Publication
New York : Random House, [2014]
Collection
Call number
Fiction O
Physical description
523 p.; 25 cm
Status
Available
Call number
Description
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY SLATE For fans of Anne Rice, The Historian, and The Night Circus, an astonishing debut, a novel of epic scope and suspense that conjures up all the magic and menace of Victorian London 1892: James Norbury, a shy would-be poet newly down from Oxford, finds lodging with a charming young aristocrat. Through this new friendship, he is introduced to the drawing-rooms of high society and finds love in an unexpected quarter. Then, suddenly, he vanishes without a trace. Alarmed, his sister, Charlotte, sets out from their crumbling country estate determined to find him. In the sinister, labyrinthine London that greets her, she uncovers a hidden, supernatural city populated by unforgettable characters: a female rope walker turned vigilante, a street urchin with a deadly secret, and the chilling "Doctor Knife." But the answer to her brother's disappearance ultimately lies within the doors of the exclusive, secretive Aegolius Club, whose predatory members include the most ambitious, and most bloodthirsty, men in England. In her first novel, Lauren Owen has created a fantastical world that is both beguiling and terrifying. The Quick will establish her as one of fiction's most dazzling talents. Praise for The Quick"A suspenseful, gloriously atmospheric first novel, and a feast of gothic storytelling that is impossible to resist."--Kate Atkinson"A cracking good read . . . Owen takes the gothic conventions of the vampire novel in a refreshing new direction."--Deborah Harkness, author of A Discovery of Witches and The Book of Life "A good old-fashioned vampire novel . . . What fun."--The New York Times Book Review (Editor's Choice) "The Quick is that rare book that reviewers and readers live for: both plot- and character-driven, a stay-up-all-night reading romp. . . . This is elegant, witty, force-of-nature writing."--The Dallas Morning News "The book's energy, its wide reach and rich detail make it a confident example of the 'unputdownable' novel."--The Economist "A seamless blend of Victorian London and rich imagination."--Tana French, author of In the Woods "A thrilling tale . . . This book will give you chills even on a hot day."--Minneapolis Star Tribune "Stylishly sinister . . . will have you sleeping with the lights on."--O: The Oprah Magazine "A sly and glittering addition to the literature of the macabre."--Hilary Mantel, author of Wolf Hall "A big, sly bucketful of the most tremendous fun . . . Owen] weaves what's here with what's beyond as easily as J. K. Rowling does."--Slate " An author of] prodigious gifts . . . Owen captures Dickens's London with glee and produces a number of characters Dickens would be happy to call his own."--Pittsburgh Post-Gazette From the Hardcover edition.… (more)
Subjects
User reviews
LibraryThing member brenzi
I made a rookie’s mistake (and I’m no rookie!) and requested an ER book based on blurbs on its cover. I never looked any further to see what the book was about. The words of Hilary Mantel (”a sly and glittering addition to the literature of the macabre…It’s a skilled assured performance
Apparently well-written, vampire books with intricate plotting and heart-pounding suspense are right up my alley. Who knew? Anyway, the narrative begins in a fairly innocuous way by telling the story of brother and sister James and Charlotte Norbury. James leaves his family’s crumbling country estate for Oxford and then the budding poet takes rooms in London with a new friend, Christopher Paige, an aristocratic young man who introduces him to the high society of the city and soon James finds love. Things seem to be going so well for him when he suddenly disappears. That’s all in the first hundred pages and not a mention of v______s.
James’ sister Charlotte is frantic with worry and leaves the country estate to look for her brother. This is when Owen pulls out all the stops and begins a heart-pounding narrative that continues for four hundred pages. The atmosphere she creates is just so suggestive of Victorian London that you can feel it. When Charlotte gets her glimpse of London, it was as if I was standing there with her.
”King’s Cross was an assault on the eyes and ears, a scurry and bustle which almost bewildered her. Alighting from the train, Charlotte was struck by the noise of the place---dozens of voices, and above those the screech and pant of the engines. She found herself engulfed by a crowd of fellow passengers, hemmed in on all sides and borne helplessly forwards. She could smell dirt, sweating human bodies and damp wool and wet dog fur, a thousand other ripe and rotting things all blended together. The station was cold, and she felt insignificant beneath the high ceiling, as if she had dissolved entirely into the crowd. The taste of smoke lingered at the back of her throat.” (Page 211)
As she searches for her brother she finds a fantastical world peopled by memorable characters, some of which help her in her hunt and lead her to the mysterious Aegolius Club. So ignore the negative reviews, many of which were written by readers who never got beyond the first hundred pages, and get ready for the ride of your life. This v______e book is highly recommended.
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and it’s hard to believe it’s a first novel.)” and Kate Atkinson (A suspenseful, gloriously atmospheric first novel, and a feats of gothic storytelling that is impossible to resist.)” were enough for me. Throw in Tana French’s words (…a seamless blend of Victorian London and rich imagination”) and you have the trifecta of highly regarded British authors raving about The Quick. What me worry? So the book arrived and proved to be a door stopper at 523 pages but then I looked at a few of the reviews on the work page and discovered to my chagrin that the book was about, well, er, it contained, how do I say it…..vampires. Now you can count on one hand (actually one finger) the number of vampire novels I’ve read: Dracula. I was surprised a few years ago at how much I loved that novel but this book, The Quick, is written by a twenty-eight year old woman and the only thing that came to mind was the Twilight books. Noooooo. So the book sat. For so long that the publisher sent me a second copy. Is that a hint that they’re waiting for a review? I thought I would get to it in May, then June but I kept putting it off. Until Chatterbox and Smiler69 wrote fairly glowing reviews of it and I picked the book up and didn’t come up for air for days.Apparently well-written, vampire books with intricate plotting and heart-pounding suspense are right up my alley. Who knew? Anyway, the narrative begins in a fairly innocuous way by telling the story of brother and sister James and Charlotte Norbury. James leaves his family’s crumbling country estate for Oxford and then the budding poet takes rooms in London with a new friend, Christopher Paige, an aristocratic young man who introduces him to the high society of the city and soon James finds love. Things seem to be going so well for him when he suddenly disappears. That’s all in the first hundred pages and not a mention of v______s.
James’ sister Charlotte is frantic with worry and leaves the country estate to look for her brother. This is when Owen pulls out all the stops and begins a heart-pounding narrative that continues for four hundred pages. The atmosphere she creates is just so suggestive of Victorian London that you can feel it. When Charlotte gets her glimpse of London, it was as if I was standing there with her.
”King’s Cross was an assault on the eyes and ears, a scurry and bustle which almost bewildered her. Alighting from the train, Charlotte was struck by the noise of the place---dozens of voices, and above those the screech and pant of the engines. She found herself engulfed by a crowd of fellow passengers, hemmed in on all sides and borne helplessly forwards. She could smell dirt, sweating human bodies and damp wool and wet dog fur, a thousand other ripe and rotting things all blended together. The station was cold, and she felt insignificant beneath the high ceiling, as if she had dissolved entirely into the crowd. The taste of smoke lingered at the back of her throat.” (Page 211)
As she searches for her brother she finds a fantastical world peopled by memorable characters, some of which help her in her hunt and lead her to the mysterious Aegolius Club. So ignore the negative reviews, many of which were written by readers who never got beyond the first hundred pages, and get ready for the ride of your life. This v______e book is highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member Chatterbox
I loathe vampire novels. I love well-written literary fiction that doesn't scream and shout and say look at how smart and clever my author is being. And so by all rights, I should have detested this novel, which is a very cleverly-crafted literary novel -- an homage of sorts to high Gothic yarns of
So, what's happening here?
What I dislike is the new breed of fiction feature Abraham Lincoln and Jane Eyre as either vampires or vampire-hunters or other mythical critters; equally, the romanticized "Twilight" love at first bite stuff. I'm not a big reader of horror fiction, generally, and tend to recoil from the macabre. Happily, that's not what is happening here.
Rather, what won me over and won this novel one of a tiny handful of five star labels I'll dole out this year is the fact that Lauren Owen demonstrated the ability to keep my attention with superb plotting and excellent writing -- along with an ability to keep me teetering on the edge of my chair, suspense-wise. All of that kept me reading a novel that is 80% devoted to vampires in Victorian London. And that will tell you just how good I thought this novel was.
