I'm rating this book highly as an unusual look at women in the frontier days. I'm sure women had to fill all kinds of roles. A young female writer goeI'm rating this book highly as an unusual look at women in the frontier days. I'm sure women had to fill all kinds of roles. A young female writer goes west to find a lady sheriff, the subject of scandal and conjecture. Jeannie at first holds out but eventually is flattered enough to share her story.
Born in 1865 in New Orleans, Jeannie grows up with older brothers, and quite usually, wants to play boyish games and wear pants along with them. We'll never know if her life would have been different if she'd had sisters. Her mother despairs, but father lets her away with it.
Some scenes reminiscent of Little House stories follow - the long walk with wagons across the continent, the catty comments of kids in town, disapproval of adults. Readers waiting for the crime aspect may start skipping pages. Wyoming is not an easy land, for all its space and resources. My favourite part was the long hard winter of 1886, which ends the practice of turning cattle loose to fend completely for themselves, while at the same time barring their way with wire fencing when they try to seek shelter.
Crime, yes, this happens because it's still quite a lawless land, and Jeannie is by no means immune to harm. She shoots well because she has to, and trains a good reliable horse, Flicker. As we have seen elsewhere, it's always when women and children arrive that the land becomes civilised and any outlaws suddenly can't be tolerated. This story ends with Jeannie having worn a Deputy's badge, not without some opposition.
There's a lot of strong language, and from the time Jeannie is mid-teens, adult activity. While able to admire men and women, Jeannie the cowgirl decides she prefers a girl's company, not surprising given that the men didn't wash very often. I gather the story will be continued. Those readers just wanting a western may find the telling too slow and lingering on aspects that are personal, not suspenseful. However, a lot of research into attitudes, clothes, history and other details make up the book, and this should be recognised as a strong work.
I read an e-ARC from the author. This is an unbiased review. ...more
This tale visits a real-life pirate off Boston and the Florida islands, as seen by a fictional young woman who disguises herself as a cabin boy. The gThis tale visits a real-life pirate off Boston and the Florida islands, as seen by a fictional young woman who disguises herself as a cabin boy. The gory scenes are frequent and strong, but the author assures us these are based on fact. Heave-ho, me hearties, and set sail with Ned Low and his surly crew of pyrates. Boston is not much safer, and a hanging is a day's entertainment.
The 1930s portions of the story are tame by comparison, a female professor accepting a stained manuscript found by a student as an assignment reference. Could the diary of Hannah Masury and treasure map be genuine? I like the scene-setting and the conclusion. Several times I was on the edge of my seat. This novel is for adults and features a lot of violence.
I read an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review. ...more
Be prepared for adult activity right at the start. A state agency is setting up men with ladies of the night, to test LSD on them, but matters go wronBe prepared for adult activity right at the start. A state agency is setting up men with ladies of the night, to test LSD on them, but matters go wrong. This seems quite improbable but apparently it did occur and the operation had the name that's the title of the book. As there's a lot of focus on shady state actions, I didn't enjoy this crime story as much as the first of the series, but the characters and setting - San Francisco in the 1950s - still warrants a read.
The Japanese-American private eye returns, looking into a death, with several of his friends proving a great help in furthering investigations. We get a look inside Japanese culture areas and catering, with violence from rival gangs seemingly unchecked by authorities who, after all, are busy testing LSD and arresting poets. Plenty of signature action and danger.
I read an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction and publicist Stephanie Barko. This is an unbiased review. ...more
This is a splendid fun historical crime read. I didn't know a lot about San Francisco at the period mentioned, the 1950s, and it's a great way to meetThis is a splendid fun historical crime read. I didn't know a lot about San Francisco at the period mentioned, the 1950s, and it's a great way to meet not just major figures but ordinary working folks, the backbone of various communities. We meet shipbuilders, caterers, builders, US navy and poets, plus an enquiring Japanese-American gentleman who grew up in internment camps. My favourite cameo is Dorothea Lange, photographer, but Alan Ginsberg and a few Hollywood greats also appear.
There's plenty of crime to investigate, from the financial kind to the environmental kind. The action scenes are terrific and will keep me coming back for more. I read an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction and publicist Stephanie Barko. This is an unbiased review. ...more
This is a tremendously well written story, full of archetypical film crew and stars of the 1950s, living it up at a Catskills, New York resort while tThis is a tremendously well written story, full of archetypical film crew and stars of the 1950s, living it up at a Catskills, New York resort while they make a film. Our heroine is the resort manager, whose mother recently inherited the business. Great attention to period detail and attitudes is shown, while the more modern outlook brought by the new manager brings the tale in line with today's attitudes. I didn't even need a murder to hold my attention, but a suspicious death does occur, engaging several of the mystery's cast in a hunt for clues and alibis. Boundless professionalism is demonstrated by most, while the good citizens of New York, just there to have a nice time away from the city's heat, also provide entertainment and complexity.
