The Lambs of London

The Lambs of London is a slim novel based somewhat on historical fact. The author, Peter Ackroyd, is an author noted for not only his fiction but his biographies of Dickens, Blake, Shakespeare and others. Here Ackroyd blends fact and fiction as he utilizes the stories of real people Charles and Mary Lamb and William Henry Ireland.

The novel focuses first on Charles, a young man who lives with his family and works for the East India company. Charles is an aspiring writer, a lover of Shakespeare, and quite often, a drunk. His older sister Mary is socially awkward but is also infatuated with the 15th and 16th century dramatists. They live with their parents: their mother, a somewhat bitter woman, and their father who has been mentally incapacitated following some kind of a stroke years previously.

Into their lives comes Ireland, a very young man who operates a bookstore with his father. Ireland has met a mysterious benefactor who allows him to go through her departed husband's extensive collection of papers. Ireland recovers a will and other legal documents that are verified to be Shakespeare's. Scholars and enthusiasts are excited, but nothing prepares them for the day Ireland shows up with the draft of an unknown play. Again, experts verify it as Shakespeare's, although there are some who disagree. Ireland decides to mount the play, and his burgeoning romance with Mary Lamb seems to make his life complete. However, Mary's shaky mental health, William's relationship with his opportunist father, and questions about his benefactor and the veracity of the play begin to cause everything to fall apart.

As a novel, I found this to be somewhat anti-climactic. While it is well-written, it never fully engaged me. Much more interesting are the actual histories of these characters. All of them were real people, but there is no evidence that any of their paths actually crossed. Charles and Mary Lamb wrote a well-known book of Shakespeare for children, battled against mental health issues, and experienced family tragedy. You can look at the story of William Henry Ireland here, but I won't go into detail as it would act as a plot spoiler.

Ackroyd did a great job in coming up with the premise of this historical fiction, but the execution leaves it a little flat. Still, this would hold interest for any Shakespeare enthusiast.