Is it for everyone? Probably not. Those who adore conventional gothic tales may not like Owen's approach, which includes a cross-dressing one-time tightrope-walking star turned vampire hunter, and the journals of "Dr. Knife", former tutor to one of the members of the Aegolius Club, composed of men with unusual tastes in claret and who keep their window shades firmly drawn. And those in quest of a rollicking modern tale, or a "Twilight" style romance, will be dismayed to find a serious work of fiction, bearing a blurb by no less a figure than Hilary Mantel. (Mantel isn't an indiscriminate blurber, and this one, I think was deserved.) (And it's worth heeding the blurbers on this: if you've not read their work and aren't familiar with it or don't like it, you may want to think twice.)
Owen excels at atmosphere, from that of the manor house -- damp and crumbling around the edges -- in Yorkshire where Charlotte and James Norbury grow up -- to the foggy streets of London where James briefly finds happiness before misfortune strikes -- and where Charlotte struggles to win some part of him back with the help of some unconventional allies. Perhaps she throws in too many different voices -- the reader lurches from reading about James's London adventures to the journal of "Dr. Knife" and on to the various experiences of Adeline Swift (vampire hunter extraordinaire), Liza (kid vampire) and then, more extensively, Charlotte. But each felt distinctive to me, and significant in providing a well-rounded view of Owen's carefully conceived and delicately presented alternative universe.
I'm frankly amazed that an author this young has such a strong voice and a commanding sense of narrative structure and pacing. Macabre? Absolutely. And Owen hasn't won me over when it comes to reading vampire novels. But she has made it a sure thing that I'll be reading whatever she chooses to write next. An impressive debut, falling right in the sweet spot: popular fiction that offers writing, character development and plot development that is way, WAY above average for its genre.
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yore -- featuring vampires. That's hardly a spoiler, given the reviews that have been written, and the fact that the big reveal comes in the first 100 pages. So, what's happening here?
What I dislike is the new breed of fiction feature Abraham Lincoln and Jane Eyre as either vampires or vampire-hunters or other mythical critters; equally, the romanticized "Twilight" love at first bite stuff. I'm not a big reader of horror fiction, generally, and tend to recoil from the macabre. Happily, that's not what is happening here.
Rather, what won me over and won this novel one of a tiny handful of five star labels I'll dole out this year is the fact that Lauren Owen demonstrated the ability to keep my attention with superb plotting and excellent writing -- along with an ability to keep me teetering on the edge of my chair, suspense-wise. All of that kept me reading a novel that is 80% devoted to vampires in Victorian London. And that will tell you just how good I thought this novel was.
Is it for everyone? Probably not. Those who adore conventional gothic tales may not like Owen's approach, which includes a cross-dressing one-time tightrope-walking star turned vampire hunter, and the journals of "Dr. Knife", former tutor to one of the members of the Aegolius Club, composed of men with unusual tastes in claret and who keep their window shades firmly drawn. And those in quest of a rollicking modern tale, or a "Twilight" style romance, will be dismayed to find a serious work of fiction, bearing a blurb by no less a figure than Hilary Mantel. (Mantel isn't an indiscriminate blurber, and this one, I think was deserved.) (And it's worth heeding the blurbers on this: if you've not read their work and aren't familiar with it or don't like it, you may want to think twice.)
Owen excels at atmosphere, from that of the manor house -- damp and crumbling around the edges -- in Yorkshire where Charlotte and James Norbury grow up -- to the foggy streets of London where James briefly finds happiness before misfortune strikes -- and where Charlotte struggles to win some part of him back with the help of some unconventional allies. Perhaps she throws in too many different voices -- the reader lurches from reading about James's London adventures to the journal of "Dr. Knife" and on to the various experiences of Adeline Swift (vampire hunter extraordinaire), Liza (kid vampire) and then, more extensively, Charlotte. But each felt distinctive to me, and significant in providing a well-rounded view of Owen's carefully conceived and delicately presented alternative universe.
I'm frankly amazed that an author this young has such a strong voice and a commanding sense of narrative structure and pacing. Macabre? Absolutely. And Owen hasn't won me over when it comes to reading vampire novels. But she has made it a sure thing that I'll be reading whatever she chooses to write next. An impressive debut, falling right in the sweet spot: popular fiction that offers writing, character development and plot development that is way, WAY above average for its genre.
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LibraryThing member Cariola
I had to stop reading my current book, 'The Quick' by Lauren Owen. I received an ARC from one of my online book groups. It sounded like a good, literary Victorian mystery, and the cover blurbs by Hilary Mantel and others made it sound like something new and brilliant.
I don't usually give spoilers,
In fairness, since I only could manage about 1/3 of the book, and it's just not my cup of tea, I won't give it a rating.
I don't usually give spoilers,
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but I feel that other readers need to be forewarned. Last night I reached the point where the promised big "secret" or "twist" was revealed. My reaction: "Oh, crap, it's another dang vampire novel!" I read on for another 25 pages or so, but, seeing as how I have a huge TBR stack with many good books that are calling my name, and 300+ pages to go in this one, I'm done with it.In fairness, since I only could manage about 1/3 of the book, and it's just not my cup of tea, I won't give it a rating.
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LibraryThing member fyrefly98
Summary: After finishing at Oxford, young James Norbury heads to London. He takes rooms with Christopher, a outgoing young aristocrat who begins to draw the shy James out of his shell. He tells all of this - well, not all of it - in letters home to his sister Charlotte. When those letters stop, and
Review: I'm being cagey in my summary, taking a cue from the back cover and a lot of the promotional copy about this book, which treat the "reveal" of what the book is really about (which happens on roughly page 100 out of 500+) as being a huge shocking secret. But on reflection, I think me being cagey is dumb, because I think the publishers being cagey is dumb. Because in my case, all of my expectations about what the book was going to be about were wrong, and I was instantly disappointed by what it actually was about. So skip the next paragraph if you are rabidly anti-spoiler, I guess, although I still think it's kind of silly to call the main plot device of a book - one that shows up less than 20% of the way in - a spoiler.
So, okay: The title is The Quick. The immediate association is "…and The Dead", right? Combined with all of the descriptions of this book as being atmospheric and gothic and Victorian London-y, and given the feeling of the cover, I was really expecting - and hoping - that it would be ghosts. So when I got to page 102, where James gets attacked my a mysterious and fast-moving stranger who goes straight for his neck, I actually said - out loud! - "Ah, crap, it's vampires." Not that I have any problems with vampire stories, mind you. But I've read a lot of them, and I'd really been hoping for ghosts. (I also only just now realized that the cover is supposed to look like it's stained with blood, which might have clued me in. I'd been taking that for a curtain.)
But the pointless secrecy around the main plot element, and the mistaken expectations weren't my biggest issues with this book. My biggest problem was that after the big reveal, when the story shifted from James's point of view to Charlotte's (and others'), it got really dry, and surprisingly lifeless, given how macabre and suspenseful the material should have been. And it's not because Owen can't write. Clearly she can - the first 100 pages are really, really good. We get to know - and like - James and Christopher, get to become part of their world, and that world is really lushly described… without taking focus away from the characters. The plot moves along nicely - it's not the Plot yet, but stuff is happening - and there are some interesting twists along the way. If the rest of the book had continued in that vein, I would have been a happy camper indeed.
("In that vein", geddit? Because of the vampires?)
But after that main turning point, the book's tone changes completely, and even though we spend much of the rest of the book with Charlotte - much more time than we spend with James - I never felt like I got to know her, or particularly care about her. I had the same problem with basically all of the secondary characters - particularly Adeline and Shadwell, Charlotte's allies. Not that they were two-dimensional, exactly, but that the story would never get close enough to let us see the other dimensions they had. There were hints that there were interesting characters there, but we were kept at such a distance that they just seemed to flatten out. The plot suffered much the same problem - things happened, things that should have been horrifying or thrilling or sad or gruesome or exciting just felt flat, as if all the life had been drained out of them.
(Sorry. Sorry! I just can't help myself!)
