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The Pursuit of William Abbey

Claire North

3.80 · Rating details · 436 ratings · 105 reviews

A hauntingly powerful novel about how the choices we make can stay with us forever, by the award-winning author of The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August and 84K.

South Africa in the 1880s. A young and naive English doctor by the name of William Abbey witnesses the lynching of a local boy by the white colonists. As the child dies, his mother curses William.

William begins ...more

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Paperback, 420 pages

Published November 12th 2019 by Orbit

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Nov 15, 2019 Phrynne rated it really liked it

Shelves: 5000-2019

Another good book from this very talented author. Not my personal favourite but still very good indeed. As happens a lot in her books the main character, William Abbey, is being pursued all around the world. His pursuer is the shade of a dead boy and the results if he gets caught are not good.

So, points to the author for the clever story and the way it makes the reader think hard about what is going on all the time. Points too for the amazing amount of research which must have gone into all the ...more

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Nov 24, 2019 Scarlett Readz and Runz....Through Novel Time & Distance rated it really liked it

4.5 stars

I was very excited to have the opportunity to review this title from the moment it appeared on my radar.

Like an endless sea, this remarkable work of fiction does not cease to ever end in scope and engagement as one reads through the 400+ pages. Hopes, dreads, dreams, and desires of a lifetime of every facete imaginable will be touched on in this journey of The Pursuit of William Abbey. Not a country in the world, not a shore unexplored, no historical events within its premise missed, ...more

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Aug 20, 2019 Sarah-Hope rated it liked it

Shelves: netgalley, 2019

I requested an electronic advance copy of this book from NetGalley because the premise it's built on sounded fascinating, and I was delighted that the publisher approved my request. The premise here is that William Abbey, an Englishman who sees (and doesn't act in response to) a child killed by a white mob in Africa, is cursed by the child's mother. The shadow of her son will follow Abbey for the rest of his life, and any time the shadow catches up, the person Abbey loves most will die. In I requested an electronic advance copy of this book from NetGalley because the premise it's built on sounded fascinating, and I was delighted that the publisher approved my request. The premise here is that William Abbey, an Englishman who sees (and doesn't act in response to) a child killed by a white mob in Africa, is cursed by the child's mother. The shadow of her son will follow Abbey for the rest of his life, and any time the shadow catches up, the person Abbey loves most will die. In essence, Abbey is stuck in a deadly game of tag.

There are some "rules" involved. First, Abbey is now a Truth-Teller. The closer the child's shadow gets, the more clearly Abbey will hear others' private truths and feel compelled to blurt them out. Second, the child's shadow travels at a steady pace, regardless of terrain. Abbey can buy himself time by using modern transportation to distance himself from the shadow, but eventually the shadow will catch up with him, unless he keeps moving.

Now, add two complications. First, Abbey isn't the only person who has been turned into a Truth-Teller by a curse—it turns out there are others like him. Second, the governments of many nations are on the hunt for "Truth-Tellers," who are exceptionally useful in resolving questions of guilt and acts of rebellion. The governments aren't necessarily looking for Truth-Tellers who will work with them voluntarily; they will imprison Truth-Tellers, if it serves their purpose.

That's the basic formula: one curse, two rules, two complications. It's potentially fascinating and nail-bitingly exciting, but the book never really hits its stride. Abbey can see into others, but not himself, so readers have a protagonist about whom they know relatively little and who remains partially occluded throughout the book. Also, the book is long (464 pages) and its pace is steady—a bit like the pace of the ever-approaching child's shadow. It's like driving at thirty-five without ever speeding up or slowing down.

The Pursuit of William Abbey is interesting (an over-used word, but an appropriate one in this case). Unfortunately, interesting isn't the same as engaging or engrossing. The reader's experience feels flattened. ...more

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Oct 28, 2019 Nils | nilsreviewsit rated it really liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars

‘The Great War had been coming for such a long time. It was born in the hearts of our ruling men the day they were held up in the crib and told they were blessed with a greatness that others could not share. It was nurtured when they saw their greatness challenged, and sought some way to prove their strength. Now it eats us whole.’
~
The Pursuit of William Abbey is a powerful historical fiction and also part fantasy novel by the award winning author, Claire North. As I’ve never read any 3.5 stars

‘The Great War had been coming for such a long time. It was born in the hearts of our ruling men the day they were held up in the crib and told they were blessed with a greatness that others could not share. It was nurtured when they saw their greatness challenged, and sought some way to prove their strength. Now it eats us whole.’
~
The Pursuit of William Abbey is a powerful historical fiction and also part fantasy novel by the award winning author, Claire North. As I’ve never read any books by North before but have always heard much praise for her narrative style, I was very intrigued to read this one. This book is described as ‘utterly though-provoking’, which I can say, I firmly agree with.

