Remember, Remember tells the tale of a brother and sister by choice, who are enslaved in St Lucia and taken away from their mothers to London to serve Lord Harvey and his family. Vincent is a clerk and a boxer earning money towards his promised freedom, and Delphine has escaped enslavement but lives in hiding as a healer and servant in an 'exotic' brothel. When Lord Harvey reneges on his promise to free Vincent and has him arrested, Delphine enlists the help of Lord Harvey's nephew Nick, a radical MP and lawyer who fights the case for Vincent's freedom but also for the wider fight against slavery. This fight continues long after the court case and escalates to a stunning crescendo in the book - whilst revealing the secrets and limits of a society where profit counts for more than people. Elle Machray pulls us headfirst into the world of Delphine and Vincent, using real historical events to set the scene before creating her alternate ending. Vincent's legal trial closely resembles and sometimes even quotes the landmark 1772 case of Somerset vs Stewart, where Lord Mansfield (who was chief justice of England at the time) ruled that Charles Stewart could not legally transport the enslaved James Somerset forcibly out of England. Mansfield meant the ruling to be narrowly interpreted, but it was perceived by many to mean that slavery had been made illegal in England. The parallels between the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 and the importance of Parliament as an imperfect centre of progress and also a symbol of oppression across time were also cleverly done. I also really enjoyed the complicated and diverse characters within the book. There weren't clear cut good and bad people - everyone had histories and motivations which coloured their actions, especially those who had so much to lose. There was also a significant amount of growth and change in the thoughts and attitudes of the characters - especially the white allies of Delphine which was heartening. This was a book about race with a firmly intersectional approach - Machray deftly highlighted the problems for LGBTQIA people at the time as well as touching on class, economic standing and neurodivergence too. I found the weaving of real events and the subsequent fictional turn the story took to be a thought-provoking approach - Machray harnesses the complex furies and hopes of many oppressed and/or enslaved people into a vision of what the late 1700s and beyond could have been if things had gone differently.

Delphine is an escaped slave, eking a living in a brothel that caters for the exotic. Her brother has been promised his freedom if he succeeds as a boxer but this is denied him. His vicious master intends to send Vincent back to the West Indies so Delphine and a sympathetic MP decide to take the case to court. When justice does not prevail Delphine is set on a journey of revenge. There are parts of this novel that are absolutely brilliant and I can forgive the 'alternative history' plot. However what spoils it is the the slight overemphasis on the LGBTQ aspect which just seemed a plot device too far. The research of 18th century politics is great, weaving real characters with fiction, and there is a passion in the writing that serves the novel well.

I am LOVING this book! The title is what initially caught my eye but then a line in the synopsis “An incendiary alternative history of the gunpowder plot” and I knew I needed to read this book. The bond between Delphine and Vincent as siblings is so beautiful to see unfold and the fact that Delphine is set on securing justice and his freedom. This is such an explosive read! I loved it from start to finish. The level of research into the time period is incredible! I really felt submerged within Delphine’s world and felt like in another life, we would have been friends! She is loyal and kind and just wants the best for her brother. This is the first book I’ve read about the slave trade within England and honestly it was compelling! I cannot wait to see what Elle Machray writes next!

I thoroughly enjoyed Remember, Remember from start to finish following Delphine was a treat. Machray's prose are fantastic and mesmerising. Watching Delphine's story unfold from campaigning for justice to revenge to empowering social change is a thrill. I have never really been interested in historical fiction but with the Guy Fawkes influence I had to pick it up.