Islands of Mercy

by Rose Tremain

She was ‘The Angel of the Baths’, the one woman whose touch everybody yearned for. Yet she would do more. She was certain of that.

In the city of Bath, in the year 1865, an extraordinary young woman renowned for her nursing skills is convinced that some other destiny will one day show itself to her. But when she finds herself torn between a dangerous affair with a female lover and the promise of a conventional marriage to an apparently respectable doctor, her desires begin to lead her towards a future she had never imagined.

Meanwhile, on the wild island of Borneo, an eccentric British ‘rajah’, Sir Ralph Savage, overflowing with philanthropy but compromised by his passions, sees his schemes relentlessly undermined by his own fragility, by man’s innate greed and by the invasive power of the forest itself.

Jane’s quest for an altered life and Sir Ralph’s endeavours become locked together as the story journeys across the globe – from the confines of an English tearoom to the rainforests of a tropical island via the slums of Dublin and the transgressive fancy-dress boutiques of Paris.

Islands of Mercy is a novel that ignites the senses, and is a bold exploration of the human urge to seek places of sanctuary in a pitiless world.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, LGBT, Historical, Audiobook, Lesbian, Queer

368 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2020

About the author

Dame Rose Tremain is an acclaimed English novelist and short story writer, celebrated for her distinctive approach to historical fiction and her focus on characters who exist on the margins of society. Educated at the Sorbonne and the University of East Anglia, where she later taught creative writing and served as Chancellor, Tremain has produced a rich body of work spanning novels, short stories, plays, and memoir. Influenced by writers such as William Golding and Gabriel García Márquez, her narratives often blend psychological depth with lyrical prose.
Among her many honors, she has received the Whitbread Award for Music and Silence, the Orange Prize for The Road Home, and the National Jewish Book Award for The Gustav Sonata. She was shortlisted for the Booker Prize for Restoration and has been recognized multiple times by the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. In 2020, she was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire for her services to literature. Tremain lives in Norfolk and continues to write, with her recent novel Absolutely and Forever shortlisted for the 2024 Walter Scott Prize.

Reviews

[Clara · Rating 4 out of 5]

The audiobook is narrated by Katie McGrath. Do I really need to say more ?

[Beata · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another grand offering by Ms Tremain!
A novel which has several protagonists, all so different and peculiar and interconnected, and who are special in their own ways, and who seek something or run away from something.
The year is 1865, and Clorinda Morrissey leaves Dublin to seek fortune in Bath. Jane Adearne, a nurse called the Angel of Bath, helps the infirm to regain their health. Valentine Ross, a surgeon working together with Sir William Adearne, Jane's father, decides to 'pop a question' to Jane. Valentine's brother, Edmund, travels to Borneo to expand his knowledge on botany. These are the moments when the real quest begins for the characters.
I found the descriptions of all paces vivid and, together with insight into social and moral aspects, Ms Tremain managed to provide an authentic feel of the places and times.
I suppose while reading, Clorinda Morressey won my heart. She is poor, yet she wants to be an independent woman, not willing to be a servant, and with money she receives from selling family heirloom, she establishes herself in the centre of Bath. The path she chooses is not the easiest for a woman in Victorian England, and yet she succeeds, not only in her business.
Beautiful narration and the need to find out how they will develop made this story unputdownable for me.
Many thanks to Rose Tremain, Random House UK, and NetGalley for arc in exchange for my honest review.*

[Sofi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Katie McGrath’s power ✨

[Ceecee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This ambitious novel takes us from Dublin to Bath with Clorinda Morrissey, from Bath to London and Paris with ‘the Angel of Bath’ Jane Adearne and to Borneo with Sir Ralph Savage and Edmund Ross, brother of Valentine Ross, the would be husband of Jane. The year is 1865.