The book tells the story of William Abbey, a young English doctor, working during the 1800s, which was around the period when many countries were being colonised. William witnesses a young boy in South Africa being executed by a group of white colonists; he stands on the sidelines doing absolutely nothing to stop the atrocity and nothing to save the boy afterwards as he lay dying in his mother’s arms. In the wake of the mother’s wrath, she curses William. From that day forward the shadow of the dead boy relentlessly pursues him across the globe, and whenever it is near, William becomes a ‘truth-teller’, as he gains the ability to discover people’s inner thoughts and desires. The shadow must also never catch William, because when it does the person he loves most in the world will immediately die.

That premise alone instantly drew me in, I mean how could it not? Then in the first opening chapters we are introduced to a wartime nurse, who meets our main protagonist, William Abbey, whilst dealing with an overwhelming amount of severely injured soldiers, fresh from the battlefield. North hits you with vivid descriptions of the mess, the gore, and the decaying caused from soldiers with missing limbs, and infected wounds; the dead, the dying. The dramatic beginning certainly grabs your attention and I truly commend North for not shying away from the harrowing realities of warfare. The stark depiction also continues as William recounts the time of the boy’s execution, to the nurse, and describes his horrific burning in great detail. This was a particularly uncomfortable, and unsettling scene to see unfold, and it hit me quite emotionally. I respect North for again choosing not to sugar coat anything, which also worked perfectly to establish the central theme in the novel; the nature of truths. Although this may be a work of fiction, no-one can deny that these horrendous lynchings did take place in history, and no one can deny that many of those were solely because of prejudice, therefore these stories should also never be denied.

No matter what you feel about these scenes, North powerfully engraves these images in our minds, and they are images that should never be swept under a rug. We owe it to the people who suffered to know and remember the extent of their suffering, and I applaud North for bringing this to light. I also very much enjoyed North’s use of stream of consciousness during these scenes as it elegantly reflected the emotions of guilt and confusion that William wars against. He makes us question, should he have risked his life and reputation to save the boy? Does he deserve the curse or was he just as much a victim of circumstances?

A large majority of the novel then focuses on William Abbey running from the youth’s shadow in order to save those he holds dearest to him. From Berlin to Egypt to Ireland, and throughout the globe, we see William become embroiled in situations that become out of his depth. I felt the plot significantly slowed during this point, and went off in directions that perhaps took away from the exploration of the shadow and the curse. Although we do get more revelations on this slowly throughout the story, my expectations were that this would be the sole focal point, not one that also involved espionage. Having said that I did appreciate the backstory to the side characters that were introduced later on.
I particularly enjoyed the backstory of Margot, a French woman who William becomes entangled with, and her history was pretty sad.

I also felt the ending was left a bit too open for my own personal taste, as I would have preferred more closure. However, regardless of my opinion, the ending does have an authentic stroke to it because realistically speaking, when you’ve lived a life full of seeing truths, deceit, tragedy and a life of continuous running from a shadow, well it’s never going to end nicely tied up with a pretty bow, is it? There are some things that you just keep on running from or chasing towards.
~
‘Where was that fine young man I believed myself to be? Perhaps he had never lived. Perhaps we were all just savages, in the moonlight through the blackened boab tree.’

Arc provided by Orbit in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the copy! The Pursuit of William Abbey is out 14th November 2019
...more

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Nov 19, 2019 Shalini rated it really liked it

A very well researched book which had a curse as the focal point. It all started with one and led to a merry chase.

