Lucy Branch

Remarkable and enthralling novel

I read and enjoyed this when it was first published. Lately it has kept popping up in my mind, making me want to revisit it. I couldn’t remember the author or title so it took me some time to track down, and when I did, I found that there was a later edition and it is this third edition that I have just finished,

It is an engrossing thriller narrated by Abigail, the central character. From childhood she has spent most of her time in her father’s forge, learning the skills of metal working, and in particular the art of patination - of bringing life to a finished sculpture by drawing colour from the metal by the application of chemicals and heat.

She has always had a fascination with alchemy and starts researching how it may relate to her own skills and her particular affinity with metals. When she gets an unexpected commission to carry out some restoration work in Venice she takes the opportunity to try to track down more information. She begins to get uneasy as strange things happen around her ... i don’t want to say any more about the plot for fear of introducing spoilers.

Abigail is well-drawn character that I found easy to sympathise with. Early bullying and rejection by schoolfellows and others because of the ugly dermatitis and psoriasis on her palms have left her timid and fearful - to the extent that she falls out with her boyfriend because she won’t let him touch her hands (always hidden in gloves), nor tell him why. When faced with danger, her first reaction is to cry and despair. Gradually she realises the strength she has within her, and especially in the knowledge she has stored up inside her.

I always enjoy reading novels with an unusual background. It doesn’t matter too much what that background is, so long as it has been written by an expert and enthusiast who is able to draw me into their enthusiasm and give me glimpses into a skill or a subject in which I was completely ignorant. Lucy Branch is one of those writers, and I look forward to reading more of her work.… (meer)