The Lodger by Marie Belloc Lowndes

"Never had there been a more confiding or trusting gentleman than the lodger, and yet in some ways he was so secret, so—so peculiar. She thought of the bag—that bag which had rumbled about so queerly in the chiffonnier. Something seemed to tell her that tonight the lodger had taken that bag out with him. And then she thrust away the thought of the bag ... Of course, the lodger was eccentric, otherwise he wouldn't be their lodger at all—he would be living in quite a different sort of way with some of his relations, or with a friend in his own class"

The Lodger (1913) by Marie Belloc Lowndes has been on my TBR list for some time.  It's a short novel based on the Jack The Ripper murders.  The setting is East London, the 1880's and when the novel begins we are introduced to a middle aged couple, Mr. and Mrs Bunting. A few years back they bought a home hoping they could attract paying guests.  But business has fallen off and the couple has become so poor that Mr. Bunting has given up buying his morning paper.  

And then a mysterious gentleman by the name of Mr. Sleuth arrives. He needs a place to stay and is willing to pay the Buntings generous rent for a few of the empty upstairs rooms which he requires for his privacy. The Buntings are thrilled and Mr. Sleuth becomes their lodger. 

Meanwhile Mr. Bunting can once again buy his morning paper and he becomes interested, like all of London, in reading about the Avenger murders.  Young women are being murdered in the East End. The police know it's the same killer because he leaves a note by their bodies: "The Avenger".  

Mrs Bunting doesn't want to hear about such gory stuff.  Instead she is delighted with Mr. Sleuth.  He is a gentleman, very generous and he gives the Buntings no trouble at all.  And so if he has a peculiar habit of walking outdoors late at night and coming back at 3:00 AM Mrs Bunting isn't concerned until things begin to add up. Mrs Bunting keeps her growing suspicion about the lodger to herself, not informing her husband.  And there is also Daisy, Mr. Buntings' daughter from his first marriage and Joe Chandler, a young police detective.  

The Lodger held my interest but when it comes to mysteries and suspense novels I have read better.  But others over at Amazon have rated The Lodger 4 and 5 stars and this book has the historical significance of being the first novel to be published based on the Jack The Ripper murders.  So you might want to give The Lodger a try.

I wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!

The Nether World by George Gissing

"Well, look here. Supposin' he died an' left most to her; an' then supposin' she was to go off; would Jo have all her tin?

Course he would.

Clem mused, eating her lower lip. 'But supposin' Jo was to go off first, after the old bloke? Should I have all he left?'

I think so, but I'm not sure.' '

You think so? And then should I have all hers? If she had a accident, you know."

George Gissing is one of my favorite writers and The Nether World (1889) is the third novel of his which I have now read and it did not disappoint.  But if you are new to Gissing I would begin with The Odd Women or New Grubb Street. The Nether World is a great book and it will be on my best books of 2024 list but it is depressing. Even the title gives you a clue, the setting being a very poor part of late 19th century London and the lives and the struggles of the people who live there.

And at the core of The Nether World is an inheritance.  An elderly gentleman, Michael Snowden, returns to London a wealthy man.  One of his sons passed away and left Michael a fortune in his will.  But Michael's attitude towards money is not what you would expect.  It doesn't mean much to him.  Michael is more interested in using the money to help the poor in the little time he has left in his life. 

Michael also has a granddaughter Jane who he has never met.  Jane is the daughter of his other son, Joseph Snowden, and Joseph is a disreputable character abandoning his young daughter Jane to the care of Mrs Peckover and her daughter Clem who abuse poor Jane and treat her as a servant.  Michael returning to London is able to rescue Jane and has plans to leave her the bulk of his fortune in the hope that she will use it to help the poor.

Joseph Snowden gets wind of this and promptly returns to London to reconnect with his daughter Jane but she is a young woman now and has plans to marry Sidney Kirkwood who is a good man and loves her.  Joseph cannot let this happen since Jane and Sidney are set to inherit all of his father's money.

In addition to the Snowdens we have the Hewett family. Their struggles involve a separate storyline which is no less fascinating.  And for me the most tragic character in The Nether World is Clara Hewett.  She is young, attractive and ambitious.  Raised in a very poor family she runs away at age 17 with the hope of becoming a famous actress.  

And Clara has talent and beauty.  But halfway through this novel after landing the leading role in a play a jealous rival does something so vicious to Clara that it shocked me and this does seem to be a theme that runs through The Nether World.  Poverty with no hope for the future ends up in tragedy for some of the characters in this book. Others turn to criminality and cruelty and a few like Jane Snowden and Sidney Kirkwood are able to keep their humanity and kindness.  But SPOILER ALERT no one gets a happy ending. 

And yet I still recommend The Nether World.  It's an excellent novel and George Gissing who is not as well known as he should be is such a talented and quintessential late Victorian author.  And I won't go into it here but George Gissing had a life that was a Victorian novel in itself.  The man knew his territory.