I saw him so clearly with his head bent, that beautiful inclination of the neck, and his bottom lip pushed forward. But I was not allowed to dwell on this image, because Meredith had leaped to her feet, picked up her hat, and said: “I’m off to explore this authentic seaside town. Keep your eye on Edmund, will you,” and with a scrunch of pebbles, she was gone.
I couldn’t fathom her. One moment we were exchanging confidences, the next she had deserted me so suddenly that I felt abused, as if she’d helped me up with one hand and knocked me down with the other. And, as was the case so often with her, I had the distinct impression that she had taken a good deal from me but given little in return.
(from The Crimson Rooms, pages 80-81 in the hardcover edition)
The Crimson Rooms is set in post-World War I London and tells the story of Evelyn Gifford, an articled clerk, or lawyer-in-training, at a time when few women chose the law as a profession. Katharine McMahon beautifully paints a portrait of a world in turmoil. In Evelyn’s world, men still have all the power, and those lucky enough to come home from the war are scarred physically, mentally, or both. Women have fewer “whole” men from which to choose, and many are forced to marry someone crippled by war wounds. Evelyn’s meager earnings are used to care for her family, which consists of her mother, her aunt, and her grandmother. Evelyn’s father recently passed away, and the household remains paralyzed by the death of her brother in the war six years prior.
Evelyn has a lot on her plate, and McMahon has created a plot complex enough to hold one’s interest yet easy enough to keep everything straight. Evelyn is shocked when a woman shows up on her doorstep one night with a young boy who is the spitting image of her brother, James. Meredith was a nurse during the war, and she apparently had a love affair with Evelyn’s brother shortly before his death. Evelyn and her parents had placed James on a pedestal, so this revelation hits her hard, but she does her best to care for the woman and her nephew despite something not feeling right about the situation.
Meanwhile, Evelyn is working on two important cases, one involving a destitute woman arrested for kidnapping her own child. She’d given her son and two daughters to a home for poor children so they would be fed, but she didn’t understand that she had signed away all her parental rights. The other case involves a veteran accused of shooting and killing his young wife, and although the evidence is not in his favor, Evelyn is convinced that he is innocent. On top of all this, the lonely and love-starved Evelyn enters into a flirtation with another lawyer, Nicholas Thorne, who is impressed with her desire to succeed in a male-dominated profession.
The Crimson Rooms is a well-written novel that drew me in from the first page. McMahon lets Evelyn tell her story, and I couldn’t help but like her. Evelyn is both strong and weak, outspoken and quiet, passionate and hesitant, and the fact that she moved from one to the other made her seem real to me. McMahon’s descriptions are so detailed I could picture the scenes in my mind, and for the most part, the pacing was just right. While the legal cases Evelyn tackles were interesting, and I stayed up late because I needed to know what happened next, I found myself attached to Evelyn, and her desire for both a career and a relationship moved me more.
There weren’t any shocking revelations or major action, but The Crimson Rooms really struck a chord with me. McMahon tells a story about the strength of women, the devastating effects of war, the strong bonds between mothers and children, the need for love and acceptance, how extraordinary events cause people to act out of character, and how we can never truly know the people we love most of all. The post-war setting creates tension and stirs up emotions, and the legal cases give readers a glimpse of the justice system in the 1920s. Although I was left wanting to know what happened to Evelyn next, I think The Crimson Rooms was a good way to start off my reading year.
Disclosure: I received a copy of The Crimson Rooms from Penguin for review purposes. I am an Amazon associate.
© 2011 Anna Horner of Diary of an Eccentric. All Rights Reserved. Please do not reproduce or republish content without permission.
Anna, this book sounds like a finely-written book about our legal system in the 1920s, and relationships (and their complexities), rather than shocking events. Very nice review! How wonderful that you’ve already gotten a jump-start on this historical fiction reading challenge!
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Thanks, Suko! I don’t think I’ll have a hard time completing this challenge. I’m already reading another book I realize will qualify. 😉
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Gosh, this one would so much info! I am sure I want to read something like this.
Great review.
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Thanks, Veens! I think you’d enjoy this one.
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Sounds so good. Thanks.
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My pleasure!
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This does sound good.
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I hope you give it a try. You can always borrow my copy.
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[…] Comments « Review: The Crimson Rooms by Katharine McMahon […]
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This does sound fascinating! I am in awe of women who were trailblazers like that.
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Me, too. That’s why I found Evelyn’s character so fascinating.
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This sounds like a wonderful read. Strong women characters and the aftermath of war – doesn’t get much better than that! Thanks, Anna, for such a glowing review.
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Thanks, Kaye. I hope you give it a try.
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Fantastic review Anna! I’ve got this one on my wishlist. I think it sounds like a great novel.
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Thanks, Darlene! I really enjoyed it, and I bet you will, too.
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Nice review.
It would be an interesting book to read, post-war, and her in a profession I sure could not see a women in at that era
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Thanks! I haven’t read too many books set in the 1920s or with lawyers as main characters, so I thought it was interesting.
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This one sounds really fascinating and yes, that is a great way to start your year of reading! 😀
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I find that I’m enjoying books more and more as I get better at picking ones I think I’m really going to like.
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This sounds so good! I love historical fiction and am always on the look out for more to add to my list. Glad you started off your year with a good book! 🙂
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I consider myself lucky, since I didn’t know what to read to begin the new year. Hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
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[…] The Crimson Rooms by Katharine McMahon (post-WWI) 2. Dangerous Neighbors by Beth Kephart (Philadelphia’s […]
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