I read an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review. ...more
This is a lively, engaging and at times amusing novel featuring the poet Emily Dickinson and her new maid. Far from being obsessed with death and morbThis is a lively, engaging and at times amusing novel featuring the poet Emily Dickinson and her new maid. Far from being obsessed with death and morbid thoughts, the young lady is shown as just being disinclined to participate very much in the male-dominated society of the developing America. She turns to amateur sleuthing when a young groom is found dead in the nearby livery stable and a spirited horse is blamed, perhaps unfairly. I enjoyed the horses in the tale and the look at Washington during a visit.
I read an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review. ...more
Good points: intelligent and tough horse, sensitive, bright and brave boy; danger, nature and crime. Bad points: too much dark fantasy that just serveGood points: intelligent and tough horse, sensitive, bright and brave boy; danger, nature and crime. Bad points: too much dark fantasy that just serves as padding and may deter younger readers. This is about a boy aged 12 so will be read by kids from 10 up.
This is a historical Western, with the great addition of early photos of people like the characters. We learn about making daguerreotypes. I think adding a more proactive female character would have helped, but maybe there weren't any in this territory at this time. Be prepared for a ghost story along with the horsey / treasure hunt adventure.
I read an ARC from Net Galley and Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review. ...more
I enjoyed the full, mixed, bag of Western short stories. These have been selected from the writer's long career and focus on lawmen and impromptu crimI enjoyed the full, mixed, bag of Western short stories. These have been selected from the writer's long career and focus on lawmen and impromptu crime solvers. Sometimes on a frontier or on a cattle trail, there was no way to find a lawman when you needed one. You just had to hope the mean-looking outlaw who rode past, would keep riding and not take a fancy to your horse and goods. Other times, the Ranger or Sheriff was the central character, old wisdom tempered by youthful daring from a sidekick. I especially liked that a few stories focused on men old before their time, worn out by the weather and work, but still needing to earn at whatever job could be found. Some women feature, capable, as they needed to be.
I read an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review....more
Furmidable Foes, like the more recent books set in Crozet, Virginia, is a historical crime story and a modern story in one. Some reader will just wantFurmidable Foes, like the more recent books set in Crozet, Virginia, is a historical crime story and a modern story in one. Some reader will just want the chatty cats and dogs, others will see the look back at plantation days as valuable and deep. What I find is that the modern crime suffers from having less content, and the historical crime can feel slow, as new characters need to be introduced and societal norms established for the reader. Worth a read. I learned plenty and enjoyed the animals.
The Crozet ladies today are replanting a churchyard and gardens with flowers and shrubs chosen by their predecessors. This works well, except that the author / researcher/ editor has got one item totally wrong. Yew trees are extremely toxic. The red aril (not quite a berry) is edible for birds but the seed is toxic. RMB tells it the other way around, one character telling another yews are not poisonous except for the red berry. The reason yew trees were planted in churchyards was to keep them away from livestock, at a time in history when longbows were made of yew wood. If you don't know something, don't put it in your book.
I read an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review. ...more
As much as the central themes of a midwife, a woman bleeding to death and the wish of desperately poor women to control the spacing of babies, with a As much as the central themes of a midwife, a woman bleeding to death and the wish of desperately poor women to control the spacing of babies, with a look at what was legal and illegal at the time, I noticed and admired the weather. Yes, the weather; a bitterly cold Massachusetts is depicted during the 1800s when work was often done by hand, water was often cold, and so were houses. The wintry conditions interplay with the action, slowing down or preventing travel.
I had not read earlier books in this series but the author is clearly well into her stride. You could pick up with this book, but to get a real feel for the characters I'd suggest starting earlier. Our midwife heroine is engaged; I didn't know the gentleman and spent some time trying to get a sense of him and his attitudes. As they come from a religious community they are going to wait for approval from the Quaker faith before marrying.
Due to the subject matter I recommend this complex crime story for adults or mature teen readers. I downloaded an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review....more
This tale mixes a turned-almost-straight lady thief with a straight-laced gentleman and a less than respectable father. The American city setting is uThis tale mixes a turned-almost-straight lady thief with a straight-laced gentleman and a less than respectable father. The American city setting is undergoing change as women press for suffrage and men expand businesses. I liked the general setting detail and variety of characters.
I found an inordinate amount of repetition in the first half of the tale. The main character takes up the cause of a young widow and repeats her tale in unvarying detail to everyone she meets. Sometimes she tells them half the tale, goes away, comes back and tells them the other half. This just feels like padding.
The second part of the book switches viewpoint as we follow the victims of the caper rather than the perpetrators, which may annoy some readers. I downloaded an e-ARC from Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review. ...more
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