter on Louise Pinecroft, the daughter of a doctor who is trying to cure the disease of consumption. I love atmospheric or chilling tales and Bone China fits that description to a T. *I received a kindle edition of this novel via NetGalley l in exchange for an honest review*

Bone China by Laura Purcell