William Abbey in Africa, did not save a child from the mob. The child died and the mother cursed him that the shadow of her child would pursue him throughout his life. If the shadow caught William, someone close to him would die. And William needed to be on the move in any mode of transportation. The shadow would come after him at a steady rate. And William in essence became the ...more

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Oct 21, 2019 Liz Barnsley rated it it was amazing

Review to follow for the tour.

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Dec 25, 2019 Marianne rated it it was amazing

Shelves: wishlist

4.5s

“I know the truth of men’s hearts, and what I know is that they are right, every single one of them. They live within the power of their own rightness, and anyone who disagrees with them can only be wrong, and being wrong, they are therefore less. That is what I know, and it terrifies me.”

The Pursuit of William Abbey is the sixth stand-alone novel by award-winning British author, Claire North. Banished to South Africa by his wealthy father, Dr William Abbey is (poorly) practicing medicine is 4.5★s

“I know the truth of men’s hearts, and what I know is that they are right, every single one of them. They live within the power of their own rightness, and anyone who disagrees with them can only be wrong, and being wrong, they are therefore less. That is what I know, and it terrifies me.”

The Pursuit of William Abbey is the sixth stand-alone novel by award-winning British author, Claire North. Banished to South Africa by his wealthy father, Dr William Abbey is (poorly) practicing medicine is a small town in late 1884 when, after an inhuman act of cowardice, he is cursed. He watched as a white mob tortured a Zulu boy and, upon his death, the boy’s mother visited a life-long curse on William: the shadow of the boy will follow him, always.

He soon discovers that if Langa’s shadow catches up, the person most beloved by William dies and quickly understands he must flee. But a side effect of the curse is the ability, when the slowly-shuffling shadow is gaining ground on William, to know the true thoughts of those around him. He is a truth-speaker. Certain agencies see this as a beneficial attribute: William suddenly finds himself in the service of Her Majesty’s Government.

They have the resources to help him outrun Langa’s shadow, as long as he’s willing to use his special ability to their advantage. In doing this, he discovers there are other truth-speakers. He seeks them out, in hope of a cure, but not all see it as a curse, considering it instead, a blessing, a gift.

In 1917, in a field hospital in France, as she watches him sit vigil with a wounded soldier, Sister Ellis begins to understand that Dr William Abbey was very probably not sent from HQ, but is there for another reason. He seems to know her heart and, in the early hours, he explains the long and convoluted path that has led him there.

North’s characters, despite their flaws, are easy to invest in. William freely admits to being a coward, although occasionally proves the contrary in a tale not devoid of heroic acts: the most heroic actor will likely be a surprise to readers. The most despicable, too, is will only gradually be revealed as that. For the rest of the cast, when Langa is close, the swamp of truths from those around him that fill William’s head give the reader a multitude of lives: some as detailed vignettes, some just snippets, and a generous dose of history.

What an amazing imagination Claire North has! Again, a cleverly plotted tale that is well-thought out, utterly riveting and thought-provoking, a perceptive commentary on empires and how they use their power. North gives her characters a wealth of insightful observations on human nature. Brilliant, as usual.
...more

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Nov 07, 2019 The Tattooed Book Geek (Drew). rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

As always this review can also be found on my blog The Tattooed Book Geek: https://thetattooedbookgeek.wordpress...

In 1917, France, against the backdrop of the Great War. In a French hospital for wounded soldiers with cannon and gunfire reverberating outside and enemy forces closing in Dr William Abbey, over a few nights and with Langa, his shadow ever approaching and drawing nearer recounts his story to Sister Ellis.

Abbey’s story starts in South Africa, Natal, 1884, in a small and dusty As always this review can also be found on my blog The Tattooed Book Geek: https://thetattooedbookgeek.wordpress...

In 1917, France, against the backdrop of the Great War. In a French hospital for wounded soldiers with cannon and gunfire reverberating outside and enemy forces closing in Dr William Abbey, over a few nights and with Langa, his shadow ever approaching and drawing nearer recounts his story to Sister Ellis.

Abbey’s story starts in South Africa, Natal, 1884, in a small and dusty frontier town. Abbey watches unmoving, too cowardly to intervene, to scared to put his own well-being in jeopardy as a gang of white colonists violently lynch Langa, a local young black boy to death.