Overall, while I didn't love it, I also didn't hate it. The first part was really good, and there were some individual really good scenes sprinkled throughout the rest. The writing is also undeniably atmospheric, and evocative of the foggy streets of Victorian London with its street urchins and carriages and secret clubs. Owen also has some interesting ideas about The Plot Device We're Not Supposed To Mention that were fun to mull over. But overall, after the first section, this book just failed to grab me the way that it should have. 3 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: You might get along with Owen's style and characterization better than I did, so if this sort of thing is your cup of tea, then it's potentially worth a try. But personally, I think there are other books out there that attempt similar things, and accomplish them in a more engaging way.
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her own inquiries go unanswered, Charlotte herself heads to London to discover what has happened to her brother. But in order to get the answers she wants, she has to brave not only the unfamiliar streets of London, but also the dangerous - and mysterious - men of the Aegolius Club. She finds some unlikely allies, but the one thing she wants - to have her brother back - may be the one thing that's beyond her reach.Review: I'm being cagey in my summary, taking a cue from the back cover and a lot of the promotional copy about this book, which treat the "reveal" of what the book is really about (which happens on roughly page 100 out of 500+) as being a huge shocking secret. But on reflection, I think me being cagey is dumb, because I think the publishers being cagey is dumb. Because in my case, all of my expectations about what the book was going to be about were wrong, and I was instantly disappointed by what it actually was about. So skip the next paragraph if you are rabidly anti-spoiler, I guess, although I still think it's kind of silly to call the main plot device of a book - one that shows up less than 20% of the way in - a spoiler.
So, okay: The title is The Quick. The immediate association is "…and The Dead", right? Combined with all of the descriptions of this book as being atmospheric and gothic and Victorian London-y, and given the feeling of the cover, I was really expecting - and hoping - that it would be ghosts. So when I got to page 102, where James gets attacked my a mysterious and fast-moving stranger who goes straight for his neck, I actually said - out loud! - "Ah, crap, it's vampires." Not that I have any problems with vampire stories, mind you. But I've read a lot of them, and I'd really been hoping for ghosts. (I also only just now realized that the cover is supposed to look like it's stained with blood, which might have clued me in. I'd been taking that for a curtain.)
But the pointless secrecy around the main plot element, and the mistaken expectations weren't my biggest issues with this book. My biggest problem was that after the big reveal, when the story shifted from James's point of view to Charlotte's (and others'), it got really dry, and surprisingly lifeless, given how macabre and suspenseful the material should have been. And it's not because Owen can't write. Clearly she can - the first 100 pages are really, really good. We get to know - and like - James and Christopher, get to become part of their world, and that world is really lushly described… without taking focus away from the characters. The plot moves along nicely - it's not the Plot yet, but stuff is happening - and there are some interesting twists along the way. If the rest of the book had continued in that vein, I would have been a happy camper indeed.
("In that vein", geddit? Because of the vampires?)
But after that main turning point, the book's tone changes completely, and even though we spend much of the rest of the book with Charlotte - much more time than we spend with James - I never felt like I got to know her, or particularly care about her. I had the same problem with basically all of the secondary characters - particularly Adeline and Shadwell, Charlotte's allies. Not that they were two-dimensional, exactly, but that the story would never get close enough to let us see the other dimensions they had. There were hints that there were interesting characters there, but we were kept at such a distance that they just seemed to flatten out. The plot suffered much the same problem - things happened, things that should have been horrifying or thrilling or sad or gruesome or exciting just felt flat, as if all the life had been drained out of them.
(Sorry. Sorry! I just can't help myself!)
Overall, while I didn't love it, I also didn't hate it. The first part was really good, and there were some individual really good scenes sprinkled throughout the rest. The writing is also undeniably atmospheric, and evocative of the foggy streets of Victorian London with its street urchins and carriages and secret clubs. Owen also has some interesting ideas about The Plot Device We're Not Supposed To Mention that were fun to mull over. But overall, after the first section, this book just failed to grab me the way that it should have. 3 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: You might get along with Owen's style and characterization better than I did, so if this sort of thing is your cup of tea, then it's potentially worth a try. But personally, I think there are other books out there that attempt similar things, and accomplish them in a more engaging way.
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LibraryThing member lkernagh
I don't usually read vampire books but I have to say Owen has crafted a very sophisticated Gothic horror, with more focus on the Gothic and just enough strategically placed moments of horror to entrance me and not turn me off. The atmosphere of the story is strong without being overpowering and I
It took me two weeks to read this one, which I am chalking up to being a case of "right book, wrong time" syndrome readers experience from time to time. Random House lists this one as a story that may appeal to readers of The Historian and The Night Circus. I loved both of those stories and I will agree with that assessment: If you liked either or both of those stories, you might want to give The Quick a read.
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loved how the word 'vampire' rarely gets mentioned in the story. The characterization is wonderful and the plot really starts to get going after Charlotte arrives in London looking for her brother James. The slow build of the first 100 pages of the story - before it suddenly takes a sharp right-hand turn and decidedly parks the reader in a completely different London, a London of the Aegolius club and the Alia - is beautifully drawn. Part Two was a bit of a slog for me as it focuses on the notebook entries of a new character but I can see how essential that part is for the remainder of the story to come, which are the really good bits, IMO. Owen then gives the story a steady pace that speeds towards a fast rising crescendo where she leaves the reader, before gently settling down once again. For me, it is the sublimely written last chapter that really pushed my rating up for this book. Without that last chapter, I was leaning towards a 3.85 out of 5. It took me two weeks to read this one, which I am chalking up to being a case of "right book, wrong time" syndrome readers experience from time to time. Random House lists this one as a story that may appeal to readers of The Historian and The Night Circus. I loved both of those stories and I will agree with that assessment: If you liked either or both of those stories, you might want to give The Quick a read.
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LibraryThing member Smiler69
Read for: NetGalley ARC
Edition: McClelland & Stewart (2014), Kindle Edition, 544 pages
Projected publication date: June 2014
"There were owls in the nursery when James was a boy. The room was papered in a pattern of winding branches, amongst which great green parent owls perched in identical courting
Yorkshire, England, late 19th century. James Norbury and his beloved older sister Charlotte have spent their early years mostly left to their own devices at Aiskew Hall. Their father had left them shortly after their mother's death and is constantly away on business, and they have been left vaguely under the care of Mrs Rowley the housekeeper; various governesses have come and gone, never staying for long, and it is left to Charlotte to teach James his letters. She is a very good teacher, and soon, by the age of six, James has taken to writing short stories and rhymes, which aren't very good, though Charlotte encourages him by telling him he might write a whole book when he is grown up and living in a house in London. Then one day their father finally does comes home, but he is gravely ill and hidden away from them in his room under the care of a doctor, only to die a day or two following his arrival, after a brief interview with Charlotte, though he is too weakened to speak by that point. During that incident, James is hidden away in a secret cupboard, which Charlotte hasn't been able to release him from on time so both could attend to their father, as they were interrupted in a game which they must keep the adults from knowing about, involving special "ordeals" to prove their bravery to one another. On their father's death, the children are left in the care of their old aunt Mrs Chickering, with Charlotte attending to the old lady and James going off to school Years later, when he is about to finish his studies at Oxford, James decides he must live in London: “Thanks to a small legacy received some years ago, James had enough to live in relative comfort, without the need of pursuing a profession. Charlotte was sufficiently provided for. So he might still write, if he wanted. And he could live in London, where a writer ought to live and where things would happen. He would be a flâneur, wandering the streets, seeing everything, observed by none. That evening he wrote in his memorandum book, Life with a capital must be lived in the Capital, and was pleased with the sentiment.”
But he soon finds that his relatively modest means can't afford him a decent living space, so that when an old school friend puts him in touch of another Oxford acquaintance, a young aristocrat named Christopher Paige, who is looking for someone to share rooms with in an elegantly appointed house, James jumps on the chance. The house is of the most genteel sort, near the National History Museum and belonging to a Mrs Morris, a lady of 'reduced circumstances'. James has apprehensions about the handsome Paige, whom he knows to be a dissipated young man, always out on the town getting spectacularly drunk with his friends and bedding all the pretty women he can get his hands on. Nonetheless, they rent the rooms together and make a sort of odd couple, with James a hermit who stays in his rooms to work away at his epic romantic poetry, while Paige gets up to no good on a nightly basis. And then something happens between the two young men, a relationship James had certainly never envisaged, but which quickly consumes him. Christopher's older brother figures out things are amiss and warns James off, and the pair plans to get away together overseas, only a violent attack changes everything, and James will never be the same again.