First of all, this is extremely well written as you would expect from a writer of the calibre of Rose Tremain. It beautifully and almost forensically reflects the times - it’s social mores, beliefs, attitudes, the scientific understanding and medical beliefs in particular, as this is intrinsic to the storytelling. The female characters are admirable- I love Clorinda’s work ethic and desire to overcome the poverty and famine of her native Ireland, I love Jane’s independence and unconventionality which is at total odds with the times, something she perhaps inherits from her artist Aunt Emmeline. The Male characters are less likeable with perhaps the exception of Jane’s father Sir William Adearne an eminent Bath surgeon. Valentine Ross gets less and less likeable as the book progresses as he perceives he will not be able to control Jane. I’m not sure what to make of The Rajah Sir Ralph Savage who is so rich he spends his money on pointless things just because he can - maybe that’s the point! All the characters are searching for something that’s possibly elusive and unattainable - be it love (whether of the kind at odds with society at the time), friendship, freedom, some are ambitious and ruthless in seeking their desires but all are trying to survive the constraints of the times and circumstances. There are some lovely descriptions of places especially Bath, London and the Paris of Haussmann but I found it harder to engage with Borneo. This is also true of the storytelling set in Borneo which I find less interesting and overlong.

Overall, it’s Jane's story I love the most. I like everything about her from her 6’ 2” stature, her independence and unconventional attitude to life which is a pretty tricky thing in the reign of Victoria!

With thanks to NetGalley and Random House, UK, Vintage (Chatto and Windus) for the ARC.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Katie McGrath narrating this book made the entire experience so much better, and I'd gladly sign a petition for her to narrate more books.
That being said, this book in itself was magnificent. I loved everything about it, from the characters to their different plots and the writing, chefs' kiss. This was my first Tremain book and I am so glad I came across her. I can't describe it but her writing made me feel some way and I want to feel that way again.
Part of the plot being about life and somehow finding yourself and making something out of yourself hit differently and resonated with me, that's one of the reasons I loved this book. The various protagonists were so different but similar in that they were all on the path to somewhere, searching for something or getting away from something. They were all so unique to their own story. I loved that I did not have a constant feeling or any of them, it kept changing. I relate to Jane in particular. Her coming to terms with how she really feels, who she is, and knowing that she's destined for something but not sure what, speaks to me and I see parts of me in her. It's been a while since I saw myself in a character and Jane will for sure stay with me for a while.
I'm so glad this book exists and that Katie McGrath narrated it.

[SueLucie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a fan of Rose Tremain’s writing and wondered why I wasn’t taking to this novel as much as I had expected to. The quality of her writing is undiminished - she is an expert at capturing landscape and cityscape, and characters’ thoughts and feelings, I just didn’t engage with those characters. Of them all, perhaps Clorinda’s journey was the most captivating - she is intuitive, honest with herself and others, driven to better her own and others’ lives. Jane and the Rajah in their own ways hope to do this too, of course, and struggling with personal or social circumstances while keeping one’s own integrity forms a major theme of the novel. I enjoyed all that very much. But I found the Borneo strand far too removed from the British and Irish elements to make a cohesive story and I could have done without it altogether. A little disappointing overall.

With thanks to Random House Vintage via NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So first of all, I listened to it on Audible, cause hearing Katie McGrath amazing voice acting out the dialogues and everything made my whole month (I might be in love honestly).
Now the development of Jane is just *chef's kiss* and the story telling is just amazing. Every characters are intertwined and each chapters brings out a whole other side of their respective stories.
I found that they were nearly all relatively good characters on the moral front (jury's still out on Leon) EXCEPT Dr. Valentine Ross that I hate with all of my heart. (Be careful if you get triggered easily by abuse/violence against women as I do, it's not a central part of the story but it's there).

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I dont know if I d grab this book to read of my own volition, coz this is not always the genre I prefer, to be honest, but finding out it was narrated by wonderful Katie McGrath, spurred me on to get the audio version of the book. Just started it, but I ll properly comment on it when I finish it...

So the book is finished, I mean the audiobook version and I can now just go around yapping how talented Miss McGrath is cause she truly is! Listening to her I really had an experience many people narrated the book... Wow she is so versatile and... I am wowed!
For the content of the book, plot, characters, I have to say I have enjoyed the build up of the book, the progress and I like how the author decided to finish the book and where she led her characters to in the end... Somehow I feel that at least justice had been served...

Not to mention the power the book exude in the richness of truly courageous and powerful female characters who defy the patriaarchy, society expectations and opressions! You cannot but love and respect each and one of them in their own rights!
Now I hope to get a paperback one day and reread the book for myself....

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this! This a story of self determination and life paths chosen; what are the driving forces of our lives? What motivates? What holds us back? The characters are well drawn, the settings, Ireland, Bath and Borneo. The women seem stronger than the men, capable of rolling with life’s punches, while the men seem rather ineffectual. Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved everything by Rose Tremain that I read so far, but this one leaves me with some mixed feelings.
The story of Islands of mercy consists of two narratives. One takes place in Victorian Bath, and the other on the exotic island of Borneo. Both loosely connected by a family link between brothers Edmund and Valentine Ross.
In Bath, a renown surgeon Sir William Adeane runs his practice with the help of his daughter Jane and a medical doctor Valentine Ross. In Borneo, Valentines brother and a naturalist - Edmund Ross, searches for rare specimen to send home and impress his countrymen, while a British Raja - Sir Ralph Savage, who by chance becomes his host, burns with desire to achieve some unspecified good on his lands.
While the part of the story situated in Bath reads like a classic Rose Tremain, with well developed characters and captivating stories, the Borneo plot seems to populated by flat-ish, lost individuals in desperate search for an elusive meaning of their existence. Maybe it is the absurdity and pointlessness of it all, that brings to mind Paul Theroux’ The Mosquito coast, which I by the way intensely disliked, that is to blame for my negative attitude to the Borneo plot? Or maybe it is just that it makes me feel just as lost as the characters which is rather unTremainesque?
So Borneo plot - not a favorite, Bath, much better. I feel as if I missed something thought, I would have liked to know Rose Tremain’s thoughts and reasons behind pursuing the Borneo side of a story. And although I am not entirely satisfied (hesitant four stars), it will certainly not keep me away from other books by Ms Tremain.

[theresa]

I put this book down at 8% after reading the first four chapters. Unfortunately, I couldn't get past the writing style. The author has attempted to emulate the typical writing and narrative styles of the 19th century, when the book is set, which has resulted in a rather dry and, to put it bluntly, boring book (as far as I read). Nothing about the first few chapters gripped me and the way certain themes were handled and discussed (such as miscarriages) made me uncomfortable. To be entirely honest, I have other books I would rather read and forcing myself to continue with a book I wasn't enjoying would be unproductive.

*eARC received in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley*

[charlotte, · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rep: lesbian mc, bi li, gay mc, Malay side characters

CWs: period typical racism, descriptions of surgery, gore, domestic violence, miscarriage, suicide

it had very little character development, events just happen one after the next, notably jane meets julietta once and suddenly they're in love and having an affair. also the parts set in malaysia were a mess and didn't add anything to the story. not that there was much of a story tbf. and to top it off, we of course had to have a lesbian beaten to almost death by the man she's supposed to marry

fun.

[Carolyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very much looking forward to this new novel by Rose Tremain and to begin with I thought I would really love it. She creates a delightful character in Irish Clorinda Morrissey who remakes her life in Bath in the 1860s. Then we meet Jane Adeane, who works as a nurse with her father and is known as ‘the Angel of the Baths’. It seemed to me that Tremain was showing us how, in the midst of trouble, illness and despair, there are ‘islands of mercy’ in the small things of life. A friendly hand, a cream tea, sunshine through the mist.

However, the novel increasingly disappointed me. I did finish it but felt that most of the characters remained one-dimensional. The steamy love affair between Jane and another woman could have been shown in a more thoughtful way, exploring the difficulties of women lovers in that historical period. The parts of the novel set in Borneo (and there were a lot of them) also seemed to have little to do with her theme. They were not islands of mercy, far from it. I felt increasingly distanced from her stories and her characters. Rose Tremain novels seem to fall into two categories for me. The contemporary ones, which I’ve admired, and her historical novels which just haven’t engaged me, after their initial promise.

