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About The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber

Title: The Crimson Petal and the White
Author: Michel Faber
Genre: Historical Fiction

London, 1870s. At the heart of this panoramic narrative is a young woman’s struggle to lift her body and soul out of the gutter. Sugar, a nineteen-year-old whore in the brothel of the terrifying Mrs. Castaway, yearns for a better life. Her ascent through the strata of Victorian society begins with the egotistical perfume magnate William Rackham. Infatuated with Sugar, William’s patronage brings her into the circles of his family and milieu: his wife who barely overcomes chronic hysteria to make her appearances during “the Season”; his mysteriously hidden-away daughter, left to the care of minions; his pious brother, foiled in his devotional calling by his lust for the Widow Fox; as well as preening socialites, drunken journalists, untrustworthy servants, vile guttersnipes, and whores of all stripes and persuasions.

My Review of The Crimson Petal and the White:

I picked up The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber after seeing that its form of storytelling debated on librarything.com. It is the story of Sugar the prostitute. Sugar is a reasonably famous specimen, well known for never saying no. And this is the story of how she works to pull herself out of the slums and make a better life for herself.

I was hooked to Sugar’s story within the first chapter and would have read non-stop the entire 900 pages or so if life had allowed me that luxury.

Sugar pulls many people into her life, and actually works to help them whether she realizes it or not. She is the primary “friend” of William Rackham, and she eases herself into his life. This is her first shot to leave her poor life behind her.

While there have been debates about the book and its sexuality and language used. I did not see any descriptions that I would consider to be unnecessarily repulsive. The language used is the language that was actually used in the time period instead of the flowery language that is used in fiction written during the era. I did not detect any scenes where the author used sex for the sake of writing about sex.

Each scene in the book was an important step in Sugar’s journey to her new life, for better or worse. Overall, it was a story that balanced the ups and downs and gave enough detail for the many places and people to bring the book to life.

However, this book should be reserved for a mature reader that can handle the subject matter of prostitutes and sex with respect and an adult attitude.

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