Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

 *TRIGGER WARNINGS* themes of murder, racism, misogyny, mental illness, sexual assault, medical procedures, abortion, death

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
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In the year of 1843,  Grace Marks, a sixteen year old Irish-Canadian maid, is convicted of murdering her boss, Thomas Kinnear, and his housekeeper (and mistress), Nancy Montgomery. Grace's fellow coworker, James McDermott, was also convicted and subsequently executed for the crime. He swore until the day he died that Grace was the mastermind behind the murder and had promised her love (and body) to him in return for his help. Although Grace is sentenced to death as well, the judge decides to commute this punishment and instead sentenced Grace to life in prison. In 1872, after almost 30 years incarcerated, Grace is pardoned and released, and sent to New York where she disappears forever. Alias Grace is Margaret Atwood's interpretation of the story and everything that takes place before, during, and after Grace's crime, incarceration, and pardon. 

This is an entirely true story and I was shocked that, despite how popular this story was during the 1800s in North America, I had never heard of Grace or her story before. It turns out that this is most likely due to the fact that a lot of the documentation related to the case was lost or destroyed. It is said that Margaret Atwood discovered this story and became obsessed with not only the crime and the case, but also with the question of Grace's innocence (or guilt). Grace is also, simply put, a fascinating and impressively intelligent woman. 

Grace's story is riddled with bad luck and trauma. She survives abuse, sexual assault, the deaths of those she loves, as well as possibly suffering from an unknown mental illness, and all of that is aside from being convicted for a crime that she may or may not have been guilty of committing. 

I loved all of this story with the exception of Dr. Simon Jordan. Simon is Atwood's invention to aid in entering and understanding Grace's psyche. He was a rather unreliable narrator, though I believe this may have been intentional. He's a progressive thinker and at times, he holds very feminist opinions, but on the other hand, he can be extremely old fashioned and misogynistic. He also hates every woman he interacts with yet sexualizes them, fantasizes about them, and tends to believe he's fallen in love with them. This happens literally three to four times in the book. If his unpredictability was intentional, then it was a genius way of comparing Grace's mental unreliability to the very doctor who is supposed to be a stable representation of sanity. 

Following Grace's story from beginning to end was an emotional rollercoaster. At times, you sympathize with her, but then at other times, her character can be terrifying and manipulative. By the end of the story, you're left to decide Grace's innocence or guilt completely on your own. 

There are so many fascinating philosophical discussions throughout this book, ranging from topics such as mental illness, ethics, morals, and religion. Alias Grace is a remarkable example of how wonderful historical fiction can be when it's done right. I highly recommend it!