There is a very ancient private club called The Aegolius (denoting a species of small owls), which we find out about from the very first page of the book, in what appears to be a newspaper clipping titled “From Clubs of London, by Major Samuel Hobbs (London, 1890)” which I paraphrase from; this club reportedly bears the dubious distinction of being the most mysterious club of London, with the Aegolius's character and affairs kept a profound secret, known only to its initiates. There are records of the club dating from 1705, though it is likely the club had been active many years previously. Unlike most clubs, there is no gambling or consumption of alcohol allowed on the premises, and it is not known for any political, literary or artistic activities or affiliations. Furthermore, there can only be up to fifty-two members at any one time, and becoming a member is exceedingly expensive and difficult (the Prince of Wales was notoriously turned down in 1785), and needless to say, no visitors are allowed. This club and a number of its members are at the heart of the narrative. What the connection with James can be is only revealed further on in the story, when James's sister Charlotte, fearing something is amiss when she sends him telegrams that go unanswered, makes her way from Yorkshire to London to find James, and falls in with a pair of vigilantes composed of a middle-aged lapsed priest and a former rope walker; a beautiful young woman who often wears men's garb, smokes like a chimney and can fight like a fiend. These skills, it seems, are necessary to perform their daily activities.
The novel is steeped in the macabre gothic horror tradition, which isn't too surprising when we find out that Lauren Owen's first attempts at writing as a teenager were Harry Potter fan-fiction, that she is a graduate of St Hilda's, Oxford with an MA in Victorian Literature, and completing a PhD on Gothic writing and fan culture. She's obviously done the right sort of reading and mental processing, because what she delivers here is a tour de force which is almost unbelievable for a first novel: a highly satisfying read, which borrows from some of the best literary influences of the Victorian age, weaving in intimations of famous crimes of the day, such as the unsolved murders of Jack the Ripper, and including a cameo of Oscar Wilde, who certainly has his place among the many influences at play in the story. All this in a complex, multi-layered narrative which nonetheless reads like the best sort of unputdownable mystery fiction, in a world of Dickensian proportions and characters, yet with a modern approach which, unlike the sort of fiction it borrows from, doesn't shy away from describing the violence and horror in full, while at the same time clearly keeping in line with works of great literary merit. A must read? Like Hilary Mantel, Kate Atkinson, Tana French, and many others, I must say I certainly think so. I'll also be eager to read what Lauren Owen comes up with next.
Edition: McClelland & Stewart (2014), Kindle Edition, 544 pages
Projected publication date: June 2014
"There were owls in the nursery when James was a boy. The room was papered in a pattern of winding branches, amongst which great green parent owls perched in identical courting
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couples. Beneath each pair, a trio of green owlets huddled, their sharp beaks slightly ajar. They sat between big, whistling green flowers with tiny white blossoms which made James think of mother-of-pearl buttons, the kind on Charlotte's Sunday dress. When he was alone in the nursery, James thought he could hear the owls chatter together softly, like monkeys, scratching and scratching their claws against the endless green branches. But when Charlotte was there, they were quiet, because she had told them that if they did not behave, she would get her box of watercolours and paint out their eyes."Yorkshire, England, late 19th century. James Norbury and his beloved older sister Charlotte have spent their early years mostly left to their own devices at Aiskew Hall. Their father had left them shortly after their mother's death and is constantly away on business, and they have been left vaguely under the care of Mrs Rowley the housekeeper; various governesses have come and gone, never staying for long, and it is left to Charlotte to teach James his letters. She is a very good teacher, and soon, by the age of six, James has taken to writing short stories and rhymes, which aren't very good, though Charlotte encourages him by telling him he might write a whole book when he is grown up and living in a house in London. Then one day their father finally does comes home, but he is gravely ill and hidden away from them in his room under the care of a doctor, only to die a day or two following his arrival, after a brief interview with Charlotte, though he is too weakened to speak by that point. During that incident, James is hidden away in a secret cupboard, which Charlotte hasn't been able to release him from on time so both could attend to their father, as they were interrupted in a game which they must keep the adults from knowing about, involving special "ordeals" to prove their bravery to one another. On their father's death, the children are left in the care of their old aunt Mrs Chickering, with Charlotte attending to the old lady and James going off to school Years later, when he is about to finish his studies at Oxford, James decides he must live in London: “Thanks to a small legacy received some years ago, James had enough to live in relative comfort, without the need of pursuing a profession. Charlotte was sufficiently provided for. So he might still write, if he wanted. And he could live in London, where a writer ought to live and where things would happen. He would be a flâneur, wandering the streets, seeing everything, observed by none. That evening he wrote in his memorandum book, Life with a capital must be lived in the Capital, and was pleased with the sentiment.”
But he soon finds that his relatively modest means can't afford him a decent living space, so that when an old school friend puts him in touch of another Oxford acquaintance, a young aristocrat named Christopher Paige, who is looking for someone to share rooms with in an elegantly appointed house, James jumps on the chance. The house is of the most genteel sort, near the National History Museum and belonging to a Mrs Morris, a lady of 'reduced circumstances'. James has apprehensions about the handsome Paige, whom he knows to be a dissipated young man, always out on the town getting spectacularly drunk with his friends and bedding all the pretty women he can get his hands on. Nonetheless, they rent the rooms together and make a sort of odd couple, with James a hermit who stays in his rooms to work away at his epic romantic poetry, while Paige gets up to no good on a nightly basis. And then something happens between the two young men, a relationship James had certainly never envisaged, but which quickly consumes him. Christopher's older brother figures out things are amiss and warns James off, and the pair plans to get away together overseas, only a violent attack changes everything, and James will never be the same again.
There is a very ancient private club called The Aegolius (denoting a species of small owls), which we find out about from the very first page of the book, in what appears to be a newspaper clipping titled “From Clubs of London, by Major Samuel Hobbs (London, 1890)” which I paraphrase from; this club reportedly bears the dubious distinction of being the most mysterious club of London, with the Aegolius's character and affairs kept a profound secret, known only to its initiates. There are records of the club dating from 1705, though it is likely the club had been active many years previously. Unlike most clubs, there is no gambling or consumption of alcohol allowed on the premises, and it is not known for any political, literary or artistic activities or affiliations. Furthermore, there can only be up to fifty-two members at any one time, and becoming a member is exceedingly expensive and difficult (the Prince of Wales was notoriously turned down in 1785), and needless to say, no visitors are allowed. This club and a number of its members are at the heart of the narrative. What the connection with James can be is only revealed further on in the story, when James's sister Charlotte, fearing something is amiss when she sends him telegrams that go unanswered, makes her way from Yorkshire to London to find James, and falls in with a pair of vigilantes composed of a middle-aged lapsed priest and a former rope walker; a beautiful young woman who often wears men's garb, smokes like a chimney and can fight like a fiend. These skills, it seems, are necessary to perform their daily activities.
The novel is steeped in the macabre gothic horror tradition, which isn't too surprising when we find out that Lauren Owen's first attempts at writing as a teenager were Harry Potter fan-fiction, that she is a graduate of St Hilda's, Oxford with an MA in Victorian Literature, and completing a PhD on Gothic writing and fan culture. She's obviously done the right sort of reading and mental processing, because what she delivers here is a tour de force which is almost unbelievable for a first novel: a highly satisfying read, which borrows from some of the best literary influences of the Victorian age, weaving in intimations of famous crimes of the day, such as the unsolved murders of Jack the Ripper, and including a cameo of Oscar Wilde, who certainly has his place among the many influences at play in the story. All this in a complex, multi-layered narrative which nonetheless reads like the best sort of unputdownable mystery fiction, in a world of Dickensian proportions and characters, yet with a modern approach which, unlike the sort of fiction it borrows from, doesn't shy away from describing the violence and horror in full, while at the same time clearly keeping in line with works of great literary merit. A must read? Like Hilary Mantel, Kate Atkinson, Tana French, and many others, I must say I certainly think so. I'll also be eager to read what Lauren Owen comes up with next.
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LibraryThing member JaneSteen
Where I got the book: ARC from the LibraryThing Early Reviewer program.
Alas, I am underwhelmed. I guess my expectations were raised to boiling point by the prodigious hype splashed around the ARC's cover pages. "The Quick will establish her as one of fiction's most dazzling talents...consummate
And it has been widely splashed around review sites that SOMETHING REALLY BIG happens but we mustn't give it away, shhhhh shhhh shhhhhh that would be spoilerish. So I won't. And yeah, a certain number of pages in, the story veers sharply to the left with only two wheels on the pavement and becomes not at all what the first certain number of pages would lead you to believe. But after I got over the WTF moment, which took about two minutes, I was disappointed because seriously, we're going THERE? AGAIN? I kind of wanted the original story back.
And then there were about 400 pages of slightly disjointed, rather trite goings-on in the well-hashed-over realm of NOPE NOPE NOPE CAN'T TELL YOU well let's just call it gothic. Nice clear writing, good at times but descending into caricature when we get to the lowlifes of London, nothing that made me soar joyfully or gnash my teeth in despair. A couple of images that may haunt me, I grant you, and the story could make good TV or movie fodder because Owen is hitting a vein of imagery that's doing rather well at the moment.
Near the end the story regains the pathos and bittersweet anguish of its beginning, but even there I feel that Owen misses a huge opportunity to cash in on a particularly painful moment in the brother-sister relationship. My overall rating is around 3.2 stars - it deserves a solid 4 for the writing, but loses points for its rather loose and saggy middle. A good debut but disappointing in relation to what I expected from it.
Alas, I am underwhelmed. I guess my expectations were raised to boiling point by the prodigious hype splashed around the ARC's cover pages. "The Quick will establish her as one of fiction's most dazzling talents...consummate
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storytelling and suspense...I am in love with Lauren Owen's first novel..." and so on. Imeantersay, all this from Random House? I'm expecting Dickens, David Foster Wallace and Edgar Allan Poe all rolled into one here.And it has been widely splashed around review sites that SOMETHING REALLY BIG happens but we mustn't give it away, shhhhh shhhh shhhhhh that would be spoilerish. So I won't. And yeah, a certain number of pages in, the story veers sharply to the left with only two wheels on the pavement and becomes not at all what the first certain number of pages would lead you to believe. But after I got over the WTF moment, which took about two minutes, I was disappointed because seriously, we're going THERE? AGAIN? I kind of wanted the original story back.
And then there were about 400 pages of slightly disjointed, rather trite goings-on in the well-hashed-over realm of NOPE NOPE NOPE CAN'T TELL YOU well let's just call it gothic. Nice clear writing, good at times but descending into caricature when we get to the lowlifes of London, nothing that made me soar joyfully or gnash my teeth in despair. A couple of images that may haunt me, I grant you, and the story could make good TV or movie fodder because Owen is hitting a vein of imagery that's doing rather well at the moment.
Near the end the story regains the pathos and bittersweet anguish of its beginning, but even there I feel that Owen misses a huge opportunity to cash in on a particularly painful moment in the brother-sister relationship. My overall rating is around 3.2 stars - it deserves a solid 4 for the writing, but loses points for its rather loose and saggy middle. A good debut but disappointing in relation to what I expected from it.
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LibraryThing member LoveAtFirstBook
I received this book from TLC Book Tours in exchange for a fair and honest review.
The Quick via Love at First Book
Oh, The Quick by Lauren Owen, how you took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. This chunkster of over 500 pages definitely has more to it than meets the eye. James Norbury finds
James’s sister Charlotte travels to London to find out what happened to James, and gets wrapped up into a dangerous exploit.
While The Quick was very interesting and definitely unique and surprising, I was let down by the ending. The last 50 pages or so dragged for me, and I was underwhelmed at the end.
Also, Lauren Owen sometimes called her characters by their last names and then other times by their first. This was confusing, because some of the characters were brothers (so they had the same last name) and I wasn’t sure who she meant some of the times. Othertimes, the character had been only called by the last name, and all of a sudden was referred to by his first name. I had no idea who that person was, until I went back to figure it out.
But there are some great things about this book: It’s Lauren Owen’s debut, and it is really an addicting read. The Quick grabbed me, even when the topic veered to one that I’m not usually interested in.
While this book is not my favorite, I know one of the main reasons why. If you enjoy reading about 1800s fiction with a dark fantasy twist, this book would be one to pick up.
The Quick via Love at First Book
Oh, The Quick by Lauren Owen, how you took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. This chunkster of over 500 pages definitely has more to it than meets the eye. James Norbury finds
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love in an unexpected place, and then vanishes. . . only to turn up. . . well. . . different.James’s sister Charlotte travels to London to find out what happened to James, and gets wrapped up into a dangerous exploit.
While The Quick was very interesting and definitely unique and surprising, I was let down by the ending. The last 50 pages or so dragged for me, and I was underwhelmed at the end.
Also, Lauren Owen sometimes called her characters by their last names and then other times by their first. This was confusing, because some of the characters were brothers (so they had the same last name) and I wasn’t sure who she meant some of the times. Othertimes, the character had been only called by the last name, and all of a sudden was referred to by his first name. I had no idea who that person was, until I went back to figure it out.
But there are some great things about this book: It’s Lauren Owen’s debut, and it is really an addicting read. The Quick grabbed me, even when the topic veered to one that I’m not usually interested in.
While this book is not my favorite, I know one of the main reasons why. If you enjoy reading about 1800s fiction with a dark fantasy twist, this book would be one to pick up.
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LibraryThing member craso
A young man moves to London to become a writer. He rooms with another young man and his life changes for the better but then tragedy strikes. There is a little known world of vampires in London and they are in the midst of a power struggle.
Part one of this book is a wonderful gothic novel. If the
I enjoy vampire novels and this is the reason why I requested the book from Early Reviewer. The vampire story is not the problem with this book. The problem is too many characters and plot threads. A character and plotline will be introduced and then forgotten for a while and then brought back to try to tie up loose ends before the end. Guess what, not all the loose ends are tied up which leads me to believe there will be a sequel or maybe the author wanted to leave the reader guessing.
Parts of this novel are very well written with great character development, good imagery, and a quick pace. The rest of the book is a slog to get through and needed some serious editing. This is the first book from this author and I wish her all the best on her next try. I can only recommend this book to those who don’t mind a long read with uneven pacing.
Part one of this book is a wonderful gothic novel. If the
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author had stuck to the story of James, the young author, and Christopher, his roommate, this would have been a better book. At this point in the novel James is a well-defined three dimensional character. After part one the author adds so many more characters, and of course we have to learn the back ground story for each character, that the narrative gets bogged down until near the end where it picks up speed and then ends with a thud. I enjoy vampire novels and this is the reason why I requested the book from Early Reviewer. The vampire story is not the problem with this book. The problem is too many characters and plot threads. A character and plotline will be introduced and then forgotten for a while and then brought back to try to tie up loose ends before the end. Guess what, not all the loose ends are tied up which leads me to believe there will be a sequel or maybe the author wanted to leave the reader guessing.
Parts of this novel are very well written with great character development, good imagery, and a quick pace. The rest of the book is a slog to get through and needed some serious editing. This is the first book from this author and I wish her all the best on her next try. I can only recommend this book to those who don’t mind a long read with uneven pacing.
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LibraryThing member BooksCooksLooks
I will start by writing that I felt betrayed by the synopsis. I choose my books based on the back of the book - OK sometimes I'm seduced by a cover - and when I get a story that is so far afield from what I glean from reading that little snippet I get peeved. That is no way to try and enjoy a book
I don't want to give any spoilers as I did not read any reviews prior to reading this and while I know you are here reading mine I don't want to perhaps ruin what the author was trying to maintain. So I'll try and review the book without telling any tales.
Charlotte and James Norbury grow up basically parentless at the family home - a mansion in need of much repair - but they are mostly happy in each other's company. When their father dies their Aunt comes in and sends James off to school in London to follow in his father's footsteps. Charlotte is stuck living with the Aunt, caring for her as she slowly sickens and dies. When James doesn't respond to her message about the death Charlotte becomes worried.
Meanwhile James has enough means to have graduated school and set himself up as a "poet." He finds a roommate and they become very good friends. In a time when very good male friendships were not celebrated. Due to family pressures they decide to run off but on the eve of their departure all hell breaks loose and this is the event that precipitates Charlotte's need to come to London.
Any much more and I'll blow the story for you. As to the writing? Once I got over my annoyance at the theme I did find it well written enough to finish and the characters compelling enough to feel some investment in their lives. Mostly Charlotte, the man who becomes her husband and the two people who help them most in their search for James. The bad guys were suitably bad and several of them made my skin crawl.
All in all for a book that turned out to be not what I wanted it to be and in a genre I prefer not to read it was good. BUT, had I known what it was at the start I would not have read it and I would not have missed it.
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now, is it? The story progressed pretty much as the synopsis indicated but not in the realm of...let's call it my reality.I don't want to give any spoilers as I did not read any reviews prior to reading this and while I know you are here reading mine I don't want to perhaps ruin what the author was trying to maintain. So I'll try and review the book without telling any tales.
Charlotte and James Norbury grow up basically parentless at the family home - a mansion in need of much repair - but they are mostly happy in each other's company. When their father dies their Aunt comes in and sends James off to school in London to follow in his father's footsteps. Charlotte is stuck living with the Aunt, caring for her as she slowly sickens and dies. When James doesn't respond to her message about the death Charlotte becomes worried.
Meanwhile James has enough means to have graduated school and set himself up as a "poet." He finds a roommate and they become very good friends. In a time when very good male friendships were not celebrated. Due to family pressures they decide to run off but on the eve of their departure all hell breaks loose and this is the event that precipitates Charlotte's need to come to London.
Any much more and I'll blow the story for you. As to the writing? Once I got over my annoyance at the theme I did find it well written enough to finish and the characters compelling enough to feel some investment in their lives. Mostly Charlotte, the man who becomes her husband and the two people who help them most in their search for James. The bad guys were suitably bad and several of them made my skin crawl.
All in all for a book that turned out to be not what I wanted it to be and in a genre I prefer not to read it was good. BUT, had I known what it was at the start I would not have read it and I would not have missed it.
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LibraryThing member arielfl
I requested this thinking it was going to be like Donna Tartt's The Secret History. If Vampires had been mentioned anywhere in the description I would have passed. I don't have anything against vampire stories, they have just been to done death (literally). I think Stoker's Manuscript was the one
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that burned me out of the Victorian vampire genre. As far as this book goes, I was invested in the story for the first 100 pages but then I kind of lost interest. I did finish it though and it wasn't that I didn't like the story it was just that it brought nothing new to the table. One thing I really didn't enjoy was the multiple points of view. If you have ever read game of Thrones you know what I mean. Every time the narrator changed I had to regain my footing to get back into the story. It became difficult to connect with the characters. It got to the point that when two major characters met their fate in what should have been a gut wrenching plot point I didn't really give a fig. The book was enjoyable enough while I was reading it but not very memorable. Also about 100 pages could have been edited out to make a tighter story. Show Less
LibraryThing member Liz1564
This review contains spoilers for the first part of the book.
There are two classes of vampires who live in 1892 London. The elite class of aristocrats, politicians, millionaires and intellectuals are members of the Aegolius Club and maintain "high" standards. They feed only on criminals and those
Lauren Owen has written a book closer to Bram Stoker than to Stephanie Meyer. Her vampires are not sexy or particularly soulful. They are dangerous and not to be trifled with. She even creates a character "Doctor Knife" who is hired by the Aegolius Club to examine and debunk the popular myths about vampires: a wooden stake is really harmless, but silver can render a vampire powerless; vampires can be out in the sun but their sensitive vision makes them almost blind; vampires can read the minds of the quick; vampire cannot turn into wolves, fog or bats. And, most important, no one can become undead without his specific permission and going though a ceremony called "The Exchange."
Or so it has always been believed. James Norburg is attacked by one of the younger and more freckless members of the Aegolius Club. He is killed and becomes a vampire without his consent, an unheard of occurrence. When the Aegolius Club holds him prisoner so that Dr Knife can try to discover why this happened, his sister leaves Yorkshire to begin a hunt for her missing brother. Charlotte Norburg is determined to rescue and cure James when she discovers his fate and this brings her in dangerous contact with the undead of the Club and the "undid" of Shoreditch.
I enjoyed the novel as an interesting addition to vampire fiction which restores the literary vampire to his status as a dangerous being. No normal character would want to become one of Owen's vampires.
There are two classes of vampires who live in 1892 London. The elite class of aristocrats, politicians, millionaires and intellectuals are members of the Aegolius Club and maintain "high" standards. They feed only on criminals and those
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who endanger the "quick" (anyone not a vampire) and they never kill without permission unless something goes radically wrong. Or so they claim. The other class live in Shoreditch and are headed by a Fagin-like character who gathers child vampires to her and keeps some semblance of order in her territory. These vampires have no qualms about killing and are careful only to not attract attention. Most Londoners are unaware of their undead fellow citizens.Lauren Owen has written a book closer to Bram Stoker than to Stephanie Meyer. Her vampires are not sexy or particularly soulful. They are dangerous and not to be trifled with. She even creates a character "Doctor Knife" who is hired by the Aegolius Club to examine and debunk the popular myths about vampires: a wooden stake is really harmless, but silver can render a vampire powerless; vampires can be out in the sun but their sensitive vision makes them almost blind; vampires can read the minds of the quick; vampire cannot turn into wolves, fog or bats. And, most important, no one can become undead without his specific permission and going though a ceremony called "The Exchange."
Or so it has always been believed. James Norburg is attacked by one of the younger and more freckless members of the Aegolius Club. He is killed and becomes a vampire without his consent, an unheard of occurrence. When the Aegolius Club holds him prisoner so that Dr Knife can try to discover why this happened, his sister leaves Yorkshire to begin a hunt for her missing brother. Charlotte Norburg is determined to rescue and cure James when she discovers his fate and this brings her in dangerous contact with the undead of the Club and the "undid" of Shoreditch.
I enjoyed the novel as an interesting addition to vampire fiction which restores the literary vampire to his status as a dangerous being. No normal character would want to become one of Owen's vampires.
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LibraryThing member erikschreppel
Lauren Owen's debut novel The Quick is a good take on Vampires and a lively read. The time period she writes in is well thought out and feels honest. The book has a nice gothic theme and does remind me of the old Hammer films of 1960's England with the period tales of the undead. What keeps this
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book from being better than simply a good read, is that it needs editing. There are several sections that could have been much shorter, or not really needed at all. And the ending mostly fizzles out. I think with tighter pacing, and a more concise ending this would be a better book. But a fun read none the less. Show Less
LibraryThing member randalrh
One of the things I found really interesting about this novel is how many pages it took for not that much to happen. That is surely a criticism of some sort, but not solely a criticism. It's partly due to the author simultaneously evoking a particular setting and building a detailed subculture (two
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of them, actually) within that setting and then also having, you know, events take place. All of that is done rather well, but it takes up a lot of pages. Or maybe I got the large print edition by mistake. In any case, if you like your place settings with multiple forks, you'll probably appreciate this book a lot. Others probably won't get through the cheese course. Show Less
LibraryThing member mldavis2
I am at a disadvantage in reviewing this book since I have no background in vampire novels. Nonetheless, I found it well written and intriguing, and despite the length and a slow first section, the narrative moved along with adequate pace. How much of the descriptive detail and vampire lore is
This novel was received in e-book format from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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common to fans and how much is the creation of the author is unknown to me. On the whole, I would suggest that this novel might be both a good introduction to the genre as well as a fine addition to what is now a vast library of vampire lore.This novel was received in e-book format from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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LibraryThing member vcg610
The Quick, a Victorian novel a little on the Gothic side, features a brother and sister of Yorkshire, England growing up in the late 19th century. Their parents live comfortably on a small estate, but unfortunately die early enough in the lives of the children that Charlotte and James more or less
James' natural shyness keeps him from making many friends or much of a splash in the Oxford social life, but he decides to stay in London after graduating, hoping to become a poet. He runs across a casual Oxford acquaintance who is in a financial bind and needs someone to share the cost of rooms in a fairly nice part of town. Christopher Paige has all the charm and social skills that James lacks, but they seem to get along in spite of it. Eventually Christopher takes more of an interest in James, even trying to help him get a play he has written published.
