The Sleeping Partner

The Sleeping Partner (2012) Madeleine E. Robins

Huzzah! The return of Sarah Tolerance!

I came across the first two books around the time they were published (2003 and 2004) and was disappointed when no further volumes were forthcoming. Luckily, the series (or at least this book) was picked up by another published, which gives us The Sleeping Partner.

A young gentlewoman has disappeared–presumably eloped–but her sister is worried by her sudden disappearance and asked Sarah Tolerance to find the young lady and return her to her family. The situation is complicated by the fact that the woman provides a portrait, but not her family name (and is meeting Sarah under an obvious pseudonym) for fear of scandal.

But Sarah’s search finds no trace of the girl, or evidence of a young man in her life, and the situation becomes less clear as her search progresses.

First, this isn’t a true historical, in that the author bent facts to suit her story. I, personally have no problem with that, but some people might.

Second, despise guessing relatively quickly what was going on, I still thoroughly enjoyed the story. Life was not easy for a Fallen woman, but Sarah has made her way in the world. Her relationship with her aunt remains complicated, which I would think it would be.

Thirdly, this story doesn’t cover up the way life was for many many young women in that age. Take the following:

“I am in the business of–well, not selling young women, but renting some part of their flesh in the short term.

To quote Hobbes, like was more often that not “poor, nasty, brutish and short” for the poor.

And as is my wont, I appreciated the historical accuracy of medicine and war:

The British assault upon Napoleon’s naval forces in the low-lands of Holland in 1809 had been turned back, not by force but by a virulent malaria which had killed more than four thousand men outright, and invalided twice that number.

Again, I am reminded why I am so pleased and delighted to be living in the future. One note, however–when someone was shot, and there was serious danger from any material that entered the body with the shot–I paid close attention to the surgery scene and didn’t note any removal of clothing that would have been embedded in the wound, and thus immediately worried that the person who had been shot was going to die of infection.

This wasn’t the case, but still.

And I was highly amused by many of the descriptions, such as, “‘E come stumpin’ down the street, mad ass the duck’s dinner.” I’ve never noticed duck food to be particularly enraged, so I thought that a hilarious description.

Because of such a long time between books (and also, I’d presume, because of the switch in publishers) we are reintroduced to Sarah, so if you have not read the previous books (they are still available, at least as eBooks) you can easily pick up this volume without previous knowledge of the characters.
Rating: 8/10

Published by Plus One Press

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