is Michèle Roberts' fifth novel, and marks a shift in her work from tentative, experimental projects to a more definitive authorial style. While her earlier works experimented with a range of narrators and narrative styles, this novel is the first in a series which is recognisable for certain central concerns. These include a continuing fascination with nineteenth-century figures and their relation to the present; two or more central narrative voices; and the betrayal of women by women. The exception to this is
Flesh and Blood(1994), the only novel which deviates significantly from Roberts' distinct later style, and may be regarded either as a return to the experimental narrative forms most visible in her fourth novel,
The Book of Mrs Noah(1987), or as an extension…
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Citation: White, Rosemary. "In the Red Kitchen". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 24 September 2003 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=10199, accessed 27 November 2024.]