The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue

Age Level: Adult
Format: Book

On a seemingly random chance encounter, Miss Emily “Fido” Faithfull bumps into her old friend Mrs. Helen Codrington in 1864 London after seven years of no communication. Fido, a pioneer in the British women’s movement, soon learns that Helen, unhappily married to Vice-Admiral Harry Codrington, is having an affair with Colonel Anderson, a young army officer. What follows is a narrative filled with intrigue, lies and suspicions that completely changes the lives of everyone involved. Based on a true divorce case that rattled London in the 1860s, The Sealed Letter combines historical fiction with actual facts and real people into a compelling, very well written novel.

I absolutely loved this book. The smooth-flowing story line makes it very hard to stop reading. Readers can easily draw comparisons between scandals and situations presented in the novel with contemporary scandals; one comparison drawn by the author is the Clinton affair. The Author’s Note provides interesting information on the main characters’ lives as well as information on Britain’s divorce laws. I highly recommend this book to anyone who reads historical fiction or to anyone who would like to try something a little different – with so many issues and themes playing a part, Donoghue’s novel should hold wide appeal to readers. One word of caution: when letters written by the various characters are presented in the narrative, the cursive type used is at times very hard to read. I look forward to reading another book by Donoghue.

Reviewed by Jessica