My name is Ruby. I live with Barbara and Mick. They're not my real parents, but they tell me what to do, and what to say. I'm supposed to say that the bruises on my arms and the black eye came from falling down the stairs.
But there are things I won't say. I won't tell them I'm going to hunt for my real parents. I don't say a word about Shadow, who sits on the stairs, or the Wasp Lady I saw on the way to bed.
I did tell Mick that I saw the woman in the buttercup dress, hanging upside down from her seat belt deep in the forest at the back of our house. I told him I saw death crawl out of her. He said he'd give me a medal for lying.
I wasn't lying. I'm a hunter for lost souls and I'm going to be with my real family. And I'm not going to let Mick stop me.
My Thoughts:
I was thrilled to be invited to take part in the blog tour for The Doll Funeral having reviewed the authors first book The Girl in the Red Coat for that tour, you can review my review here.
The Doll Funeral is completely different to The Girl in the Red Coat but it is as equally absorbing and wonderfully written. This one is eerie and touched with the supernatural. Set across two strands of time we hear Ruby's story and that of her mother. Set in The Forest of Dean, an area that I know reasonably well, it provided a perfect backdrop for the story.
Ruby discovers on her thirteenth birthday that she is adopted, having endured a difficult childhood Ruby decides to set off in search of her real parents. Ruby was very grown up for thirteen but I suspect that might be to do with the things she has endures. Ruby's mothers story adds tension and pace to proceedings.
This book is exquisitely written, which is exactly what I have come to expect from this author. I found it to be wonderfully original and intriguing. Descriptive, evocative and extremely haunting. I will admit it did cause me to shed a tear.
Several themes are tackled in The Doll Funeral, such as abuse, mental illness and the parent - child relationship. I really don't want to give much more away about the plot, I would prefer for you discover all about it for yourselves.
I would really recommend this one. Once settled into it will have you completely sucked in.
I was thrilled to be invited to take part in the blog tour for The Doll Funeral having reviewed the authors first book The Girl in the Red Coat for that tour, you can review my review here.
The Doll Funeral is completely different to The Girl in the Red Coat but it is as equally absorbing and wonderfully written. This one is eerie and touched with the supernatural. Set across two strands of time we hear Ruby's story and that of her mother. Set in The Forest of Dean, an area that I know reasonably well, it provided a perfect backdrop for the story.
Ruby discovers on her thirteenth birthday that she is adopted, having endured a difficult childhood Ruby decides to set off in search of her real parents. Ruby was very grown up for thirteen but I suspect that might be to do with the things she has endures. Ruby's mothers story adds tension and pace to proceedings.
This book is exquisitely written, which is exactly what I have come to expect from this author. I found it to be wonderfully original and intriguing. Descriptive, evocative and extremely haunting. I will admit it did cause me to shed a tear.
Several themes are tackled in The Doll Funeral, such as abuse, mental illness and the parent - child relationship. I really don't want to give much more away about the plot, I would prefer for you discover all about it for yourselves.
I would really recommend this one. Once settled into it will have you completely sucked in.
About the Author:
Kate Hamer grew up in Pembrokeshire. She went to art college and then on to study History of Art at Manchester University. She graduated in 1988. She worked in television for over ten years.
Having always written purely for herself, she finally decided to begin an MA in creative writing at Aberystwyth University in 2011. Here, she won a prize for the best beginning of a novel – the work that became The Girl in the Red Coat.
She lives with her husband Mark in Cardiff, has two Children and is currently writing full time. The Doll Funeral is her second novel.
Having always written purely for herself, she finally decided to begin an MA in creative writing at Aberystwyth University in 2011. Here, she won a prize for the best beginning of a novel – the work that became The Girl in the Red Coat.
She lives with her husband Mark in Cardiff, has two Children and is currently writing full time. The Doll Funeral is her second novel.
Please do have a look at the other stops on the blog tour.
No comments:
Post a Comment