It's set in London of the 1870's and features a large cast of characters, the central one of whom is a nineteen-year-old prostitute called Sugar, who is intelligent and beautiful, and has a reputation that draws men from far and wide to sample her 'services'. She is also a voracious reader, and is secretly writing her own novel, in which she exacts gory vengeance upon all the men whom she feels have wronged her.
One of the men drawn to Sugar is William Rackham, who is unhappily married and has lost his way in life. He falls for Sugar - completely, head-over-heels falls for her - and before long he wants her to quit her life as a prostitute, so he can have her all to himself.
William's infatuation with Sugar motivates him to make more of a financial success of himself, and in William, Sugar sees the glimmer of hope of a better life, an escape from her circumstances.
Other characters in the book include William's fragile, troubled, ethereal wife, Agnes, who is prone to frequent fits, fainting spells and verbal outbursts, and William's brother, Henry, who aspires to a chaste life of pious religious devotion, but who is plagued by shame and self-loathing over his masturbatory tendencies.
The quality of writing is sublime, the level of period detail, truly astonishing, and the novel utterly immerses you in its world. When I first read it, I became so engrossed that I felt like I could see, hear, touch, taste and smell 19th century London all around me, in such vivid multi-coloured, multi-sensory detail that when I looked up from the book and saw the 21st century all around me, I had to blink in surprise and take a few seconds to ground myself back in the modern world.
This is a novel that reaches for your gut, as well as your heart and mind. It's visceral and sexual, positively heart-breaking at times, and intellectually dazzling. It is huge in scope, and it takes in all of life, from the dirtiest, stench-filled back alleys, inhabited by the poorest and most desperate, to the rarefied strata of the truly rich and privileged.
But at heart, this is a deeply humane novel, and every character, irrespective of background or position in society, is written with tremendous empathy and compassion, and Faber starkly lays bare the gender and social inequalities of the day.
I love the novel. I love everything about it. And, one thing I haven't mentioned yet - there is also one hell of a lot of humour in it: it is laced through with a sly, subtle humour that would frequently put a big smile on my face; and there are also some laugh-out-loud funny moments too.
This is a novel that gets under your skin and into your blood and bones. It's a novel to fall in love with, and have your heart broken by. It's a glorious, rich, literary feast, and I want to shout from the rooftops about it.
It's a novel I've seen arouse strong emotions in people, that I've seen others form a strong attachment to.
When I bought the book, the woman on the till in the book store was shaking with excitement as I paid for it. Her hands were literally shaking as she told me how much she loved the book, how much it meant to her, and how thrilled she was that I was buying a copy and how she was sure I'd love it.
It's the only time a bookseller has ever expressed an opinion about a book I was buying, let alone an opinion of such effusive praise!
And I totally get her excitement, because if I were in her position now, working in a book store, and someone came to the counter holding a copy of The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber, then I would probably react in exactly the same way as she did. Any coolness I possess would crumble, and I would be the one shaking with excitement.
I'm going to close this post with the opening paragraph of the novel, because I think it's a great opening. It instantly sets the tone of the novel and simultaneously wrong-foots the reader.
"Watch your step. Keep your wits about you; you will need them. This city I am bringing you is vast and intricate, and you have not been here before. You may imagine, from other stories you've read, that you know it well, but those stories flattered you, welcoming you as a friend, treating you as if you belonged. The truth is that you are an alien from another time and place altogether."
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