In the meantime, Charlotte is taking care of things at home as best she can, and hears less and less frequently from James. When her aunt passes away she gathers her courage and decides to go looking for her brother. What she discovers is beyond her wildest imaginings, but her love and concern for him lead her down paths in some of the seediest and frightening parts of the city of London. James is in dire straits, no doubt about it, and some say he is beyond help. Her love overcomes her fear as she is called to come face to face with some of the most powerful bastions of evil in London. She is also blessed to encounter some powerful allies in her quest to save James, but will it be enough?
An involved and interesting story, scary and surprising plot twists, and a good ending, in my humble opinion. If you liked Dracula, you'll like this too...if that's not giving too much away...
NetGalley offered me an ebook of this title and I am glad to have the opportunity to review it.
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raise themselves under the loose oversight of hired caregivers. James gets the opportunity to attend Oxford but Charlotte stays behind to tend to their elderly aunt at the family estate. James' natural shyness keeps him from making many friends or much of a splash in the Oxford social life, but he decides to stay in London after graduating, hoping to become a poet. He runs across a casual Oxford acquaintance who is in a financial bind and needs someone to share the cost of rooms in a fairly nice part of town. Christopher Paige has all the charm and social skills that James lacks, but they seem to get along in spite of it. Eventually Christopher takes more of an interest in James, even trying to help him get a play he has written published.
In the meantime, Charlotte is taking care of things at home as best she can, and hears less and less frequently from James. When her aunt passes away she gathers her courage and decides to go looking for her brother. What she discovers is beyond her wildest imaginings, but her love and concern for him lead her down paths in some of the seediest and frightening parts of the city of London. James is in dire straits, no doubt about it, and some say he is beyond help. Her love overcomes her fear as she is called to come face to face with some of the most powerful bastions of evil in London. She is also blessed to encounter some powerful allies in her quest to save James, but will it be enough?
An involved and interesting story, scary and surprising plot twists, and a good ending, in my humble opinion. If you liked Dracula, you'll like this too...if that's not giving too much away...
NetGalley offered me an ebook of this title and I am glad to have the opportunity to review it.
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LibraryThing member Beorn_se_Bacaire
The Quick, by Lauren Owen .
A LibraryThing Early Reviewers review. I received this novel in return for an honest review and am writing it as I read. There are some spoilers below, but I try to avoid major ones.
The Quick could be considered Urban Gothic horror, though it is a good bit—about
The story starts off with a young wannabe poet moving from his country home to London, to see the sights and live the life. Even though it does not compare to Oscar Wilde’s work, The Picture of Dorian Grey, the first section of The Quick does remind me strongly of that classic novel (for more reasons than one—the first portion of The Quick takes place during Wilde’s time). This first section of the book is primarily building characters, setting them up.
Then, we are suddenly introduced to the members and secrets of the Aegolius Club—very suddenly, in fact; it’s a good thing I tend not to get truly sucked into the books I read. Part Two of The Quick takes place a number of years before, and up through, the events of Part One, so you learn something of the struggles taking place behind the grimy scenes of the London underground. Except, is it really the underground, if members of the upper crust are involved?
Part Three begins tying story lines together, as well as introducing more characters—some of them are even likeable. Halfway through the book, it is taking shape, with several potentially bloody agendas coming forth. Actually, I’m not sure if there is any chance of The Quick ending in any way other than the world painted sanguine.
I am not going to continue discussing each section, since the plot is now moving nicely. Suffice it to say that some action happens. This is not to say that the first portion or two of the book is actually slow paced—it is building up to a climax and giving some necessary back story., as it should. I found the true climax to be contained somewhere in the chapters in the mid-thirties, with much of the remainder of the novel feeling like an epilogue.
I feel that the author did indeed, succeed in writing a worthy addition to the Vampire genre (I did say this was a vampire book, right? No? Now you know). Her prose was smooth, and descriptions vivid—stimulating many of the senses; the characters human and flawed, some with multiple reasons for everything they do. When I first began the book, it was with a fairly open mind—my practice is to not read any other reviews of a Early Reviewers book until after I’ve finished reading—and it took me a while to get into it due to circumstances other than the quality of the writing. I picked it back up a few days ago, and have not really put it down since then—I wanted to know what was around the next corner, how it ended.
Sadly, I found the ending a bit…surprising, in a slightly disappointing way—I honestly expected a war between factions of the undead, but that was dropped without full resolution. I would not be surprised to find that there are plans for a sequel—if there is not, the cliffhangers may actually keep me wondering exactly what happened.
While I could not call The Quick a real page turner, the author does do a fair job of concealing how things are going to go (at least for me)…you cannot tell if the story will end happily (more or less) or with everybody dying horribly. I would give The Quick approximately Four stars, and would not hesitate to recommend it to those who enjoyed the earlier vampire novels of Anne Rice. As a debut novel, I do not think they come much better, much less managing to balance a tale which is driven by both thrilling suspense and silky prose.
A LibraryThing Early Reviewers review. I received this novel in return for an honest review and am writing it as I read. There are some spoilers below, but I try to avoid major ones.
The Quick could be considered Urban Gothic horror, though it is a good bit—about
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double—the length often seen in that genre. Depending on the speed of your reading, I suggest reading it in 2-5 nights; curling up in front of a roaring fire with a glass of dry brandy, Faustian Classical music playing in the background. Lock the doors.The story starts off with a young wannabe poet moving from his country home to London, to see the sights and live the life. Even though it does not compare to Oscar Wilde’s work, The Picture of Dorian Grey, the first section of The Quick does remind me strongly of that classic novel (for more reasons than one—the first portion of The Quick takes place during Wilde’s time). This first section of the book is primarily building characters, setting them up.
Then, we are suddenly introduced to the members and secrets of the Aegolius Club—very suddenly, in fact; it’s a good thing I tend not to get truly sucked into the books I read. Part Two of The Quick takes place a number of years before, and up through, the events of Part One, so you learn something of the struggles taking place behind the grimy scenes of the London underground. Except, is it really the underground, if members of the upper crust are involved?
Part Three begins tying story lines together, as well as introducing more characters—some of them are even likeable. Halfway through the book, it is taking shape, with several potentially bloody agendas coming forth. Actually, I’m not sure if there is any chance of The Quick ending in any way other than the world painted sanguine.
I am not going to continue discussing each section, since the plot is now moving nicely. Suffice it to say that some action happens. This is not to say that the first portion or two of the book is actually slow paced—it is building up to a climax and giving some necessary back story., as it should. I found the true climax to be contained somewhere in the chapters in the mid-thirties, with much of the remainder of the novel feeling like an epilogue.
I feel that the author did indeed, succeed in writing a worthy addition to the Vampire genre (I did say this was a vampire book, right? No? Now you know). Her prose was smooth, and descriptions vivid—stimulating many of the senses; the characters human and flawed, some with multiple reasons for everything they do. When I first began the book, it was with a fairly open mind—my practice is to not read any other reviews of a Early Reviewers book until after I’ve finished reading—and it took me a while to get into it due to circumstances other than the quality of the writing. I picked it back up a few days ago, and have not really put it down since then—I wanted to know what was around the next corner, how it ended.
Sadly, I found the ending a bit…surprising, in a slightly disappointing way—I honestly expected a war between factions of the undead, but that was dropped without full resolution. I would not be surprised to find that there are plans for a sequel—if there is not, the cliffhangers may actually keep me wondering exactly what happened.
