The Quick And The Dead by Emma Hinds

 

The Quick and the Dead by Emma Hinds.

Published 16th January 2024 by Bedford Square.

From the cover of the book:

It is 1597 and Kit Skevy and Mariner Elgin have just robbed the wrong grave.

They are young criminals in the pocket of a gang Lord named Will Twentyman, the Grave Eorl of Southwark. Mariner is the best cutpurse around, a strange Calvinist girl who dresses like a boy and is partner in crime to Kit Skevy, Southwark's best brawler who carries a secret: he cannot feel pain.

When caught out in their unfortunate larceny, Kit is kidnapped by the menacing alchemist Lord Isherwood (a man who will stop at nothing to achieve his hopes for the Red Lion elixir) and his studious son, Lazarus Isherwood, with whom Kit develops a complicated intrigue. When Mariner enlists the help of a competing French alchemist, Lady Elody Blackwater, Mariner and Kit are thrust into the shadowed, political world of Tudor alchemy, testing both their friendship and their lives.

It matters not who you are born to... but where you are made!

***********

London, 1597. In the slums of south of the river Thames, Mariner Elgin and Kit Skevy make a living as part of the criminal fraternity of the brutal gang lord, Will Twentyman, known as the Grave Eorl of Southwark. Former sailor, Mariner, who masquerades as a boy, is Twentyman's best cutpurse - a skill which (barely) keeps her out of his infamous brothels. Kit is Twentyman's finest brawler, aided by his ability to feel no pain - a secret he has been closely guarding for as long as he can remember.

Mariner and Kit make an unlikely pair, but they have forged a close friendship that has so far kept them about as safe as they can be in their perilous careers. Until one night they are sent by Twentyman to steal the recently interred body of a reputedly famous alchemist from its grave...

This misadventure leads to Kit being kidnapped, and tortured, by ruthless alchemist Lord Isherwood, and his son Lazarus, who are searching for an elixir which promises eternal life. Meanwhile, hoping to free Kit, Mariner makes a bargain with rival French alchemist, Lady Elody Blackwater. Their turn in fortune plunges them into a world of undercover plots and political machinations that threatens to expose their secrets and lead them into terrible danger.

This novel brings Elizabethan England alive, and throws you headlong into a tale which nicely combines elements of historical mystery, political intrigue, swash-buckling adventure, and queer love stories. The action unfurls from the points of view of close-friends Mariner and Kit, in parallel plot-lines that weave together - dragging Mariner into the games of power within the court of Elizabeth I, at the side of Lady Elody Blackwater, who becomes her lover; and taking Kit on a voyage of discovery about the mystical world of alchemy (and passion), beside the complicated Lazarus Isherwood. 

Not surprisingly, it turns out that being used by vying parties as pawns to gain political (and religious) advantage in the future succession of England is a dangerous business, not to mention when personal rivalries are involved. Any means are open to those who are willing to risk all, which allows Hinds to delve into the blurred edges between magic and science in 16th Century Europe, despite the increasing risks of being associated with the dark arts of witchcraft. There are very enjoyable scenes about the brewing of potions with supposedly mythical properties, covert dissections supplied by a lucrative side-line in grave-robbing, and scrying into the future - and they are all based on historical fact, which is fascinating. 

But this is not just about Dumas-esque escapades, and Dr Faustus level dark deeds (lovely references to Christopher Marlowe throughout), because the story is equally driven by the character development that feeds into a host interesting themes about sex and sexuality, and the role of women in Elizabethan England. I particularly enjoyed how Hinds examines these through the way Kit and Mariner's hopes, dreams, and secrets are revealed, and in the twisting course of their romantic lives (although do think Kit's issues could have been less complicated without detracting from the story). There is a lovely thread about theatre and performance in this era too, which leads to a very entertaining ending to the novel.

I was not sure what to expect from this book, but I found myself hanging on Hinds' every word as the story developed. There is scope for a sequel here, should Hinds choose to return to these characters... perhaps some tales about (my favourite character) Mariner's life on the high-seas? I would definitely be up for that!

The Quick and the Dead is available to buy now in hardcover, and ebook formats.

Thank you to Ed PR and Bedford Square for sending me a proof of this book in return for an honest review.

About the author:

Emma Hinds has a Masters in Creative Writing from the University of St Andrews and has settled in Manchester, where she is a Queer playwright and Novelist. Her work focuses on telling untold feminist narratives. Her latest play, PURE, was featured in Turn On festival at Hope Mill Theatre Manchester in 2021 and she was the recipient of the Artist Development grant 2021 at Hope Mill Theatre. 

Emma's debut novel, The Knowing (Bedford Square) was published January 2024 and is an exploration of female trauma in the vivid and cruel world of the Victorian freak show. This thrilling historical fiction title swiftly became a Sunday Times Historical Fiction Book of The Month.

She has written a few previous non-fiction books in her capacity as an academic (in another life she was a theologian) with an essay published, Tarantino and Theology; with Gray Matter Books and her book, Ineffable Love: Christian Themes in Good Omens; published by Darton Longman Todd.

The Quick and the Dead is her second novel.