Graham, Violet's eccentric yet irritable, husband, had a dying love for their business and relationship. Graham's dimmed light only desired monetary values. Of course, a love for money often gets one in trouble, in Graham's case, in trouble with a war.
Mr. Samuel Harper was on a mission from the Union to find and stop British people who tried to assist the Confederacy. Mr. Harper was used for his intellect and cunning mind. At first he was completely strategic, but something strange, and something dangerous would change Mr. Harper forever.
Susanna, a young girl, refused to interact with others since she escaped from a workhouse after her mother was murdered. That all changed when Violet and Susanna survived a treacherous train crash. The loving and boisterous girl grew ever-so close to Violet.
Lady of Ashes is based off of Victorian London in 1861-1865. There are many references to Washington D.C and different Atlantic ships. Small segments shows the happenings in each of these places, but most of the action revolves around London.
The genre is mystery. The reader is left in suspense by mysterious letters from the murderer and when an important character goes missing. Graham’s actions are also somewhat unclear, as well as the full intent of Samuel Harper. Violet’s job is to solve all these mysteries.
The point of view is from third person. However, the main points in the story only show Violet’s thoughts and feelings, but small sections in separate chapters change to other character’s minds. When that occurs, the readers is only aware of their emotions and thoughts. In this way, Lady of Ashes is a bit of a mixture of third person limited and third person omniscient.
Page 132, Paragraph 3
“She rose again, once more feeling herself sway ominously. She made her way to the wall of the tunnel and leaned against it, breathing heavily. Holding the lantern out, she looked down at her dress. It was bloodied- whether from her own blood or that of others she couldn’t tell- and several buttons were torn off the bodice. It was ripped in multiple places and stained with grease, plant matter, and who knew what else.” - Christine Trent
Page 97, Paragraph 4
“The girl knotted her fists and refused to answer. Blue eyes sparkled in defiance like fireworks underneath the grime that covered her face.”- Christine Trent
Page 364, Paragraph 6
“...the lion roared with all of his strength, the sound of it erasing all human thought and feeling as it reverberated against every square inch of space such that it felt as though the glass panes of the ceiling might crack and come shattering down upon them. Even Mrs. Barrett was stunned into silence.”- Christine Trent
Page 79, Paragraph 3
“The draperies in the admiral’s room were pulled tightly across the windows, preventing almost all light from penetrating into it. A crisp uniform lay out across the back of a settee. The brass buttons running down the front of the dark blue jacket gleamed from a recent polishing. The gold shoulder epaulettes were accented by gold trim at the neck and wrists of the jacket, as well as down the outer legs of the trousers. Also nearby was a sword belt, and Violet was sure the sword in its casing gleamed as brightly as the uniform’s buttons.”- Christine Trent
Imagery
Imagery Explainatonsions
I used the examples I did because I feel that Christine Trent’s writing technique is extremely developed in creating pictures using sight. These examples show this by describing different aspects of the story which include the imagery. For example, there is a character description, an outfit description, and a combination of the two. I included the lion to express the point that Christine Trent is also able to appeal to other senses, in this case, hearing. Although she includes other senses, they aren’t as prominent as the images Christine paints.