Review of Madame Antic's Hotel Grotesque

Blurb: In an alternate Victorian era replete with aerovehicles, automatons, and other electrik wonders, factory worker Anthony Reynolds seeks to improve his station in life for the sake of his young bride-to-be. Against his better judgment, he joins Richard, a gregarious coworker with social connections, for a night on the town after their late shift. Richard leads them deep into the city’s underworld to a brothel of sorts specializing in the illegal art of mutilation where willing victims are skinned, broken, and mangled without lasting damage due to a special drug that returns them to their original state. Horrified, Anthony wants to leave at once—but that's when Constables raid the establishment.

While attempting to flee the scene, Anthony encounters a giant monstrosity of a man who infects him with an unknown substance. Anthony is instantly disfigured, and when the authorities capture him, he is unable to identify himself, let alone speak. What follows is a mind-bending adventure of mistaken identity, multiple realities, and paranoia as he fights to reclaim a simple life he never truly appreciated but now wants more than anything. When he discovers the shocking truth of his world and Madame Antic's disturbing role in it, nothing will ever be the same again.

Review: Anthony Reynolds is a mere factory worker in this alternate Victorian era city. To help build a better life for himself and his fiancee, he accepts an invitation to go out for a night on the town with the boss' son. They end up in a brothel of willingly mutilated clients and get caught in a raid. Anthony is infected by some cancerous monstrosity and disfigured. His identity is mistaken, and he finds himself caught in a strange and frightening mystery. Yet will he survive it to find the answers he needs?

This is a fantastic speculative fiction story that surprised me on many levels. I could call this a Gaslamp Victorian Fantasy, but it is so much more than that. The setting is dark and rich and laid out with gorgeous detail. You'll have to have a strong stomach for what goes on at Madame Antic's, but the story is much bigger than clients with extreme masochistic urges. Be prepared for body horror.

Anthony had my sympathy in wanting to better his life, and he kept true to his good heart even when his simple life turned inside-out. I really liked the Blue Woman, Sephora, and I wonder after everything we learn what her full story might be. You never know who to trust, and we're taken on so many twists and turns that I wasn't even sure I could trust the narrator. I already have the second book in this series, and I can't wait to dive into it.

You can find Milo James Fowler on his site and buy the book here.