Merrick Tremayne is rusticating at his family estate in Cornwall, convinced that an injury to his leg has put an end to his career of adventure and exploration. When an old friend arrives and invites him on an expedition to Peru, Merrick's first inclination is to refuse -- but Clem is persuasive, assuring him that he'll be able to sail or ride all the way, and that his botanical skills are needed. Their goal is to smuggle out cinchona cuttings, to break the monopoly on quinine production by starting a plantation in Ceylon. Merrick's family has a history of visiting New Bethlehem, a Peruvian village on the edges of the cinchona-growing area, so that is the pretext by which they make their way into the interior of the country. They are assigned a native guide, Raphael, who at first repels, then fascinates Merrick. When they arrive at New Bethlehem, called Bedlam by the locals, a peculiar summer cold snap keeps them from moving on -- but there are plenty of marvels and mysteries to pursue...

As with all of Pulley's books that I've read so far, I'm having a hard time summing this up, as there's so much going on. It's deeply atmospheric, and the setting is almost a character in its own right. Merrick has ties to a young Keita Mori, so we get snatches of his history as well. An entirely satisfying book -- I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did. ( )

I found ‘The Bedlam Stacks’ atmospheric and gradual in the same manner as [b:The Watchmaker of Filigree Street|22929563|The Watchmaker of Filigree Street|Natasha Pulley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1418113344l/22929563._SY75_.jpg|42499104], although it had a more vivid sense of place than the latter. In fact, the main character was the beguiling Peruvian jungle and I was rather more invested in its mysteries than in the characters. Nonetheless, they appealed too. It took me a while to realise that one secondary character was a main player in [b:The Watchmaker of Filigree Street|22929563|The Watchmaker of Filigree Street|Natasha Pulley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1418113344l/22929563._SY75_.jpg|42499104], however I did predict the twist that Raphael was turning into a markayuq. Pulley’s novels seem to have a pleasantly ambiguous sense of time. In this case, it stretched such that a reminder of Merrick having only arrived two weeks before was really disconcerting. In the jungle, with its curious customs and peculiar fauna, it seems fluid. This theme is beautifully handled and makes for a rather dreamlike atmosphere. I liked ‘The Bedlam Stacks’ very much, although I wasn’t as emotionally invested in it as [b:The Watchmaker of Filigree Street|22929563|The Watchmaker of Filigree Street|Natasha Pulley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1418113344l/22929563._SY75_.jpg|42499104]. However, I adored the world-building and am looking forward to more novels from Pulley. She has a knack for introducing supernatural elements delicately, so they build neatly upon the existing weirdness and wonder of the world rather than supplanting it. Also, I want to read more historical fiction about the Lost Gardens of Heligan, which briefly feature. They have been restored and I’d love to visit them someday. ( )

Good, though I didn’t enjoy it as much as watchmaker. I felt the lack of female characters. Know it was a jungle explorer book at a time when women would not have been part of the scene, but the story focused so much on the two men, felt a bit claustrophobic to me. Not enough about animals, though I did enjoy the couple of odd creatures that were included. Plot seemed, oddly, predictable to me, knew very early on where it was going. Still lovely though ( )

Oh wow! OK, review to follow ... ( )

Set in the Watchmaker of Filigree Street world. Keita Mori does make an appearance.

Merrick Tremayne, former smuggler for the East India Company, travels to Peru to steal cinchona tree cuttings so that the British can make their own quinine in India. He and his friend Clem travel to Bedlam, a remote village where Merrick's grandfather and father had visited many times. It is a perilous joruney--surviving the Spanish, the Pervian quinine barons, the unusally cold summer, the high altitude, the unusual geography of Bedlam, and the local superstitions. Merrick is fascinated by one of the locals, Raphael, as well as the stone idols that guard the border between the town and the forest.

Seems to treat Incan history and culture with respect and care. Makes me want to take up Andean weaving again.

It's a decidedly happier adventure than Waugh's A Handful of Dust. ( )