ARC

"Helen is poised between a dark sea and a certain shore." (- page 11)
Inspired by the novel that I enjoyed from 1820: 'Melmoth the Wanderer' by Robert Charles Maturin. Melmoth the Wanderer is transported about 200 years after the classic, taking place around 2017 . Both books are similar: a main character or two haunted by the stories of the fates of others, revolving around a dark and sinister force that seems to move through time and history. Helen is haunted by her own past (revealed later in the book), thinking she needs to live minimally to make up for her sins, then begins to be haunted by Melmoth's victims. What is interesting now is that MUCH darkness has transpired in history since the original novel was written in 1820. Probably events Maturin couldn't even imagine despite his darkly creative mind. Think of all that darkness that Melmoth would have thrived in during the last 200 years. Another interesting change: Melmoth is a woman instead of a REALLY old man. The reader almost becomes Melmoth: witnessing the sometimes very pitch dark stories of these characters. Overall, I was wondering what the purpose was of this sort of "remake", as the general frame of the book is very similar to Maturin's nested spooky stories, other than that much has happened in 200 years. I would have liked to see more of a twist in this one. I shouldn't be comparing the two books so closely, but if the story is inspired by the other, it is difficult not to. I'm not sure if 'Melmoth' was hurt or helped by being inspired by the original. The original is very good and holds up over 200 years. Possibly if I hadn't known Maturin's Melmoth existed, I would have liked this book much more. I can appreciate Sarah Perry's writing anyway. Flipping through Maturin's Melmoth to find a specific underlined quote, there are so many good sentences there. So I'm glad this Melmoth had me read the other Melmoth sooner. I'd say if you're a fan of one Melmoth, give the other a try, though the Maturin is about three times longer.

enjoy!