In her arms, as her boy fades from this world and as he breathes his last breathe his mother curses William Abbey. Abbey made his choice, to do nothing and choices have consequences. His lack of action, lack of caring and lack of thought cursed him, he could have stood up and been counted, could have made a change, could have told the gang to stop…but he didn’t. Instead, the privileged white man, he chose to stand idly by as Langa, who, due to his colour is seen as a nobody and a nothing was brutally murdered. The curse, that the ghost of, the shadow of Langa, her son will follow Abbey to the ends of the earth, across the expanse of the known world. The shadow won’t ever stop following him, no matter how far or how fast he runs Langa will always be there, endlessly tracking him, walking, across different countries, different continents, across oceans, deserts, mountains and land always at the same steady pace, never wavering and never tiring. For the rest of his days, Langa will be there dogging his every step, haunting him.

The curse turns Abbey into a truth-speaker, someone who can see into the hearts of others but not into their own, their own is the one truth closed to them. It is like looking into a person’s soul, laying them bare, knowing them intimately and seeing who they truly are. As Langa draws nearer, Abbey sees the truth within people and the nearer the shadow, the stronger the connection. When the shadow of Langa is far away, Abbey is himself with his own beliefs, thoughts and feelings. As Langa draws near he starts dreaming the obscure and vague thoughts of others but still maintains his own senses and his own sense of self. As Langa approaches the clearer that Abbey can see into other people’s hearts and the truth that they hide within, the truths that they hold in the deepest, darkest part of their hearts, the truths that they won’t admit even to themselves or others. When Langa is in close proximity to Abbey, days, hours away, the effect of the curse is overpowering, overtaking his own thoughts, feelings and beliefs overwhelming his own truth and turning him into a babbling, rambling wreck with the truths of all of those around him cascading like rain, flowing like blood from a freshly opened wound from his mouth in a torrent. If the shadow, if Langa should reach Abbey, should touch him then, the person that he loves the most in the world will die. The cycle will repeat until everyone Abbey cares about is dead, there is no cure, no removal, Langa will haunt him forever on a never-ending journey as, to survive, to allow his loved ones to survive he must walk an endless road.

For Abbey, it is a curse, for others, those in a position of power, they don’t see it as a curse but as an ability to be used and Abbey, himself as a tool to be exploited. As such, Abbey comes to the attention of the Nineteen, a government agency for the British Empire where he is enlisted, employed to spy on people and learn the truths of them, of political secrets, of talk of rebellion and of threats to the Empire.

Abbey can’t settle down, can’t stay anywhere for too long and has to always be on the move to keep ahead of the shadow that will follow him until his last breath. He is always on guard as Langa needs to be close enough so that he can be useful to his masters in the Nineteen and hear the truths of his mark, his target and report on any threats that he finds.

There are others with the same curse as Abbey, some, like him, see it as a curse, others as a blessing and when he meets another truth-speaker they can converse simply by knowing the truth of each other with no words needed. The shadow never shows you your own truth, that remains a mystery to you, something that you can only glimpse if you see it in the eyes of another truth-speaker. As such, there is a sense of mystery to Abbey and his own truth. He is a coward and a rather inept spy but due to the presence of Langa, even when he isn’t under Langa’s influence from initially being blind to the thoughts of others, blinkered, he learns to open his eyes, read people and see the truth in them.

There is the truth, things that are fact, reality and that everyone knows to be true. Then there is your own truth, opinions, beliefs and feelings that you hold to be true but that are subjective to you, personally. Also, there is the truth that you believe about yourself but won’t admit, the truth that you keep hidden and that you keep locked away because you are too scared to look in the mirror, too scared to look too deeply within. If we don’t know the truth about ourselves then we can pretend that we are decent, honest and good, that we are content and happy, that we would do the right thing if needed, that we aren’t lonely and that we aren’t drowning in a sea of pain. But, what if someone could look inside and know the truth, pull back the mask, reveal the lies that we tell ourselves and know our own truth and what we keep in our heart, it is a frightening thought.

