Review: The Madwoman Upstairs by Catherine Lowell

Think you know Charlotte, Emily & Anne? Think again. Samantha Whipple is the last remaining descendent of the illustrious Brontë family, of Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre fame. After losing her father, a brilliant author in his own right, it is up to Samantha to piece together the mysterious family inheritance lurking somewhere in her past - yet the only clues she has at her disposal are the Brontë's own novels. With the aid of her handsome but inscrutable Oxford tutor, Samantha must repurpose the tools of literature to unearth an untold family legacy, and in the process, finds herself face to face with what may be literature's greatest secret. 

I really enjoyed this book. It's quirky, charming and very smart. Samantha is a brilliant character. Strong willed and very witty she is more than a match for Orville, her formidable tutor, and I really enjoyed the banter that they shared.

This book still makes perfect sense if you know nothing of the Brontes or their work, but if like me you're a fan then it takes on even more meaning and enrichment. I've read their novels, I've visited the parsonage, I've swooned over Mr Rochester, so to me this felt like a love letter to the Bronte family.

If you're looking for something a bit different this is a book I'd highly recommend. It's original, heart warming, funny, clever, and jam packed with literary criticism and theory which made the English graduate in me very happy (this is where non-Bronte fans may come unstuck but hang in there - it's not as intimidating as it sounds I promise!) My only criticism would be that Samantha's quest for her inheritance was a bit of a letdown, and the storyline was very much sidelined in favour of another aspect of the story that I won't spoil here.

For a debut novel this is astounding. Catherine Lowell is definitely a name that I will be looking out for in the future!