The two hook up with a street urchin who calls himself Colin the Melodious. She also has recently lost her father and, like Timothy, sees his spirit wherever she goes. Trying to find out what happened to the girls, Timothy becomes the protector of Philomela, a frightened 10-year-old who has narrowly escaped from would-be kidnappers. He can’t get out of his head the image of two dead girls, each with an unusual tattoo. Mostly, he sees the ghost of his recently deceased father in faces of other men, on the street corner and in his dreams.īut ghosts of another kind also haunt his nights and days. Never quite the pious child others thought him, Timothy is being visited by his own set of Christmas spirits, past, present and future. As a sideline, he and an old sea captain pull bodies from the Thames for any “treasures” they might still have. Struggling to wean himself from “Uncle N’s” help, Timothy pays for his room and board by teaching the brothel’s owner how to read. Timothy centers on the struggles of an individual against a harsh world, as well as social issues and the vagaries of what makes a family.Įbenezer Scrooge’s patronage freed Timothy of his crutch though he still walks with a slight limp, his “hitch-stride.” He is unsentimental about his early illness - “the iron brace was bought by a salvager long ago, and the crutch went for kindling shortly after.” Timothy are as contemporary as they are historical. The crucial plot points at the heart of Mr. Timothy work by keeping the spirit of Dickens, moving the characters ahead in a logical manner (even when it’s not what fans of the classic might expect) and creating a story that is timeless. It’s risky business drawing on a story as beloved as A Christmas Carol with characters who have entered the popular culture not to mention the legions of Dickens scholars and experts who might think the author is trifling with holy writ.
In his third novel, Bayard turns to historical mystery with a compelling, well-plotted story that never falters.
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