While I could not call The Quick a real page turner, the author does do a fair job of concealing how things are going to go (at least for me)…you cannot tell if the story will end happily (more or less) or with everybody dying horribly. I would give The Quick approximately Four stars, and would not hesitate to recommend it to those who enjoyed the earlier vampire novels of Anne Rice. As a debut novel, I do not think they come much better, much less managing to balance a tale which is driven by both thrilling suspense and silky prose.
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LibraryThing member Narshkite
So...I guess the marketing campaign for this implored reader to not reveal the "twist" in this book. It has been revealed in many comments here, so I am not going to hide it STOP reading if you don't want to know.
The twist was that the original main character (he later takes a back seat) becomes a
Bottom line, this is well written, beautifully atmospheric, and many of the characters are interesting and well drawn. If you like vampires I would say this is absolutely worth a read. If, like me, you find vampires kind of boring and silly, all the good writing in the world won't make this more than an okay read.
The twist was that the original main character (he later takes a back seat) becomes a
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vampire. Vampires are everywhere and things vampire impact all and sundry. This is annoying. I would never have read this if I had known it was a vampire book. No shade to those who enjoy vampire tales, they are simply not my jam. What strikes me as weird is that vampire stories are insanely popular, so by hiding the subject of the book you lose tons of potential readers. To add insult to injury the readers you draw by hiding the paranormal (like me) are not going to much love this book. Its terrible business. Bottom line, this is well written, beautifully atmospheric, and many of the characters are interesting and well drawn. If you like vampires I would say this is absolutely worth a read. If, like me, you find vampires kind of boring and silly, all the good writing in the world won't make this more than an okay read.
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LibraryThing member sunqueen
The description of this novel sounded so unique and creepy when I requested it from LT that I couldn’t wait for it to arrive. What kind of scary and salacious secret was going to be revealed? When I got to the big reveal it was a letdown. Vampires. I shook my fist in contempt, but did continue
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reading. The writing was good, and I definitely believe Ms. Owen has talent. Unfortunately many readers are so disappointed by the “secret” and how the story was marketed, her talent may be overshadowed. Show Less
LibraryThing member DrApple
First, let me say that The Quick is not - quick that is. The first quarter of this novel seemed interminable! It begins with a brother and sister being raised by servants and a series of governesses on an isolated British estate. "How Gothic!" you might think. You'd be wrong. There's tons of
Many reviewers have referred to The Quick as a modernized vampire tale. The only modernity apparent to me is the homosexual relationship in which the brother becomes involved (before he becomes a vampire) with a tortured metaphor about the fact that being a vampire is as socially acceptable as being gay in Victorian London.
Now, to the vampires. The actual vampire story is fabulous. There are two social classes for vampires in London, the wealthy and the poor. The wealthy vampires only admit men and only those of a certain class. The poor have vampires of all ages, both men and women. The novel finally starts rolling with the introduction of vampire hunters who become involved with the sister's quest to find her missing brother. There is action, suspense, intrigue...all of the things a reader hopes for in a book. There is a surprising turn of events at the end which is quite satisfying.
Overall, I would recommend this book, but I'd also recommend skimming the first 25%. It will seem much more entertaining that way, and much more "quick"
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atmosphere, but little happens. The absentee father dies, leaving the son a pile of money and the estate so he goes off to an exclusive school then heads to London to try his hand at writing. The daughter, meanwhile, gets squat since she's a female and spends several years nursing an ailing aunt who takes her in.Many reviewers have referred to The Quick as a modernized vampire tale. The only modernity apparent to me is the homosexual relationship in which the brother becomes involved (before he becomes a vampire) with a tortured metaphor about the fact that being a vampire is as socially acceptable as being gay in Victorian London.
Now, to the vampires. The actual vampire story is fabulous. There are two social classes for vampires in London, the wealthy and the poor. The wealthy vampires only admit men and only those of a certain class. The poor have vampires of all ages, both men and women. The novel finally starts rolling with the introduction of vampire hunters who become involved with the sister's quest to find her missing brother. There is action, suspense, intrigue...all of the things a reader hopes for in a book. There is a surprising turn of events at the end which is quite satisfying.
Overall, I would recommend this book, but I'd also recommend skimming the first 25%. It will seem much more entertaining that way, and much more "quick"
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LibraryThing member dalexander
I received this novel through the Library Thing Early Reviewers Program. I found this novel to be an encouraging first novel for Lauren Owen. There were interesting plot twists but at times the methods used to keep the reader guessing also led to reader confusion. Although the brief synopsis on the
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back of the book is accurate it does not clearly represent the story line. Readers who are interesting in Gothic stories that take place in Victorian era London this would enjoy this novel. Show Less
LibraryThing member moppety
Huh. I didn't expect that.
Intriguingly written, with well described atmosphere, my attention was admirably held to the end. I am pleased with this debut novel, and will more than likely read another from this author.
Intriguingly written, with well described atmosphere, my attention was admirably held to the end. I am pleased with this debut novel, and will more than likely read another from this author.
LibraryThing member Willie3
Hard to believe this is the author's first novel. Fast paced and unexpected developments kept my interest, though I am not a great fan of vampire stories. Would not be surprised to see this on the best seller list, and looking forward to future releases from the author.
LibraryThing member drawoh2014
While not a fan of the macabre or the cult of vampire stories of recent years, I was quite surprised after beginning this book that I couldn't put it down. The rapid development of the plot will lure you in and then the reader is brought through this tale by characters that are all unique, and some
The main character is James Norbury who moves to London following his graduation from Oxford. James is rather boring and booking, at first, but a series of contacts with Victorian society transforms him in ways he couldn't possibly have imagined. He becomes romantically involved and inadvertently becomes ensnared in a secret society known as the Aegolius Club in London. James grew up in a small town in Yorkshire with his sister Charlotte who becomes concerned about James and makes the trip to London to find out why her brother has stopped corresponding. She's quickly shocked at what she finds and goes on a search through the more unseemly parts of London. Suffice it to say she works quite hard at being the heroine, living on the edge of life and death, in pursuit of her brother as well as taking steps to protect herself. Not being used to lurid details of the characters "lifestyle", you'll find the author handles them deftly, avoiding nauseating descriptions. The author has created a great novel I highly recommend. Be prepared for a trip through Victorian London you'll not soon forget.
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are unforgettable. The main character is James Norbury who moves to London following his graduation from Oxford. James is rather boring and booking, at first, but a series of contacts with Victorian society transforms him in ways he couldn't possibly have imagined. He becomes romantically involved and inadvertently becomes ensnared in a secret society known as the Aegolius Club in London. James grew up in a small town in Yorkshire with his sister Charlotte who becomes concerned about James and makes the trip to London to find out why her brother has stopped corresponding. She's quickly shocked at what she finds and goes on a search through the more unseemly parts of London. Suffice it to say she works quite hard at being the heroine, living on the edge of life and death, in pursuit of her brother as well as taking steps to protect herself. Not being used to lurid details of the characters "lifestyle", you'll find the author handles them deftly, avoiding nauseating descriptions. The author has created a great novel I highly recommend. Be prepared for a trip through Victorian London you'll not soon forget.
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LibraryThing member Unreachableshelf
My advance reading copy of this book had some kind of issue with the binding and fell apart as I was reading it. It was an ARC, and I don't expect them to be the same production quality as final copies, so I would never let that affect my rating and normally wouldn't mention those kind of issues in
My copy of this book was in at least four large chunks and some loose pages, and I still finished reading it.
The quick is dark, atmospheric, gothic horror. The depiction of James's life in London is compelling and intriguing even before the vampire plot is explicitly revealed, and the vampires are properly horrifying without being reduced to one dimensional monsters. I'd recommend this not only to vampire fans but to readers of any sort of dark 19th century fiction.
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a review, but in this case it provides the perfect explanation of what I thought of this book:My copy of this book was in at least four large chunks and some loose pages, and I still finished reading it.
The quick is dark, atmospheric, gothic horror. The depiction of James's life in London is compelling and intriguing even before the vampire plot is explicitly revealed, and the vampires are properly horrifying without being reduced to one dimensional monsters. I'd recommend this not only to vampire fans but to readers of any sort of dark 19th century fiction.
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Awards
Lord Ruthven Award (Fiction — 2015)
Language
Original publication date
2014-06-17
ISBN
9780812993271