Slammerkin

Emma Donoghue

I finished Emma Donoghue's Slammerkin last night. I read it in just a few days, which for me lately is a lightning fast read.. It's of the historical genre, dealing with a young girl forced into the flesh trade in either 18th or 19th C London. I believe it was 19th C. Anyway, slammerkin is a slang term for a loose woman and also for the loose gowns they wore to promote.. er.. easy access.

The story was based on a true tale of murder and the seamy side of London life, and it managed to hold my attention despite my concentration problems these days.. At one point I thought it would degenerate into a romance but I'm pleased to note it took the higher ground. I pronounce it a good, absorbing and fast read. It's nothing that'll stay with me very long, I'm afraid, but it was a good read to help get me back into reading in general.

Slammerkin wasn't quite of the writing calibre of Donoghue's previous novel Hood, but it was decent. It was the story that pulled me in more than the quality of the writing, and I was somewhat disappointed to find the style was more pedestrian than in her earlier effort. It had some very good moments, but there were also some weaker sections. Still a good tale.