Roman étonnant et passionnant, avec une pointe d'humour anglais... impossible de lâcher cette histoire pas tout à fait vraisemblable, mais quel régal ! Ce n'est pas de la grande littérature, mais l'important c'est le plaisir que ce livre m'a donné. ( )

Given to me by Alison Cutler 28 Jan 2023

(8.5) The main setting for this book is Bath in England, 1865. Clorinda Morrissey has arrived from an impoverished background in Ireland and wants to start a new. she remembers she has inherited a valuable piece of jewellery, which has been handed down through the generations. Being childless she decides to sell it, to finance her future. She starts her own tearooms which gains in popularity. Most people come to Bath for the waters, enter doctor Sir William Adeane and his nurse, daughter Jane. They are assisted by Dr Valentine Ross. Dr Ross has a younger brother exploring the botany in Borneo. When he falls ill with malaria, he wakes in the mansion of sir Ralph Savage, an eccentric philanthropic British rajah.
The plot weaves between life in the tropics and the city of Bath. After an impromptu proposal by Dr Ross to Jane she flees to her bohemian aunt in London.There she embarks on a journey of self-discovery becoming enamoured of one Julietta Sims, who introduces her to the art of love making.
Without Jane to manage the household, Sir William employs Clorinda to cook for himself and Dr Ross.
We are taken on a journey to Dublin to visit Clorinda's home, the slums of Dublin and the wild Irish coastline.
It is a novel that looks at the rapaciousness of men and the need of all to find a place of sanctuary in a cruel world.
Once again this author has depicted a different place in history and has successfully brought it to life. ( )

In Bath, England in 1865, such are Jane Adeane’s nursing skills that she is known as the Angel of the Baths. ‘Islands of Mercy’ by Rose Tremain is about Jane’s destiny to make something of herself, a journey which involves choosing between a tempestuous love affair with another woman and marriage to a respectable doctor. Being the Angel of the Baths is not enough for her and this impacts on the lives of everyone around her.
‘Islands of Mercy’ is in fact three stories in one, lightly linked together by the merest connection and fleeting physical meeting. The story starts with Clorinda Morrissey who arrives in Bath from Ireland. ‘She was not beautiful, but she had a smile of great sweetness and a soft voice that could soothe and calm the soul’. By selling a ruby necklace, a family heirloom, Clorinda sets up what becomes a highly popular tea room. It is in this tea room that she first sees Jane Adeane who is taking tea with a man. Jane leaves abruptly and Clorinda is curious why. The man concerned is Doctor Valentine Ross, medical partner of Jane’s father Sir William Adeane and brother of naturalist Edmund Ross, currently pursing butterflies in the Malay Archipelago. In this scene, all three storylines are kickstarted.
The narrative moves back and forth from Bath to London, Dublin and Ireland’s west coast to Borneo. Each place is drawn vividly, Tremain is excellent at settings. In her descriptions of heterosexual and homosexual relationships, she explores the social limitations of the time on the free expression of love for men and women. While Jane can explore her own feelings for another woman only in extreme secrecy and risk of rejection by society, in Borneo a rich ‘rajah’ and his dependent servant live openly. Can Jane make her own way in the world or must she be conventional and marry a man. And can Clorinda’s independence at the tea shop continue or will she come to regret her sale of the ruby necklace. Is money necessary for happiness.
This is an unpredictable read. As Jane’s father Sir William comments, ‘We are overtaken by flashes of lightning and brilliant storms, and we can only submit.’ All the characters act on impulse and not all their decisions make sense, in particular Valentine’s behaviour changes so rapidly he seems a different man.
I was left with mixed feelings. As a Tremain fan dating back to ‘The Colour’, I wanted to enjoy this book more than I did. The writing, as always, is of the highest quality but it feels like three novels squeezed into one. I wanted to read more about Clorinda’s story, or concentrate on Jane, rather than go to Borneo which felt like an interruption to the main narrative.
Read more of my book reviews at http://www.sandradanby.com/book-reviews-a-z/ ( )

Prachtige historische novelle die zich afspeelt in Bath rond 1865 en deels aan de andere kant van de wereld op het eiland Borneo. Het hoofdpersonage Jane, werkt als verpleegster in de dokterspraktijk van haar vader, waar ook Valentine Ross werkt. Ze accepteert de verloving met Valentine, maar heeft in diezelfde periode een passionele affaire met een vrouw. Dit leidt haar naar een onverwachte toekomst. Valentine moet op zoek naar zijn tweelingbroer die als bioloog in Borneo verblijft. Vooral de kwetsbaarheid van de verschillende hoofdpersonages wordt door Rose Tremain prachtig verwoord. ( )