Author: Hannah Tinti
Subjects: orphans, New England, United States History 1783-1865
ISBN: 9780385337458
Copyright Year: 2008
Other Comments: I actually had the pleasure of meeting Hannah Tinti at an author reading at Salem College. She explained this novel was about different types of "monsters" - dwarfs, giants, murderers, the undead, etc. The setting of the novel is New England sometime during 1783-1865. The novel follows Ren, a young orphan who lost his hand at a young age. Benjamin Nab whisks him away from the orphanage on a dangerous and dark adventure to make money any way possible - including grave robbing. In the end, Ren comes face to face with the man who killed his mother. There were several things about this piece of historical fiction that turned me off. First was all the violence. There were bloody scenes of dismemberment and murder all throughout the novel. Second was the fact that the title wasn't very fitting. I didn't consider any of the characters "good". Finally, the ending felt very rushed and abrupt; especially after all the lead up and the short appearance of the main villain. I usually can handle dark fiction, but this gave me a very disturbed after taste and I am not sure I will be reading anything else by Hannah Tinti.
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