North has crafted a clever, complex, harrowing and thought-provoking story that is full of suspense and tension. The Pursuit of William Abbey spans the breadth of the globe, takes place across many years and is layered with depth. I was gripped by it and found it utterly fascinating. The blurb doesn’t give much away and honestly, I think that it is for the best as it allows you to experience how the story unfolds for yourself with only the bare minimum of information. Prior to reading the book, I had read the blurb and apart from the vague outline, I didn’t know what awaited me within the pages, what dark and disturbing roads the story would travel down. But, whatever I expected it wasn’t what I got with the story going far above and beyond what I envisioned happening and it is a powerhouse of impressive storytelling on display by North…just go buy it, read it and love it.

The Pursuit of William Abbey transcends any single genre to be something more, merging together historical fiction, mysticism and the supernatural, a revenge tale and an espionage thriller with hints of a love story and horror all thrown into the mix to create an incredible and powerful story. ...more

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Dec 28, 2019 Robin Bonne rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: did-not-finish

Yikes on a bike. I don’t want to put the emotional labor into unpacking what is wrong with this narrative. The “magical negro” trope is a big no-no for white authors.

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Nov 11, 2019 Christine Sandquist (eriophora) rated it it was amazing

This review and others can be read on my blog, Black Forest Basilisks. Thank you to Orbit for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I’m convinced: it’s literally impossible for Claire North to write a bad book. I think she’s just genuinely incapable of anything less than excellence. When she writes a sentence, it just comes out good. Every single time. Of this I am certain. Alternatively, there’s the much more mundane and likely scenario: she’s very, very good at proofing, has a ...more

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Dec 09, 2019 Laura Jean rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019, kindle, library, historical-fiction

This is a phenomenal book. It has a strong philosophical bent. What is truth? What is the truth of a person's heart? Can one heart contain multiple conflicting "truths"? So powerful and thought provoking. I can't imagine the author choosing a better time to set this masterpiece. Set between 1884 and 1917, a time when people believed that science and reason could master all, but when magic and superstition were still strong in many cultures. A time when the British Empire covered 3/4 of the globe ...more

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Nov 29, 2019 Roy rated it liked it

3.5* recently when I've read a North book ive been a little underwhelmed. We have the great prose shes known for, a more linear plot style and a story very well researched ( historical fiction elements). I just didnt feel as engaged as I did with her previous stories.

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Nov 12, 2019 Hiu Gregg rated it really liked it

Review to come!

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Nov 17, 2019 Joanna Park rated it really liked it

This was a fascinating, gripping and thought provoking read. I always enjoy this author’s books as they are always very unique reads. The Pursuit Of William Abbey is no exception as it manages to be part historical, part science fiction but does this incredibly well so it’s never confusing.

The story intrigued me from the start with an interesting opening and I soon found myself drawn into the story. The writing is beautiful and very vivid with some fabulous descriptions of the places that ...more

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Nov 11, 2019 Lel Budge rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: compulsive-readers

William Abbey witness the killing of a young child by a mob of white men in South Africa, he did nothing to help.

The child’s mother, after seeing her sons last breath curses William, the child’s shadow will follow him for the rest of his life…..if it catches up to him, someone he loves will die.

William starts travelling to keep ahead of the shadow, he can also hear people’s inner truthful thoughts and has no choice but to then speak them out loud. He’s now a truth-teller and as a result various ...more

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Nov 18, 2019 Onceinabluemoon rated it really liked it

Very different, upsettingly graphic at times to the atrocities against mankind...

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Nov 19, 2019 Melanie’s reads rated it it was amazing

In trying to read out of my comfort zone I’m saying yes to books that previously I wouldn’t have picked up. Historical fiction and fantasy being the two I really avoided. This book covers both and I’m so glad I made the decision to give it a try.

In the opening chapters set in Jardin du Pansee, just miles from the frontline in 1917, we meet Dr William Abbey at a French hospital as he recounts his story to Sister Ellis. The dead and dying all around this is a brutal introduction to the reality of ...more

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Nov 04, 2019 Susan Hampson rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

The more I read this book and the more the cover became perfect for the story. The story began in 1884 and my skin crawled as arrogant white men showed no respect for the native South African people. They are seen as not human, having no feelings and being worthless, so when William Abbey, a young doctor, witnesses a Zulu boy being tied to a tree and set on fire he feels nothing for him.
When he is cut from the tree, unrecognisable his mother holds him while he still fights to breathe. When she ...more

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Nov 19, 2019 Kate rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favourites-read-in-2019, out-in-2019-and-read

