The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock

Summary (from the publisher): One September evening in 1785, the merchant Jonah Hancock hears urgent knocking on his front door. One of his captains is waiting eagerly on the step. He has sold Jonah’s ship for what appears to be a mermaid.

As gossip spreads through the docks, coffee shops, parlors and brothels, everyone wants to see Mr. Hancock’s marvel. Its arrival spins him out of his ordinary existence and through the doors of high society. At an opulent party, he makes the acquaintance of Angelica Neal, the most desirable woman he has ever laid eyes on… and a courtesan of great accomplishment. This chance meeting will steer both their lives onto a dangerous new course, a journey on which they will learn that priceless things come at the greatest cost…

What will be the cost of their ambitions? And will they be able to escape the destructive power mermaids are said to possess?

In this spell-binding story of curiosity and obsession, Imogen Hermes Gowar has created an unforgettable jewel of a novel, filled to the brim with intelligence, heart and wit.

Review: I received an advance reader's edition of this novel from HarperCollins.

In this work of historical fiction set in 1780s London, widowed merchant Jonah Hancock comes into possession of a dead mermaid. In his attempts to recoup his financial losses through exhibiting the mermaid, he meets the aging courtesan Angelica Neal, whose patron has recently dies. As hinted at by the novel's title, the two form an unlikely partnership.

It is important to note that the supernatural element of this novel is minimal. I was skeptical of how much I would enjoy this novel because of the 'mermaid' element but instead found myself stepping into a beautifully written work of historical fiction. The prose was descriptive and absolutely arresting in its imagery, such as the description of the aging Mrs. Chappell: "a vast toad in white muslin, her stubby arms outstretched and her legs churning up her skirts as she paddles across the gleaming floor" (113). While the characters are not wholly likeable, they are given a depth and realism by the author that kept my attention through the whole novel. For example, one poignant detail about Jonah Hancock, who is routinely described as dull and provincial by most of the other characters, is the imagined presence of his dead son. As Mr. Hancock goes through life, he imagines what it might have been like if his son Henry had survived: "In the other version of his life, in a garden like this one, a child is hurtling down the hill and into his arms; he feels its meagre weight thud into his chest, its hot cheeks against his face, its delicate ribs and pounding heart against his palms" (339).

On the other hand, the plot of this novel meandered a great deal. The perspective shifted between Mr. Hancock, Angelica Neal, her former madam Mrs. Chappell, and also has asides about the mermaid as well as Polly, a young prostitute still under the protection of Mrs. Chappell. The novel also spends times focusing on Angelica Neal's 'friend' and servant Eliza Frost, her friend Bel Fortescue, her lover George, Mr. Hancock's niece Sukie and his controlling sister. In short, there's a lot going on. At times it felt as if the author wasn't quite sure the direction she wanted the novel to go in and was throwing in lots of asides until the course of the novel became more clear. I also disliked the supernatural/magical realism elements of the novel that began in the second half. The novel had plenty going on without this additional element and I couldn't suspend my disbelief.

Despite initial skepticism based on the novel's description of a merchant with a fantastical creature in the form of a mermaid, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. This was an excellent debut form a promising new author in historical fiction. Although I wish the editor had tightened up the novel and trimmed some of the looser ends from the narrative, it was a highly entertaining read.

Stars: 4