The only sin is betrayal…
It is the year 1715, and Thomas True has arrived on old London Bridge with a dangerous secret. One night, lost amongst the squalor of London’s hidden back streets, he finds himself drawn into the outrageous underworld of the molly houses.
Meanwhile, carpenter Gabriel Griffin struggles to hide his double life as Lotty, the molly’s stoic guard. When a young man is found murdered, he realises there is a rat amongst them, betraying their secrets to a pair of murderous Justices.
Can Gabriel unmask the traitor before they hang? Can he save hapless Thomas from peril, and their own forbidden love?
Set amidst the buried streets of Georgian London, The Betrayal of Thomas True is a brutal and devastating thriller, where love must overcome evil, and the only true sin is betrayal…
It is an honour to be sharing my review of The Betrayal of Thomas True today. Huge thanks to A.J. West and Orenda Books for my advance copy of the novel.
The Betrayal of Thomas True was my most anticipated book of the year. It is always slightly daunting starting a title I've been so desperate to read but having read A.J. West's previous book, The Spirit Engineer, and hearing him talk about this new novel at Yeovil Literary Festival, I had a good feeling about it. What I didn't expect, however, was just how much I fell head over heels in love with it. I am fortunate to read scores of superb books every year, many of which I will continue to recommend years after I publish my review. Every so often, though, I come across a novel which steals my heart; I first read The Betrayal of Thomas True in April and couldn't read anything else for days, such was the effect it had on me. I was fortunate to be able to buy a hardback copy of the book ahead of its official publication date and a few days ago I picked it up to admire it and maybe read a few pages. I finished it for the second time the following day and despite knowing what would happen, it enraptured me at least as much as the first time, perhaps even more, because returning to these characters felt like meeting old friends again.
Thomas True is introduced at the start of the book as he embarks on a new life in London in 1715. His naïve sense of gauche excitement makes him an immediately endearing figure but even at this early point in proceedings, it's soon clear that he has suffered greatly at the hands of others. It's little wonder, then, that he should enter London with such high hopes – but his clumsiness quickly thwarts his early plans. He soon comes to the attention of a couple of characters who prove to be instrumental in his eventual transformation; one introduces himself, guides Thomas to his new home, and after a frightening, bewildering encounter, declares him to be "one of us"; the other observes him from high above the streets.
Both Jack Huffins and Gabriel Griffin are mollies – a slang term given in the Georgian era to men who had sex with other men. They would meet at molly houses, where they dressed as women and gave themselves female names, and at a time when men found guilty of being a sodomite were pilloried or hanged, these places became sanctuaries for dancing, drinking and a place to express their romantic and sexual desires. Jack invites Thomas to find him at Mother Clap's, a real-life location and one of the most infamous of the molly houses.
While Jack enjoys indulging in risky, provocative behaviour, poor Gabriel is bitterly ashamed of his true self. There are fascinating parallels and differences between Thomas and Gabriel; both have tried to hide their so-called sinful desires, but while Thomas is still youthfully optimistic, Gabriel has suffered tragic losses and is a lonely, tormented figure. Their appearances are in stark contrast to one another, too and one of the most touching aspects of the book is the manner in which their self-doubt and belief that they are ugly is contradicted by the admiration and secret passion they invoke in one another. Throughout the book, A.J. West perceptively explores self-acceptance and the need to belong, and the mollies' mantra, 'always together' is both deeply emotive and a stirring battle cry against bigotry and the hateful cruelty of the Society for the Reformation of Manners.
The vibrant characterisation is complemented by the authentic, atmospheric evocation of the period and as Thomas begins to make a life for himself in London, the city is opened up to readers too. A.J. West captures all its chaotic, putrid squalor so vividly, it's almost possible to hear the clamour and smell the foul miasma. From the Squink's candle shop on London Bridge, through the busy streets and hidden alleyways, to the debauched hedonism of Mother Clap's and into the terrifying, dangerous underworld of Alsatia, the city becomes almost a character in its own right.
As well as being immersive historical fiction, The Betrayal of Thomas True is also a compulsive, harrowing mystery as Gabriel and Thomas desperately try to uncover the identity of a traitorous figure known only as 'the Rat' before it is too late. It seems the culprit may be among the mollies but could it really be Sweet Jacky, Lavender Long-legs, Vivian Guzzle, Nelly Fump, the Duchess of Camomile or even Verity True-Tongue herself? The tense, compelling plot abounds with twists, turns and clever red herrings until the dramatic truth is finally revealed. Meanwhile, beyond the terrible fear and increasingly acrimonious suspicions aroused between supposed friends and intimates, a tender, captivating love story also develops. A.J. West's empathetic, emotional portrayal of these two scared, yet immensely courageous men is unforgettably moving throughout. It's not an unremittingly dark or poignant novel though and there's a finely tuned balance between the intense scenes and the lighter, humorous moments, some gently observed, others more gloriously bawdy.
In his author's notes, A.J. West reminds us that this is a work of fiction, and certainly there are some almost fantastical elements woven into the intricately plotted storyline. However, Thomas True, Gabriel Griffin and the other mollies represent the real-life homosexual men of Georgian London whose bravery as they revelled in their authentic, often outrageous selves, in spite of the deathly penalties they risked, should be remembered and celebrated. I think they would be enormously proud to be brought back to life so vividly in The Betrayal of Thomas True. I couldn't have loved this exceptional book any more; I laughed, I couldn't breathe and I wept. Exciting, evocative, witty, heartbreaking and so, so beautiful; Thomas and Gabriel will be in my heart forever.
About the Author
An award winning BBC newsreader and reporter, he has written for national newspapers and regularly appears on network television discussing his writing and the historical context of contemporary events.
A passionate historical researcher, he writes at The London Library and museum archives around the world.
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