I'm a huge fan of Claire North's work - The Gameshouse is one of my very favourite reads of 2019, a masterpiece. With William Abbey we're given another intriguing, clever and original piece of speculative fiction, which is also extremely moving. It provides damning comment on the evils of empire and of a society in which one stands back, watches horrendous injustice committed and does nothing. This isn't my favourite of North's work - I found it a little repetitive and thought that it stalled on ...more

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Dec 04, 2019 Paul rated it it was amazing

The premise is simple, Doctor William Abbey stood back and let a horrific event occur, making himself complicit by his inaction. His penance? To be forever followed by a ghost who will kill someone Abbey loves if it catches up with him. There is more, however. Abbey is also cursed to know the truth of people’s hearts. Not that sanitized version of the truth that we portray to the outside world. The pure, undiluted truth that people often deny within themselves.

…mankind loves to be sure. To know. The premise is simple, Doctor William Abbey stood back and let a horrific event occur, making himself complicit by his inaction. His penance? To be forever followed by a ghost who will kill someone Abbey loves if it catches up with him. There is more, however. Abbey is also cursed to know the truth of people’s hearts. Not that sanitized version of the truth that we portray to the outside world. The pure, undiluted truth that people often deny within themselves.

…mankind loves to be sure. To know. We cling to the most irrational truths like cornerstones in the houses of our lives.

The novel begins at the tail end of the 19th century, during the twilight of the British Empire, and the politics of the era plays an important part. Abbey’s curse is, in part, a result of his own self-righteousness. He is a doctor and a gentlemen, and as part of the Empire he cannot ever be wrong, can he? Of course, that bold statement could not be further from the truth. Rather than embracing cultural differences, Britain spent centuries subsuming it. Some would argue we still do, and I’m not sure that they’re wrong. Since a young age, Abbey was taught that the strong destroy the weak. He is sent out into the world sure of his moral superiority. We’re reminded that the greatness of Great Britain, the rampant imperialism, was built by the suppression and suffering of indigenous cultures at every turn. Being in thrall to the truth, Abbey is forced to confront the failings of his upbringing, his culture. He is exposed to the pettiness and land grabs of the rich and powerful.

In order to survive, Abbey travels the world, always moving forward, attempting to stay ahead of his ghostly tormentor. He learns that he can never slow down, never settle. Its mesmerising watching the narrative unfold. This is a man doing everything he can to escape what seems to be inevitable. At some point his curse will catch up with him and someone Abbey loves will die. In many respects, the novel becomes a character study of a man driven by his conflicting emotions. Abbey’s internal journey, which is just as riveting as his physical travels, explores his deep regret. This all sounds terribly downbeat, but I assure you that it’s not. There are moments that feel genuinely life affirming. Hope, and the prospect of redemption, are just as powerful a motivating force as self-pity and guilt.

There is that old saying that the truth sets you free. North’s writing suggests otherwise. Ultimate truth can be a prison, especially when the vast majority of people would rather not know. Most of us are quite happy with our own version of the truth. It is the bedrock we use as the basis for entire existence. Somewhere, in the deep, dark recesses of our mind there is an awareness that we’re spinning context to fit our worldview but we all still do it.

I’m struck once again by how North’s writing so elegantly picks apart the human condition. We’re all a conflicted hodge podge of good and bad, dark and light. Abbey’s story and his burden promote introspection at every level. Could I even cope with such an all-encompassing view of humanity? At first glance, the prospect of knowing the truth of human hearts might appeal but I don’t think that would last. Too many people live quite comfortably in their own truths. A hard dose of reality may be too much to bear. Perhaps that is ultimately what the author is trying to teach us. We do need to embrace the truth, however painful it can be, it’s the only way we can evolve.

As an aside, why aren’t the BBC, Netflix or Amazon not adapting this for the screen right now? Rather than a reboot, a reimagining or a sequel I’d much rather see something blisteringly original like this. Just a suggestion in case you are listening out there TV powers-that-be.

Look, I know I’m gushing a little* but it cheers my heart when I discover fiction that challenges me, that makes me question how I view my place in the world. Claire North’s writing consistently provokes such a response and I remain a little in awe because of it. The themes explored are timeless. In these days of political misinformation, spin, fake news and outright lies, the need for untarnished truth feels like it is more important than ever.

