{Thank you to Bloomsbury Publishing for my gifted copy.}
Outlawed by Anna North
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book Summary:
The Crucible meets True Grit in this riveting adventure story of a fugitive girl, a mysterious gang of robbers, and their dangerous mission to transform the Wild West.
In the year of our Lord 1894, I became an outlaw.
The day of her wedding, 17 year old Ada’s life looks good; she loves her husband, and she loves working as an apprentice to her mother, a respected midwife. But after a year of marriage and no pregnancy, in a town where barren women are routinely hanged as witches, her survival depends on leaving behind everything she knows.
She joins up with the notorious Hole in the Wall Gang, a band of outlaws led by a preacher-turned-robber known to all as the Kid. Charismatic, grandiose, and mercurial, the Kid is determined to create a safe haven for outcast women. But to make this dream a reality, the Gang hatches a treacherous plan that may get them all killed. And Ada must decide whether she’s willing to risk her life for the possibility of a new kind of future for them all.
Featuring an irresistibly no-nonsense, courageous, and determined heroine, Outlawed dusts off the myth of the old West and reignites the glimmering promise of the frontier with an entirely new set of feminist stakes. Anna North has crafted a pulse-racing, page-turning saga about the search for hope in the wake of death, and for truth in a climate of small-mindedness and fear.
Publication Date:
January 5th, 2021
Genre:
Fiction – Feminist/Alternative History/Western
Purchase Your Copy:
Amazon Link | LibroFM Bookstore Link
My Review:
Reading outside of my “comfort zone” is one of my goals for 2021, and Outlawed seemed like a great way to start it off. I would not normally be drawn to the “western” and “alternative history” sub-genres, but when it was picked by Reese’s Book Club I thought I would give it a shot.
I so appreciated the originality and you can tell author Anna North did her research. Outlawed is set in the late 1800s, and the provocative and progressive premises mixed in with superstitions and witchcraft made for a truly unique plotline. North did a wonderful job intertwining the discrepancies women had to deal with during this time, especially women who were not able to have children.
I did end up struggling with this story at times. There were parts that were fascinating but I also found certain sections to just drag on. I also found myself wishing that the supporting characters were more well developed because at times I felt like they were hard to keep track of. While this wasn’t a total reading win for me, I am glad I read it, and I think this would make for a very unique and layered book club discussion.
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