The Bloodstained Key by Charity Rau
The Bloodstained Key is exactly what I wanted it to be--a fleshed out fantasy retelling of the story of Bluebeard. Marianna makes a great protagonist as the "wife who lives," and I also enjoyed the characterization of her maid Betsy and sister Annette, plus the library of everyone's dreams. Rau nails the elements of the original fairytale and expands on them in ways that add to the Gothic, claustrophobic feel of the original.
My only silly quibble is that I was distracted by a few awkward uses of diction ("taxidermized" late in the book, when before that the diction was standard American) and references to the "poorhouse" that didn't seem to fit with the other period-type references of balls and matches, and therefore took me out of the world. It's not technically historical fic, but felt weird to me in combination, YMMV. However, I think this is because being so immersed in the world is crucial to what is aptly meant to be a Gothic novel--and I was otherwise immersed!
On the other hand, I loved the references to all the imaginary fairytale or Gothic-type books Marianna had read, and how the house itself almost becomes a character, with its twists and turns holding Marianna hostage as much as or more than Lord Bludington. Overall, I loved what Rau did with an often overlooked fairytale, and her clearly deep affection for fairytales and Gothic suspense, and I would definitely read the Neverland-themed sequel hinted at in the epilogue.
Received for review from LibraryThing; all opinions are my own.
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