*Ok, a lot. ...more

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Nov 28, 2019 John Rennie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I enjoyed this book, but I think it is a book that will divide opinion and some people won't like it at all. So what I'm going to try to do here is help you decide whether to buy it by explaining why you may or may not like it.

This isn't a plot driven book. The story is rather slight and meandering and in the end nothing much happens. The point of the book is for Claire North to explore the inhumanity of humans to other humans and how we justify it to ourselves. In this respect it feels much ...more

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Jan 11, 2020 Pam Patterson added it

I think i've found my genre, at least my genre for now. Historical, magical realism and a great story about humans. The Pursuit of William Abbey is a good mystery and a good story. What fascinated me the most was the idea that being about read another person's "truth" doesn't exactly get you the "truth" but their version of it. It's more like having everyone else's committee speaking in your head - how god awful that would be. My own committee is noisy enough. I found the nurse a necessary ...more

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Jan 01, 2020 Ekmef rated it it was amazing

This book really has the same atmosphere as 'the 15 lives of Harry August'. It uses one 'magical' aspect to show the complexities of the world. So this is almost not a novel but rather a lots of philosophical musings on the nature of knowledge and truth. Sometimes the plot creeps through and you can't put it away anymore, sometimes you're mesmerized by the wisdom within the main character's rambles. This book is an experience - don't try to think to hard about whether it would actually make ...more

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Oct 20, 2019 Claire rated it it was amazing

William Abbey is a white man living in Victorian Era South Africa. A South Africa that is torn apart by white colonists and he's blind to the suffering surrounding him from the native Africans. Until he is cursed to see the truth in everyone's heart. The curse takes the shape of a boy who he watched on the sidelines as a mob burned him. Whenever that shadow of the boy reunites with him, someone he loves dies. So William Abbey has to run. All the time. This leads to him to become a spy for ...more

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Jan 04, 2020 Straw rated it liked it

Maybe I will only really enjoy one book by this author?! About done with trying the new ones.

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Jan 14, 2020 Sandra Burke rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical, audio-book, paranormal

Claire North comes up with the most amazing concepts for her stories and this doesn't disappoint in that respect. She uses a fantastical situation and a thriller of a story to make us question the nature of truth.

The only reason I didn't give it five stars was that I couldn't find within me any emotion for the main protagonist, the eponymous William Abbey. The perfection of Touch and The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August wasn't achieved for me in this book.

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Dec 28, 2019 Kat Hooper rated it liked it

Will review at www.fantasyliterature.com.

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Jan 04, 2020 Elaine rated it liked it

I loved The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, and I thought the writing in this book was excellent, but boy, it was a lot of talking... Not dialogue so much. Just talking.

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Aug 08, 2019 David Harris rated it it was amazing

I'm grateful to Orbit for a free advance reading copy of The Pursuit of William Abbey to read as part of the book's blogtour.

A new book by Claire North is always a very special event in my reading calendar, and William Abbey didn't disappoint.

In something of the same vein as the Flying Dutchman, this is a tale of a man cursed after an act of selfishness. William Abbey is a mediocre doctor in 19th century Africa, banished to the colonies after falling for the wrong girl. The sin that curses him I'm grateful to Orbit for a free advance reading copy of The Pursuit of William Abbey to read as part of the book's blogtour.

A new book by Claire North is always a very special event in my reading calendar, and William Abbey didn't disappoint.

In something of the same vein as the Flying Dutchman, this is a tale of a man cursed after an act of selfishness. William Abbey is a mediocre doctor in 19th century Africa, banished to the colonies after falling for the wrong girl. The sin that curses him is that, when he comes face to face with the lawless racket that is Empire, he is indifferent to an act of savagery. No more and no less indifferent than countless others - but it's Abbey who doesn't act at a particular moment when a boy, Langa, is lynched, Abbey who refuses to help him as he lies dying, and Abbey who Langa's mother curses. I took him as emblematic, perhaps, of the "nothing to do with me" attitude to colonialism and historical crimes.

