But what the cover lacked in eye catching detail, the summery made up for and I was excited to check this debut novel out! But then she’s never met a man like Benjamin Blackthorn – an easy-on-the-ears name that demands you never shorten it – who values her opinions, appreciates her unconventional ways and delights in her strong-willed personality. It is a beautiful landscape, which the author does not fully capture in her writing since her goal is mainly to document the details of living, which attracts a unique individual.

Animals were less constrained and more numerous; there were more places to be 'discovered' (to settler eyes, at least); and government regulations didn't quite reach everyone.I especially loved seeing her dispatch her eager suitors with practiced ease while she wiggled her way into Mr. Treated with both pity and alarm, she’s fed up of being constantly compared to her beautiful absent mother, yet keenly feels her absence – especially when it comes to advice on finding a career available to women, and to courting an appropriate man.

As always when I read books set in this time period, I get frustrated with the limitations of being a woman during this time.

This is, after all, 1896, so an unmarried woman on the cusp of thirty is already heading towards the scrap pile (cue the mass eye roll). years after her mother's disappearance, Violet decides to hire a detective to help her find her mother and find out what happened to her. Rather - I'm going to send it to a family friend who still ranches in the west; it reminded me of him a whole lot. As I walked home, with my first payment from my first real employment in my pocket, I felt ten feet tall. But in the end I found her persistence as a character won me over and I can say that I certainly enjoyed getting to know her.

There are ladies who don’t like what they are made for, the cleaning and the domestic business, the caring and the mothering. I had faithfully included all three of her chins, upon which she told me she had only sat for me out of sympathy, forbade me to continue as an artist and left, chins wobbling in fury. If you are in a reading slump look no further , this is a beautiful, fun easy to read book unlike any I have read in a while. I'm so glad she was able to put her unique world into a bottle, to exist forever, from before all of this. The mystery of Violet’s mother’s disappearance added to the story and I was fully invested in finding out what happened to her.With Blackthorn, she is able to partly live her dream of being a Lady Detective (not quite so easy for a woman in 1896! Second, women are prominently displayed and recognized for their contributions to New Mexican history. Biography: Hannah Dolby's first job was in the circus and she has aimed to keep life as interesting since. I’m a big fan of historical fiction, mysteries and uplift, so this was the perfect mix of genres for me.

Even knowing that this book was written in the 1940s, though, and from the perspective of someone who vastly benefited from stolen land, coming across that paragraph felt like a slap in the face, and I think future readers should know to expect it. Knight uncovers some shocking information about Lily, what her mother had been doing for the months prior to her vanishing, Violet didn't have a clue and this makes her extremely curious and she now wants to investigate the case herself. I hope Hannah Dolby isn't finished with Violet Hamilton as a character because I would love to read more about her Lady Detective escapades. This is Eleanor Oliphant for historical fiction fans, with a dash of detective work and mystery thrown in. Violet, though, is persistent and has soon managed to convince him that she can interview prospective female clients and even carry out investigative work for him.

She is an independent confident, but quite naive woman, that knows her own mind and her father fears that she will never get married and keeps finding suitors for her.