[scribble · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to start off by saying that I listened to the audiobook but I couldn’t find it here on goodreads so yeah. Not gonna lie, I came here for Katie McGrath’s narration but the writing made me stay as well! I genuinely don’t want to go over each and every aspect I love about this book because then I’d have to write an essay the length of the book itself. However, Jane herself and her relation with other characters (but, especially with Julietta) was -as Katie would say- delicious.

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5, rounded up - mainly for the beauty of Tremain's writing. She is incredibly gifted and I have been impressed with the few novels by her that I read. Unfortunately, I have mixed feelings here with the story itself, whether it worked, whether or not Tremain achieved her intended goal. Still, an entertaining read overall which should appeal to readers that like to slip into the Victorian world.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Katie McGrath's narration was the saving grace as I had to switch from the book to the audio in order to finish it. I so wanted to enjoy this as we need more queer fiction but this was difficult to get through in terms of the writing style, the plot, the under-developed characters. Then villainizing the straight guy basically makes it seem like she's gay because of that and not simply the fact that she is gay. It had potential but I did not feel it delivered.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

The slightly odd title tells you a lot about what Tremain is doing in this 14th novel. Often at the mercy of forces internal and external, her outcast characters look for places where they can find rest and refuge after a time of suffering. Will they, in turn, extend mercy? The split perspective and the focus on people who have to hide their sexuality are most similar to her Sacred Country. The Victorian tip of the hat is mostly directed, I think, to George Eliot; of recent work, I was reminded of The Doll Factory and The Essex Serpent. I especially liked Jane’s painter aunt, Emmeline, and Clorinda, the Irish woman whose opening of a tearoom sets the plot going. The settings are surprising and vivid, and if Tremain doesn’t quite bring them and their story lines together seamlessly, she is still to be applauded for her ambition. This is probably my joint favorite of her novels that I’ve read so far, with The Road Home.

Favorite lines:

“We must be unconventional in our joys and find them wherever we can.”

“life, so often so cruel in the way it thrust the human soul into prisons from which there seemed to be no escape, could sometimes place it athwart an open door.”


Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.

[Marta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Katie Mcgrath 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting, engaging historical fiction novel set mostly in Bath, England and Borneo in 1865. In Bath, Jane Adearne, a tall young nurse, works with Valentine Ross, a doctor. Valentine proposes marriage to Jane but she refuses to marry him, leaving Bath to go to London. In Borneo are Sir Ralph Savage and Edmund Ross, brother of Valentine. Sir Ralph is very rich and spends his money trying to do good in Borneo. Edmund goes off into the jungle on a nature expedition.

Jane falls in love with a married woman and they have a strong sexual relationship. Jane decides to go back to Bath where her father lives to help her father and her aunt Emmeline, a painter. In Bath Jane decides to marry Valentine because she believes she would like to have a child. Things do not go to plan.

This is the sixth Rose Tremain novel I have read. I find her to be a very good historical fiction writer and have found all six novels interesting and satisfying reading experiences.

This book was first published in 2020.

[Ruba Nassereldeen ربى ناصرالدين · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started this book as it was narrated by the one and only Katie McGrath, and it didn’t disappoint.

I fell head over heels with this book, I was so invested in the story that lived in the year 1865, I have traveled between London, Bath and Borneo with each character. Feeling uneven and nervous with every situation and decision.
The development of the characters is so realistic and relatable.

Highly recommend for anyone who likes to take charge, wants to enjoy their lives without being judged or regrets.

[auserlesenes · Rating 3 out of 5]

England und Borneo in den 1860er-Jahren: Als „Engel der Bäder“ wird die 25-jährige Jane Adeane für ihre Künste als Krankenschwester verehrt. Sie arbeitet zusammen mit ihrem Vater William, einem angesehenen Lungenarzt. Auch dessen jüngerer Kollege, der 35-jährige Valentine Ross, ist mit der jungen Frau in Bath tätig. Gerne würde der junge Mediziner sie zu seiner Ehefrau machen. Doch Jane fühlt sich vielmehr zu der in London lebenden Julietta Sims, einer verheirateten Mutter, hingezogen. Währenddessen hat sich Valentines Bruder Edmund, ein Naturforscher, auf ein gefährliches Abenteuer im Dschungel Borneos begeben...

„Die innersten Geheimnisse der Welt“ ist ein Roman von Rose Tremain.

Meine Meinung:
Der Roman besteht aus vier Teilen, die wiederum aus mehreren kurzen Kapiteln zusammengesetzt sind. Erzählt wird in chronologischer Reihenfolge aus einer Art auktorialer Perspektive. Dabei gibt es verschiedene Erzählstränge, in denen der Leser an wechselnden Schauplätzen die Ereignisse um Jane, Valentine, Edmund und Clorinda verfolgt.

Auffällig ist der detaillierte, antiquiert und etwas prätentiös anmutende Schreibstil mit seinen verschachtelten Sätzen, viel indirekter Rede und ausschweifenden Beschreibungen. Er macht das Lesen zum Teil ein wenig anstrengend und sorgt dafür, dass sich die Geschichte nur langsam entrollt.

Im Fokus des Romans stehen die vorgenannten vier Protagonisten, für die ich mit Ausnahme von Clorinda keine Sympathie aufbringen konnte. Insgesamt fiel es mir schwer, einen Zugang zu den Personen der Geschichte zu finden, weil ein Großteil der Charaktere zwar ungewöhnlich, aber auch ein wenig schablonenhaft wirkt. Gestört habe ich mich auch daran, dass Figuren wie Jane, Valentine und Leon als egoistisch und eingebildet ausgestaltet sind. So gelang es mir nicht, mit den Charakteren mitzufühlen.

Ein Plus sind dagegen das schöne Setting und die thematischen Schwerpunkte der Geschichte. Einerseits geht es um die weibliche Emanzipation und sexuelle Selbstbestimmung in einer Zeit, in der beides nicht vorgesehen war. Darin liegt eine der großen Stärken des Romans. Homosexualität bei Frauen und bei Männern zieht sich durch das gesamte Buch. Andererseits wird der Leser in die viktorianische Epoche im exotischen Borneo versetzt, wo sich eine völlig andere Welt als in England auftut. Beides bietet inhaltlich eine Menge Abwechslung und Unterhaltungswert. Leider hat mich die Umsetzung dieser Themen jedoch nicht ganz überzeugen können. Unter anderem sind die Schilderungen der sexuellen Eskapaden für mein Empfinden zu sehr ausgeufert und die Darstellungen dabei oft eher abstoßend geraten. Darüber hinaus ist der Borneo betreffende Erzählstrang immer wieder etwas langatmig und schöpft sein Potenzial nicht aus.

Das Cover der gebundenen Ausgabe macht optisch etwas her und trifft meinen Geschmack. Der deutsche Titel weicht stark vom Original („Islands of Mercy“) ab, ist aber ebenso ein wenig zu nebulös.

Mein Fazit:
Mit „Die innersten Geheimnisse der Welt“ hat Rose Tremain einen ungewöhnlichen und thematisch reizvollen Roman verfasst, der meinen Erwartungen nicht in Gänze entspricht, aber dennoch unterhalten kann.

[Floor tussendeboeken · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the perspective of Jane more than the perspective of the Rajah. But overall I quite enjoyed this book. I think I should read historical fiction more often.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I have felt for years that there was much more to say about the psychic distance between west and east and those who tried to make that journey in the 19th century.” Rose Tremain"

Set in late 1800's Ireland, Bath, London and Borneo, this is the story of a community of people whose lives intersect in the town of Bath, a dual narrative of events concerning those who live there and the efforts of two men in Borneo with ambitions slightly at cross purposes.

As I reread Tremain's quote above, and wonder about the journey's taken by some of the characters, I realise the irony too in the different paths of what a journey west to east meant. For an ambitious woman travelled from Ireland to England and a man from England to Southeast Asia's Malay archipalego.

The novel opens with the ambitious young woman Clorinda, who travels west to east, from Ireland to Bath, and after some months of work realising she is unlikely to raise her status to where she strives, she sells her family inheritance, a necklace of rubies, to purchase rooms she turns into a salon de thé, where society can mix and gather and she can listen and observe.

One afternoon she observes a couple in earnest conversation, until the young woman abruptly gets up to leave, having taken neither her tea or cake.

The young woman Jane, is known locally as 'Angel of the Baths', Jane, the daughter of the esteemed Doctor Adeane, for her therapeutic treatments and hands on healing that relieve the aches of the body, the pains of their souls and her voice of encouragement leading them to bathe in the waters of Bath.

The young man is Valentine Ross, also a Doctor, who works for her father. His brother, inspired by Darwin and passionate about nature, is on an expedition and has just arrived where the second part of the narrative takes place, seeking refuge with an Englishman Sir Ralph Savage, referred to as Rajah Sir on the island of Borneo, where he has gifted a parcel of land in return for favours to the Sultan of Brunei, built himself an impressive mansion and is infatuated by a local man Leon, who harbours ambitions of his own.

After this encounter with Valentine, Jane goes to London to spend time with her childless, unmarried, financially independent Aunt Emmilene, an artist. She is like a mother to Jane and it is during this visit that Jane discovers more of the essence of who she is, an aspect captured by her Aunt in a portrait she sits for. The events that unfold create a significant dilemma for Jane, that she must navigate.

The world, Jane already knew, reeked horribly of old, exhausted things. Day could follow day without a single original or exciting moment stirring her pulse. But now Aunt Emmeline - by far the most exceptional and independent person the Adeane family - was going to reveal something new.

Sir Ralph is intent on improving what the Creator has given him telling his lover that he wished to go down in history as one who had 'enabled happiness'. Leon advises him to begin by building a road.

'A road to where?' Sir Ralph had asked.
'Sir Raff,' said Leon? 'There is no "where" in Sarawak. There is only Nature. Men begin; Nature finishes.'
'Then what is the point of the road?'
'The point of the road is to try to be'.

At a certain point while reading, when I thought of all the female characters, and realised how strongly independent all of them were, and looked at the relationships they had to the men around them, I wondered if this novel was actually satire. For most of the yearning and longing is done by the male characters, the female characters are all strong and given the era and location, none of them sit around in parlours pining for suitors, they're too busy creating their lives, working and supporting each other.

It highlights some of the issues of that era, but does so with a cast of characters that are not stereotypical, which makes it all the more interesting to read, because it defies expectation and presents an alternate scenario by focusing on those who defy convention, transgressing this straight-laced, Victorian society daring to live in ways outside mainstream society and getting away with it.

At one point there is even a conversation between Jane and her friends in London, where they discuss literature, a french author's novel is set in a morgue and asks a lot of the reader, not least a strong stomach, they note there is nothing like it in England.

The French and the Russians are the only writers who follow a dark road like this one. Because they have no fear of scandal, no fear of fear. They show human life in all its difficulty. And they know that readers are wolves.
'Wolves? I have never thought of them like that. Do you think tMiss Austen's readers are wolfish?
'Yes, Even they. They tear at the flesh of her stories. They love to see the wicked punished or humiliated. Do we not gloat when Fanny Price rejects Henry Crawford in Mansfield Park?

It was an enjoyable read, albeit at times perplexing, because I kept asking myself questions about what the author was doing, when I realised and read more closely the difference in attitudes and dialogue of the male versus female characters.

[David Lowther · Rating 5 out of 5]

Islands of Mercy is a superb novel set in the latish 19th.century in a variety of locations; Bath, London, Dublin, Paris, West coast of Ireland and Borneo. It is, first and foremost, a magnificent story. It has a cast list of many, all of whom are fascinating and beautifully drawn. The prose is simple and totally prescriptive and the narrative frequently exciting.

Islands of Mercy is also an erotic novel. All the sex scenes are between characters of the same sex except, occasionally, reference is made to heterosexual pairings. The narrative is thrilling made more exciting by constant changes engineered by the author with frequently leaves the reader uncertain with whom to empathise.

