I thoroughly enjoyed this piece of escapism and my time out from a hectic world. The story grabs you from the outset and pulls you in and the storytelling really made it worth reading. Characterisation was on point and I know I will be looking out for new publications from this author or similar reads in the future. A recommended read.

Set upon a hulk this novel explored the murky world of opium dens and prostitution alongside murder and dissection. If you think that the victorians are all about respectibility then this book shows the dark side that was mostly kept hidden.

Thank you to netgalley and E. S. Thompson for allowing me to read this book for my honest opinions. I couldn’t put this down from the start, was such a shame when it ended

I love books that are set in Victorian times and this book lived up to every expectation. This is the first book in a series so I am really looking forward to the next one.

Settled into work as an apothecary in the East End of London, Jem Flockhart hides his secret and tries to help those in need. When a note comes from an old acquaintance asking Jem to hurry to the hospital ship the Golden Fleece Jem is worried, and because the note was delayed he is concerned as to what he will fine. In fact Jem arrived just in time to see Dr Aberlour driven to madness and take his own life. The hospital ship is run by a group of proud yet prejudiced doctors who also have an unhealthy relationship with Siren House, a home for repenting prostitutes. As Jem investigated the death of Dr Aberlour, other bodies appear and a secret needs to be revealed.

I do quite like the premise of Jem as a character, the daughter of a medical man who cannot pursue her vocation in Victorian London because of her sex so she disguises it. I also like the way that Will loves Jem but Jem feels Will is a brother to her as she mourns the loss of Eliza. In this book there was a nice subplot about racism which amped up the theme of prejudice. There is no doubt that Thomson is developing as a writer, the stories have always been well plotted and this is no exception, twisty and complex, but the use of metaphors is very strong here and the research into both medicine and historical time and place is exceptional.

Thanks Little, Brown Book Group UK and netgalley for this ARC,.

I've followed E.S. Thomson from the beginning, and will be a lifelong fan. This series gets more intricate, exciting, and bizarre with every new novel. You won't find a better historical mystery series than this.

Thomson does a marvellous job of vividly recreating the grim and effluvia of this stinking corner of London. At this point, the poor old Thames is little more than an open cesspit and London is generally draped in sooty smoke, with far more mists and fogs than you’d normally expect, caused by the runaway air pollution. Unsurprisingly, there is a high rate of illness, though The Blood specialises in the ailments brought into London from sailors and passengers who have returned from the Empire with all sorts of nasty complaints.

Jem Flockhart is an interesting protagonist – he is a young apothecary, continuing his father’s business and producing herbal remedies and medicines for the physicians coping with the high rate of illnesses. The team working on The Blood are mostly young medical practitioners without any money or support behind them, seeking to make a reputation by either publishing a brilliant paper on one of these new diseases, or catching the eye of an established medical man. However, the likes of Dr Proudlove, a black doctor whose mother ran a brothel, is highly unlikely to gain the reputation he wishes, despite being both clever and hard-working.
Jem teams up Will Quartermain, a young architect, when investigating this entangled case that lays open the seamiest side of London life, after they discover the body of a young woman in a derelict boatyard. While it’s evident she was drowned, the water in her lungs is clear, whereas she was discovered floating in a vile-smelling thick soup that could scarcely be described as water…

I thoroughly enjoyed this. Jem is a wary character who despite his obvious youth, clearly knows his way around this lawless, blighted area – and has an almighty secret of his own. This means that he is relatively free of many of the prejudices of the time – which also rings true. While there is clearly a rich backstory to his and Will’s current relationship, I had no difficulty in working out exactly what was going on and this book works well as a standalone, despite being the third in the series.

As for the mystery itself, it is one of those very twisty affairs, where one apparently solitary murder triggers a string of other incidents so that more people die, pulling in a wider circle of potential suspects. I thoroughly enjoyed the puzzle and the vivid world unflinchingly on display – though I’m humbly grateful that I don’t live in that time and place. I’ve thought about this one a lot since I finished reading it and will be looking out for the other books in this series. Recommended for fans of vividly depicted historical fiction, especially Victorian noir.
9/10

Following Beloved Poison and Dark Asylum E S Thomson has produced another book in the Jem Flockhart mystery series. Although I have not read the previous two stories there is enough information conveyed in the opening chapters to get you up to date with the story so far and the main characters. Set in 1850's Victorian London this mystery concerns deadly goings on that seem to be connected with The Blood a rotting hospital ship moored deep in the docklands of East London. This is actually based on a real hospital ship called the Dreadnought which was situated further downriver at Greenwich. In this tale Jem Flockhart and Will Quartermain are drawn to the Blood after receiving a disturbing note from an old friend who has now mysteriously vanished and it is not long afterwards that they discover the body of a drowned known prostitute nearby.

The story is set mainly in an area of decaying buildings, back alleys, opium dens and houses of ill repute and the writing descriptively conveys what this poverty stricken waterside area would have been like. You can almost see the rats scuttling in the corner of your eye and smell the untreated sewage. As can be expected there is much reference to the now archaic medical practices of the time but also overlaying this is the race, class and particularly gender prejudices of the time that has necessitated Jem living the life of a man inorder to pursue a medical career. This gender disguise by women was not unheard of in Victorian Society to gain employment and in Paris at this time George Sand was walking the streets of Paris dressed in men's clothing. So this ultimately is a book about deception on more than one level.

I certainly enjoyed the book and would certainly seek out others in the series. If you like a atmospheric murder mystery then I believe you will enjoy this.