Under the curse, Abbey suffers a strange, dual fate: everyone he loves is doomed to a terrible death, unless he outruns Langa's spirit. As the spirit comes closer, Abbey is able to read the truths in men's (and women's) hearts. When Langa is really close, Abbey can't help but proclaim those truths. When Langa reaches him, someone dies.

So the endless chase begins.

Langa is not quick, but he is relentless, crossing land and sea, mountain and desert. Abbey has no special resources save his ability to discern truths - but in a fevered world, building up to the Great War, this may be a sought after skill. Or it may be one that will just get William Abbey into an even worse heap of trouble.

Langa comes, he comes...

I loved this story. It is not a pleasant read: North doesn't spare us the realities of colonialism or war, or indeed of the grinding, chaotic lives of the poor (for example, the brutalities of the British in India or the hatreds and prejudices that set new immigrants to the USA against each other, instead of the system that keeps them all poor). More prosaically, Abbey isn't a sympathetic character or one it's easy to spend time in the head of. And Abbey's ability - his curse - perhaps his blessing - allows him, requires him, to tap into streams of truth variously banal, tragic, desperate and revealing. It is, if you will, an all-areas tour of 19th century politics and society. And that means, of course, our politics and society because we are not different people now, are we?

Here are revolutionaries and spies. Thieves and shamans. The poor and the very, very rich. Lovers and blackmailers. Ordinary people clinging on, and people whose way of life is being erased. North's imagination, demonstrated in her peopling of the book, is simply astounding as is her gradual, layer-by-layer portrayal of Abbey himself - presenting not only the naive young man who travels to Africa to be cursed, but the older, cynical operator after decades on the run. And, of course, the gradual process that turns one into the other.

It's a story, I think, of an awakening morality, a gathering empathy as Abbey goes from despair and a desire to be "cured" of his shadow - to "apologise", be "forgiven" and receive some kind of proxy absolution - to a deep appreciation of the ways of the world and a recognition of his part in it, not only in the death of Langa but in the system that produced that death. Meeting other bearers of the same terrible burden, he understands that some see it as a a blessing and actually seek it out.

The morality here is complex. North wants to show, I think, that merely feeling shame, regret, horror, at atrocity is not enough. Distancing oneself from vile events is not enough. (If Twitter had been invented in Abbey's time, I suspect his early travels would have been accompanied by a #NotAllEnglishmen hashtag...) But the search for an alternative is hard. Early on, Abbey hooks up with those who may be able to explain his condition, even cure it. But Langa still comes. Attempts to promote justice and the cause of the "people" don't go far. Sidetracking into personal revenge leads Abbey to the situation framed by the opening of the book, with him as a doctor in the First World War, meeting Sister Ellis, a young nurse at a field hospital - and it's her who, perhaps, brings some moral sense back to Abbey. Ellis herself is fascinating, a woman of humble origins who, like Abbey, fell for the wrong person and who's basically conned her way into the aristocratic club of the Nightingale nurses. Her background gives her, perhaps, a perspective that Abbey - for all his truth telling - has missed. But will it be enough to save him (whatever that means)?

This is a blistering book, a magnificent read, a book with real moral heart, burning with anger and freighted with inconvenient truths. It's a book that will continue to burn away in your mind long after you finish it, that will follow you, steadily, relentlessly, even if you try to leave it behind.

Very, very strongly recommended, and up there with North's best writing. ...more

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Oct 09, 2019 Joe Jones rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, thriller, mystery, horror, fantasy, romance

Claire North is one of those authors who immediately jumps to the top of my tbr pile. This one did not disappoint. Horror, Thriller, Romance with exquisite writing and an original plot. I could not have asked for more.

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About Claire North

Claire North

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Claire North is actually Catherine Webb, a Carnegie Medal-nominated young-adult novel author whose first book, Mirror Dreams, was written when she was just 14 years old. She went on to write seven more successful YA novels.

Claire North is a pseudonym for adult fantasy books written by Catherine Webb, who also writes under the pseudonym Kate Griffin.

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“Perhaps you don’t hate the British,” I mused. “Perhaps it is simply injustice.” “Of course!” she tutted, not turning her head from her examination of the road before us. “Of course it is injustice! But when injustice wears the same pasty face, you make connections, no? It is not truth. It is simply how the heart works.” — 0 likes

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