Although the style and content of this novel are completely different from those of 'Room' - the only other work of hers which I have read - this novel firmly underlines Emma Donoghue's extraordinary ability to draw you into a story and make you see things through her characters' eyes.

It is based on a true incident, a scandalous divorce in England in the mid-nineteenth century. Donoghue wears her research very lightly - the scenes and characters are very vivid without the reader ever feeling that she is being force-fed historical facts.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and am very tempted to fellow up on some of the sources listed at the end of the book.