The Blood was an atmospheric and intriguing read. Set in the mists of Victorian London, we are solving a mystery with Jem Flockhart, a woman posing as a man to run an apothecary. As woman wasn't seen suitable to work in medicine/science those days, Jem acts like a man. She is quite a different character, has a birthmark on her face distinguishes her from any other heroine I've ever read. She is skillful and clever.
Blood is the name of the floating hospital. A doctor is found dead. Then a girl called Mary. The deaths are somehow related. But how? Jem will find out...
I really liked this book. Enjoyed the bits of stories of the girls, how miserable a lonely woman's life could be in Victorian London. Prostitution, dark streets, men ruling everywhere and everything as you can imagine. I loved Miss Proudlove's story too.
I think overall this was a beautifully put together book, it's a shame I've never heard of this series although this is the 3rd book. I read this without reading the first two, so I assume it can be read standalone.

Thanks to NetGalley and Little Brown Uk for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was given the chance by Netgalley to read The Blood before release. I jumped at the chance since I loved Dark Asylum but I can't help but feel disappointed. Whilst still enjoyable, compared to the previous in the series, it just seems slow and lack the same pace. The reader is still left guessing throughout the book but it lacks the overall plot and suspense.

The climax seems to be rushed as if a deadline had needed to be met and the ending is left open, ready for another addition to the series. Perhaps we'll finally find out what happened to Eliza as she continues to be mentioned.

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I found this a different sort of read than I am used to. It was surprisingly good. Well written and very descriptive.
I will look for more books by this author. Well done

My one star is not really a reflection on the book...it is on me choosing a book that was totally unsuited to my taste. Sorry.

I did not realise this was the third in the Jem Flockhart and Will Quatermain series, set in Victorian London but it works just fine as a standalone. Jem, an apothecary, and Will, an architect, make their way to The Blood, after receiving a urgent message from Dr Aberlady which reaches them late. The Blood is a floating seaman's hospital on the Thames, London is the gateway to the world, leading to the entry of diseases and ailments from all corners of the globe. However, Aberlady has disappeared and The Blood is in need of an apothecary. Will has acquired work to build a new warehouse at the toxic Tulip's Basin, aka Deadman's Basin, where a dead woman, Mary Mercer, is found. This is a murky tale of the state of medicine, the poor levels of medical care, and experimentation in the period. The story speaks of prejudice against women and people of colour in the medical profession, the ambition, and the rampant hypocrisy that riddled society and the profession. London reeks of desperate poverty, with the prevalence of diseases such as cholera, brothels, opium dens, and a river that often resembles an open sewer. Death is a common place occurrence, and whilst for men that is likely to be by accident, for women it is by design, with horrifying brutality and violence perpetrated on them by men.

As Jem and Will investigate, they become aware of the murder of other young women, that connect with The Blood, the Deadman's Basin and Sirens, a women's religious home set up to support prostitutes who wish to turn their lives around, providing they make full confessions, run by Dr Birtwhistle. Dr Aberlady is murdered. and there is something strange going on between the other doctors on the ship. A black doctor, Dr Proudlove, the most gifted doctor on board is treated with disdain and contempt by other doctors, who view themselves as far superior. It turns out there was more to Jem than you might expect, and that he loves Eliza who went on to leave him. As Jem and Will edge ever closer to the truth, they find themselves up against a swirling dark tide of danger.

ES Thomson has carried out impressive research in this well plotted novel, for example, The Blood is based on The Dreadnought, a hospital ship moored at Greenwich, which later became the birthplace of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. In fact, if you are interested in medicine in the Victorian era, this is a great book to read. The city of London in this historical period is bought alive vibrantly, you can feel yourself practically recoiling from the stink, noxious overflowing mud and excrement. I am so delighted to have discovered this wonderful and atmospheric historical series, and recommend it highly. Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.

The descriptions of the smells, sights and filth Jem and Will had to live and work around reminded me of those museum exhibits that reproduce these to enhance the visitor experience. I found myself recoiling at them. Loved the names of the characters, and wondered if they were totally the writer's inventions or did people actually have those name?. Collections of exotic flora and fauna and specimens from all over the worls was a Victorian passion I know, also the pursuit of scientific knowledge. The tale unfolding becomes a murder mstery and thriller , with the reader being made party to a secret fairly early on it is intriguing to wonder if and how it becomes revealed.
I enjoyed this book immensely and would recommend it to my reading group

This is the third book in the series of Victorian mysteries featuring Jem Flockhart, a female apothecary living as a man partly in order to have credibility in her chosen profession.

As with the rest of the series, Victorian London is evoked in all its grim detail. This book is set around a hospital ship moored on the Thames, referred to as The Blood, which houses a hospital for sailors with exotic illnesses. Jem and her sidekick Will are brought to the ship when their resident apothecary seemingly kills himself. What follows is a pacy and twisty mystery featuring some of the seediest elements in London, from the opium dens to the brothels. As the body count rises among the dockside prostitutes, Jem and Will are in a race to uncover the truth about The Blood and its inhabitants.

I really loved this book. I've followed Jem from the start and would wholeheartedly recommend this series to anyone who loves historical crime novels with a lot of atmosphere and some quirky characters.

Jem Flockhart has received a desperate, scribbled note from a fellow Apothecary, an old friend who Jem hasn't seen in years, asking for help to defeat the very Devil himself.
Jem is intrigued by this plea and decides to see his old friend to find out what is going on. As Jem and Will Quartemaine head off to The Blood - The seamen's floating hospital - they are just in time to see a body being pulled from the Thames.
Book 3 in the Jem Flockhart series. A dark atmospheric Victorian murder mystery. I love these.