New Book Alert: The Companion by Kim Taylor Blakemore; Intriguing Suspense, But Lack of Character Development In Novel About Forbidden Love and Murder in 19th Century New England

New Book Alert: The Companion by Kim Taylor Blakemore; Intriguing Suspense, But Lack of Character Development In Novel About Forbidden Love and Murder in 19th Century New England




By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews





Spoilers: Kim Taylor Blakemore’s The Companion is one of those novels that begins in a way where you think you know everything, but then it turns you around into being about something else entirely different. In this case, it makes for a novel with an intriguing suspenseful plot but lacks in character development.

In the opening, a woman is awaiting her execution and tells the Reader that she is responsible for three maybe four deaths. So, the Reader prepares for a novel about a serial killer explaining how she killed her victims. Instead, we learn that everything is not as cut and dry as we thought and the woman on death row is less a villainess and more of a victim.


The woman on death row is Lucy West and she was originally hired as a maid in the home of a 19th century well-to-do New English couple, The Burtons. Even in the first few pages, there are hints that all is not as it seems. There is the fact that Lucy's predecessor, Mary mysteriously drowned. Eugenie Burton, the mistress of the house, is blind and has to be led around but harbors some other eccentric behaviors. Rebecca, Eugenie's companion is highly suspicious and intensely jealous of any attention that anyone else gives Eugenie. Then there is Lucy who is herself a contradiction by hinting that her references are fake and is in grieving for her deceased son.

Blakemore is great at building suspense. Even though the book is told in flashback from Lucy's first person perspective, we only get droplets of information as Lucy (and Blakemore) sees fit to show us. Early on we learn her son, Ned, died but we don't learn how or the circumstances surrounding his birth and death and why this results in her being on the run until later in the book.

We learn about the death of poor Mary, but don't learn how it is connected to the rest of the book until later. For a long time, Mary is almost a red herring until suddenly she isn't.

While the suspense is palpable and makes you question the plot and character, unfortunately it comes at the expense of good characterization. The Reader is always on guard so they don't get much of a chance to understand or even empathize with the characters including Lucy.

Lucy purposely hides information and doesn't let the Reader in on her real intentions that once the resolution is made, we have to read back a few pages to make sure we understood it. It doesn't help that Lucy makes herself a subject of suspicion as many people sharing prison with her remark that she doesn't feel remorse for any of her crimes, when at least one should have based on the information we are eventually given.

The lack of characterization in favor of suspense also doesn't do other characters any favors. Rebecca seems to have been auditioning for the role of Mrs. Danvers in Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca (maybe intentionally so, considering the name). We get the creepy servant part, but we don't get what made her so trustworthy and alluring to Eugenie in the first place.

Eugenie Burton, who is by far the most intriguing character, falters as well. She and Lucy get involved in a romantic relationship which has some sweet moments but is tempered with more suspense. Their romance of course plays into the conventions of its day and it is interesting how the two women manage to coordinate their alone time away from prying judgmental eyes. However, Eugenie and Lucy's romance is hampered by accusations that Lucy is one of many extramarital Sapphic flings Eugenie has had. We are not sure whether it's malicious gossip or the truth and honestly Eugenie's behavior suggests that it could go either way.

Unfortunately one of the strongest most emotional moments, when Lucy and Eugenie agree to run away together is muted by the machinations of the plot and the realization that nothing in either woman's previous behavior suggests that this is plausible or even a believable outcome.

A novel that is built on suspense cannot just rely on the twists in the plot to keep the Reader interested. Sure it will keep them reading and guessing. In the end, it may even surprise them. But a good suspense novel has to give us strong identifiable characters that experience the twists and surprises. Otherwise, the suspense falls flat.