After reading Rose Tremain's previous novel The Gustava Sonata, I pronounced that to be the best novel written in the English language so far in this century. I've not changed my view but, after reading Islands of Mercy, I had to think long and hard.

David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen, Two Families at War and The Summer of '39, all published by Sacristy Press.

[Andréa Lechner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was delighted to see a new Tremain novel, and intrigued by its title. It soon became apparent that the author wanted to encompass varying interpretations of what might constitute an island of mercy, from Borneo to the tranquillity of a Bath tea house.
Personally, I found the novel disjointed, unable to properly connect the disparate elements in it. An ambitious conceit, but from my point of view not one that was entirely successful.
I would have dispensed with Borneo altogether, since it didn't really add much to the story. As far as I'm concerned, it was much more interesting to delve into the lives of the protagonists in Bath, London and Ireland, and those were in fact the sections of the novel I most enjoyed.

[Afterwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has been a strange but compelling read. The short chapters dealing with one of five or six characters are almost like short stories but of course link up to a larger narrative arc that connects everyone together. This is not like reading a novel but it's not like reading short stories either because it is a novel. I can imagine quite a few readers hating this but it is very engaging and thought-provoking.
But it is hard-going in places like appreciating a series of portraitures in miniature. So 3.5 stars from me.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

An intrigueing combination of characters and locations. From Bath to Dublin to Borneo. Each character had an interesting life - a butterfly collector in Borneo, a respectible tea room in Bath, the 'arty' scene in London and a lesbian affair. This book seemed to have it all!

[Irina · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Ana-Maria Voloc · Rating 3 out of 5]

„Întărea în mintea lui credința că viața, adeseori atât de crudă în felul în care aruncă sufletul omenesc în închisori din care pare să nu existe scăpare, putea uneori să-l aducă în fața unei uși deschise”.

[Marguerite Kaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read any Rose Tremain for a while, and after finishing this one, I wonder why that is? She tells a great story. She has such eccentric and intriguing, if not always likeable characters. She gives you a lovely skewed slant on history. And she has a really brilliant knack of setting up lots of threads and slowly, carefully and beautifully knitting them together towards a highly satisfying story.

This is exactly what Islands of Mercy did for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Jane, the Angel of the Baths, is a Victorian woman who won't be caged by her crinoline. In fact, though this was set in the High Victorian period (which I've been writing for the last while myself) there are very few of the classic props - and that's one of the things I love about Tremain. Instead, we get the medical world of Bath, a place where people have been seeking the cure for hundreds of years, and where quacks mingle with men (and women, in Jane's case) at the forefront of medicine - another of Tremain's recurring themes. We see the mighty engine of progress tamed and traumatised by nature, and the overarching theme of the great wonders of nature and the great ignorance of 'man' is ever-present in this story.

But the people are centre stage. Jane is a woman who believes she has a destiny though she hasn't a clue what that might be - but it's something other than what she has, which is a reputation as a healer. Should she be content, in this repressive patriarchal society, at having so much more than other women - an indulgent father who respects her mind, a doting aunt who encourages her to be herself, and an adoring doctor who wants to marry her? But Jane is not content. She wants more - though the more remains quite undefined. She is waylaid on her journey to 'greatness' by her lover Julietta. Then she is waylaid by thinking she might marry. And then...

Of course the issues of a female role underpinning this story are a big part of why I loved it - Jane is not the only female protagonist to make her way, there is also Clorinda and Jane's aunt. How to combine love and independence is a key question and perhaps, in the case of Clorinda, it's a faff - but then again, there is the dubious morality of Clorinda's start in life. Nothing is simple in this book, and yet it is a very simply told story. And here, I think, is why Rose Tremain is such a masterly storyteller - a linear narrative, several story strands, all of them concluded, giving the reader that happy sigh at the end of it. And then come the questions and the issues and the wondering what if, and whether she meant this, or this - so the story unravels in your mind, and you want to go back and read it again.

If you've never read any Rose Tremain then you are missing out. I loved this.