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A review by tasmanian_bibliophile
The Locksmith's Daughter by Karen Brooks
3.0
‘And if dreams were locks, we’d all possess keys.’
This novel takes back to the 16th century, to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Mallory Bright is the daughter of London’s master locksmith, Gideon Bright. She has learned from her father and is able to unpick the most complicated locks. As the novel opens, Mallory is in disgrace with her mother (the reasons will become clear as the story unfolds) and her father wants to secure a place of safety for her. Sir Francis Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth’s spymaster, is made aware of her talents and offers her a job. Ostensibly, Mallory is to be the companion of Sir Francis’s daughter, but in fact she becomes increasingly involved in his spying operations which are shaped by political intrigue and religious dissension.
I was fascinated by Mallory’s involvement in Sir Francis’s work and was really liking Ms Brooks’s portrayal of this period of history until a particular twist in the story reduced my enjoyment. I sighed, put the book down, took a deep breath, picked the book up and read on.
We know that Mallory has secrets of her own and we become aware that there are other secrets being kept from her. All these secrets add to the intrigue, but while one specific secret did not work for me, it certainly adds to the tension in the story. Mallory’s loyalty to Sir Francis is tested when she witnesses the execution of three Jesuit priests. She knows that in at least one case the punishment exceeded the crime. And then it becomes personal: Mallory discovers the identity of a Catholic spy. Can she save that person’s life?
Aside from the twist I did not care for, I really enjoyed this story. Mallory Bright is an engaging protagonist, and I enjoy novels set in this historical period. This is the fourth of Ms Brooks’s novels I have read. ‘The Locksmith’s Daughter’ was published in 2016 and has sat on my shelf for far too long. While I did not enjoy it as much as Ms Brooks’s later works, it is well worth reading if you enjoy historical fiction set in the 16th century.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
This novel takes back to the 16th century, to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Mallory Bright is the daughter of London’s master locksmith, Gideon Bright. She has learned from her father and is able to unpick the most complicated locks. As the novel opens, Mallory is in disgrace with her mother (the reasons will become clear as the story unfolds) and her father wants to secure a place of safety for her. Sir Francis Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth’s spymaster, is made aware of her talents and offers her a job. Ostensibly, Mallory is to be the companion of Sir Francis’s daughter, but in fact she becomes increasingly involved in his spying operations which are shaped by political intrigue and religious dissension.
I was fascinated by Mallory’s involvement in Sir Francis’s work and was really liking Ms Brooks’s portrayal of this period of history until a particular twist in the story reduced my enjoyment. I sighed, put the book down, took a deep breath, picked the book up and read on.
We know that Mallory has secrets of her own and we become aware that there are other secrets being kept from her. All these secrets add to the intrigue, but while one specific secret did not work for me, it certainly adds to the tension in the story. Mallory’s loyalty to Sir Francis is tested when she witnesses the execution of three Jesuit priests. She knows that in at least one case the punishment exceeded the crime. And then it becomes personal: Mallory discovers the identity of a Catholic spy. Can she save that person’s life?
Aside from the twist I did not care for, I really enjoyed this story. Mallory Bright is an engaging protagonist, and I enjoy novels set in this historical period. This is the fourth of Ms Brooks’s novels I have read. ‘The Locksmith’s Daughter’ was published in 2016 and has sat on my shelf for far too long. While I did not enjoy it as much as Ms Brooks’s later works, it is well worth reading if you enjoy historical fiction set in the 16th century.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith