Boston Jane: The Claim

Boston Jane #3

by Jennifer L. Holm

With a mind of her own and a handsome suitor who loves her for it, seventeen-year-old Jane Peck is the darling of the Washington Territory. She's outwitted wild animals, vengeful ghosts, and a disloyal fiancé, but when her finishing school nemesis Sally Biddle invades Shoalwater Bay, Jane discovers that the most dangerous thing on the frontier may be an impeccably dressed debutante. As the Biddles of Philadelphia charm their way into Jane's close-knit community, she finds everything she holds dear threatened -- including her true love, a rakish sailor named Jehu. Will Jane's claim on happiness slip away? This third book of the richly historical Boston Jane trilogy carries on the tradition of rip-roaring romance and adventure that began with Boston An Adventure and Boston Wilderness Days. Jane has survived the wilderness and claimed herself a home, but her frontier trials are far from over. It will take all of the spunk and spit Jane can muster to protect her land and preserve her dreams.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Historical, Fiction, Romance, Middle Grade, Adventure

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Jennifer L. Holm is a USA TODAY and NEW YORK TIMES-bestselling children's author with more than 9.8 million books in print She is the recipient of three Newbery Honors for her novels OUR ONLY MAY AMELIA, PENNY FROM HEAVEN, and TURTLE IN PARADISE and a Scott O'Dell Award for her novel FULL OF BEANS.

Jennifer collaborates with her brother, Matthew Holm, on three bestselling graphic novel series -- the Eisner Award-winning Babymouse series, the SUNNY series, and the Squish series. SQUISH is now an animated tv series on YouTube!

For more information, visit her website at www.jenniferholm.com.

Reviews

[Sonja Rosa Lisa ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oregon 1855: Die 17-jährige Jane hat sich inzwischen in ihrer neuen Heimat gut eingelebt. Sie hat Freunde gefunden und sich verliebt. Doch dann taucht plötzlich ihre alte Widersacherin Sally aus Philadelphia auf. Und auch William, ihr ehemaliger Verlobter, möchte Jane Steine in den Weg legen. Doch Jane gibt nicht auf; sie möchte sich ihr neues Leben nicht vermiesen lassen.
💖💖💖
Mein Leseeindruck:
Auch dieser dritte Band der Trilogie hat mir unglaublich gut gefallen. Ich bin ein bisschen traurig, dass die Geschichte von Jane nun leider vorbei ist. Ich habe sie richtig gerne gelesen und konnte mit Jane und ihren Freunden mitfühlen.
Jane ist eine sehr sympathische Protagonistin, und auch andere Figuren haben mir sehr gefallen. Sie sind gut ausgearbeitet, und ich konnte mir von allen ein gutes Bild machen.
Der Schreibstil ist sehr angenehm; leicht, locker und flüssig zu lesen. Für mich hätte die Geschichte gerne noch ein wenig länger sein dürfen.
"Boston Jane" ist eine wirklich wunderbare und sehr unterhaltsame Trilogie für junge Leser ab 12 Jahren, aber ich denke, auch ältere Leser werden ihre Freude an dieser dreiteiligen Reihe haben.

[Ginger ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book as a youngin' and I still read it now every so often. It never gets old. The emotions are always there and they adventure are always there! This is a book you should really get into!

[Amelia Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
I really enjoyed this series.
If you liked "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" or "Indian Captive", this would be a fun read.

[Maren Dennis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I enjoyed this series overall. Reading all three books quickly, one after the other so I could finish before they were due at the library, meant that I had to suffer through reminders of events from previous books. That's always dull, and I wondered if it was completely necessary since these books are pretty short and sweet.

But anyway...I think this is a great series for readers transitioning from middle grade to YA. And in spite of the plots of each being simple, they still made me care and were solid from a storytelling perspective.

[Emma Bozarth · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was really good. I liked that Sally Biddle was back, not because I actually like her as a person, but because she brought certain emotions with her that the other two books didn't have. It was, as all the other books from Jennifer Holm, really well written, and the characters were awesome. I only gave it four stars though, because the way all of Janes friends apologised to her was a little bit too unrealistic for me.

[Ginnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this book and the character arc from the first book to now but in a way I feel like it’s a fantasy because of the positive Indian relations compared to what actually did happen because us modern readers want things to happen in a modern worldview. Otherwise, really good and would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction or middle grade.

[Holly Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

As with the first two books, The Claim is beautifully well-written. I must admit, I got so annoyed with Sally and William that it made me want to throw the book across the room numerous times. I don’t know if it was just my heart condition acting up or not but with all of the action contained in this last book, my heart rate was all over the place! An amazing conclusion to an amazing trilogy!

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not overly critical when it comes to books. I was entertained. There were parts I liked and parts I didn’t, but overall it was a nice easy read that I enjoyed.

[Clara Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane Peck has lived on her own in Shoalwater Bay, a place where whites and Chinooks live together in 1850s Washington Territory. Jane has come to love Shoalwater Bay and she has made many friends. She works as the concierge at the hotel and her pies are the best on the Bay. She is good at her job and the people appreciate what she does for them.

Jane grew up in Philadelphia and she originally came to Shoalwater Bay to get married to William Baldt. When she arrived, she found that he had already married and left. Instead of returning to Philadelphia, she stayed and learned to survive in the “wilderness”. About two years later, Sally Biddle, a girl who had tortured Jane while they were in school, moved to Shoalwater Bay. Sally immediately started making Jane’s life miserable again and everyone began to love Sally and dislike Jane. Sally always presented herself in a charming way but inside she was a terrible person. To Jane’s dismay, William also returned to Shoalwater Bay and began to cause trouble for Jane and the entire community. The community that Jane had loved was disappearing before her eyes.

The Chinook Indians and the whites live together in the Washington Territory but many of the whites dislike the Chinook. Many of them believe that it isn’t right to raise a child in the Chinook style. In theory, when the community is making decisions, the Chinook should have an equal say in the decisions that are made. Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case and the Chinook often become victims of discrimination.

This is a great story that regards the lives of people living in Shoalwater Bay in the 1850s. You can feel the emotions of the people and imagine yourself going through the events of their lives. Jennifer L. Holm cleverly weaves the life of Jane and the lives of the entire community into one story. Readers interested in the unique lifestyle of these people will take pleasure in reading this novel.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, the memories. I loved the first two Boston Jane books when I was still in middle school. I've always meant to read The Claim, but just never got around to it. This year, I was bound and determined to read it! I loved being reunited with all these great characters. From Mr. Russell and Mr Swan to Keer-ukso and Sootie. It was so great to be back!

I loved that Jane continued to grow despite having accepted Shoalwater Bay as her home in the other books. She isn't afraid to speak her mind and help those who can't help themselves. I love that about her.

Sally Biddle is THE WORST. I got SO angry when her lies influenced Jane's relationships with all the other Shoalwater Bay folks. Baldt is no winner either. Yikes. What a jerk!

My favorite aspect of this series is Jane and Jehu. SIGH. He built her a house! <3 I was a little worried with all the tension towards the end, but of course, love wins! Ah, he's the cutest sailor ever! So glad they got their Happily Ever After.

[Lynn M. Ludeke · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. The moment Sally Biddle arrived at the end of part 2, I did not think I would like part 3. I still feel the storyline involving her was unnecessary to Jane's tale, and found it mostly frustrating and childish. However, the rest of the book was good and I am glad I decided to stick the book out and finished the series. I live not too far from Willapia Bay (near Raymond, WA) so loved the history of this book. Looking forward to reading James Sean's book next.

[Sophie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Αn enjoyable read, like the other books, but a) the characters were all acting a little too stupid for me and b) in the end the conflict was resolved a little too quickly. But Boston Jane is a great character (although considering what she's accomplished already her behavior here was a little out of character or rather uneven) and this was definitely fun.

[LibraryLaur · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful conclusion to the trilogy. Must remember these when asked for good historical fiction.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series. :)

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sally Biddle, Jane's Philadelphia nemesis, ends up in Shoalwater Bay with her family. Sally's goal is to destroy Jane's life because she feels that Jane is the cause of all of her problems. She has everyone fooled into thinking that Jane is a terrible person (I don't understand how it was so easy to manipulate all of Jane's friends and associates into thinking she's terrible so quickly). William get elected the Justice of the Peace and makes some terrible decisions because he is still a garbage human. M'Carthy dies and Judge William agrees that his half-Native daughter should be taken from her mother to be raised by white people, who end up using Katy as a child laborer by having her wash clothes and abusing her. Only Jane is strong enough to stand up to William in front of the town and takes Katy away so that Mrs. Frink can take her and her mother, Coulomb, to live in the hotel. Jehu gets a plot of land for Jane, William finds out and tries to take it from her because she can't have a claim as a single woman and the land has good timber. Jehu claims that the land is in Jane's father's name and now that he is dead, is belongs to Jane. This isn't a true story but it is believed by Mr. Biddle and William is forced to accept it because the claim is signed with Dr. Peck's signature and Jehu tells Mr. Biddle what William did to Jane. (Turns out that Dr. Peck's signature was forged on the claim by Hairy Bill.) Keer-ukso and Jehu want to start a lumber mill. Jane finds a letter where Sally writes to her friend about how simple and fat and vulgar she finds all the ladies in the town and Jane exposes her for the lying manipulator she is. Jehu proposes to Jane and she accepts. Mr. Swann decides to leave Shoalwater Bay to go back to his wife and children after his wife sends him a letter. Jane receives a letter saying her inheritance from her father has arrived in San Francisco. She agrees to invest in Jehu and Keer-ukso's lumber mill as long as she is their partner. Jehu and Jane make plans to sail to San Fransisco.

[Moira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nachdem ich die beiden Bände gelesen habe musste ich den letzten Band lesen. Und OH mein God! Es war so gut. Ich habe mich aufgeregt.

Aber das nach der Reihe nach

Boston Jane lebt sein ca drei Jahren in Shoalwater Bay und bekommt Besuch von ihrer Erzfeindin Sally. William taucht auch wieder auf und will alles kaputt machen. Für Boston Jane herrschen wieder stürmische Zeiten und sie muss erkennen wie wichtig es ist sich durchzusetzen. Vor allem wegen Sally. Sally, die Boston Jane nicht leiden kann und auf einmal in Shoalwater Bay auftaucht und ihr das Leben zur Hölle macht. Wie arm muss man eigentlich sein, jmd ausnutzen, verarschen oder Freunde weg nehmen oder sich alles wegnehmen was Boston Jane aufgebaut hat?

Die Protagonistin tat mir unendlich leid vor allem weil William wieder auftauchte und er nicht begreifen kann und nicht akzeptieren kann, dass eine Frau keine Puppe ist sondern auch denken kann und eine Meinung vertreten darf. Sprachlich ist die Geschichte spannend geschrieben und manchmal hätte ich Sally eine ausgepeitscht und sie ins Wasser geworfen. Sally war unglaublich armselig und mega geisteskrank genauso wie William, der vielen verheimlichte, dass er nur heiraten wollte wegen dem Land und es gab noch andere Gründe.

Alles in allem ein spannendes Finale der Geschichte und die Geschichte ist auch nach einer wahren Begebenheiten passiert.

[Ali · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the third and final in the Boston Jane series. I greatly enjoyed the first and second books. The third book made me angry. Jane had a nemesis in the first book, who showed up with her rich family in this third book. She immediately made Jane's life miserable, lied to everyone about Jane, and her family was sneaky and underhanded in trying to take over the town.
All of the people who had known Jane for years became infatuated with Sally and how wonderful she was. They immediately believed her lies about Jane, even though they had no reason to. Jane being vindicated was a fluke.
I felt that the third book was written to cause spiteful drama in Jane's life. I liked the first two books because they included life drama (losing the boat, falling through the roof of the new home, cooking drama). The same type of happenings could have occured in the third book, but instead the author just made everyone horrible.

[12tahmad · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was one bad thing after another and then the resolution was like 10 pages long. There were no warm fuzzy feelings to be had about everything working out because everything wasn't even worked out properly and whatever was was just so rushed because there was so much going wrong and so little time for it to go right.
I feel like she was hoping to continue the series and so left some slight openings in the plot, and then she didn't get the approval to keep writing more books and so this hurried ending just has to do.
I'm so disappointed though, the first two books were SO good I was really hoping for a grande finale.
I think the decision to bring Sally Biddle into the picture was also just a little too much, along with the Indian-white issues that were going on. She should have picked either issue and went with it because one is so petty and the other so complex and it just didn't work together.

[Kaitlyn S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The perfect ending the the Boston Jane trilogy . . . although I must say that I wish there were more! This heroine is so funny and feisty, quite a little terror, actually, yet so very lovable.

In this comical conclusion, Jane Peck has to face down a myriad of challenges. Sally Biddle, a fatherless Indian child, a drunk man, mud pies, and a thief. But, through it all, she remains the ever stoic, slightly dramatic, indomitable frontiers woman.

While it was kinda predictable towards the end, this was a light read that didn't take nearly any time at all to read, and it was a wonderful distraction from a few heavier reads I have in progress.

*As a caution, there was several mentions of kissing, and drunkenness contained within these pages. While this was intended for younger children, I would recommend for parents to pre-read for children under 16.

[Peyton Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely the most frustrating of the Boston Jane series because the plot is driven by people being needlessly cruel, foolish, and failing to communicate. However, quite a bit of the plot is disappointingly accurate (watching relations between settlers and Native Americans rapidly disintegrate the stronger territorial governments became) and also surprised me in how much resonated with this adult reader, particularly around horrifying election results and watch it fuel a lot of hatred and poor behavior. Everything worked out as best as it could, and had the nice hopeful ending to soothe the anxiety incurred throughout the read. But all in all, I still adore this series. Thanks for the great reads, Jennifer L. Holm!

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The third and last book in the Boston Jane series, and there’s no stopping the adventure. Jane has everything going for her in the primitive pioneer town she has helped to build, and she has a handsome suitor she adores, even if he is a sailor. Her own house is being built on a superior spot of land, which she has indisputable claim to–or does she? William, her old flame, has returned to the story, and he wants his revenge. Sally Biddle, her old rival from finishing school, likewise appears on the scene, causing Jane the same kind of misery she thought she left behind in Philadelphia. You know everything’s going to turn out OK, but you don’t see how it can happen, which is the best possible formula for a girls’ adventure tale.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE CLAIM is an excellent last book in a trilogy that I have very much enjoyed. It introduces new challenges, new adventures, and new characters, all of which test Jane and help her to learn and grow. My favorite part about the series, in fact, has been watching that evolution. I've come to love and admire Jane, so I felt great empathy for her as she struggled to deal with her old bully. I wanted Sally to get her comeuppance, but I did admire how Jane handled the whole thing by basically letting Sally dig her own grave. As always, I enjoyed the book's setting, characters, and prose. All in all, these books have been great reads - just what I like in MG/YA historical novels.

[Nuri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished this book today. Stupid Sally Biddle. I really do hate her. And Baldt. Ugh. They should marry each other, they're perfect. What's with all their racism? Maybe leave the big decisions to the locals, who've been there longer and know what they're talking about? Same goes for all governments. Unless you've lived there for a while, you can't decide anything, seriously.

Also, Jehu's proposal at the end of the book?!?!? I mean, really? It was sooooo ahhh I just loved it I have no words. This book was the perfect end to the trilogy, but WHY does it have to be a trilogy?!??! Can't it be a series? I want to see Jane as a mother. Please make this happen, dear author!

[Jessika Caruso · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: As 17-year-old Jane Peck acclimates to her life in Shoalwater Bay, her plans go awry when her arch-nemesis from Philadelphia shows up – and attempts to steal Jane’s friends, land, and suitor.

Thoughts: I had to find out what happened in the last book of the trilogy! Holm’s writing propelled me forward, but I missed the wonder and excitement of the first Boston Jane. The appearance of Sally Biddle was unrealistic to me, and we certainly did not see enough of Jehu. Jane’s character did not really grow or change and the secondary players were underdeveloped. There was a lot of action, but nothing really happened.

Content Advisory: A clean read suitable for upper elementary school and up – though the interest level remains 12+. A man dies, but not graphically. A child is taken away from her mother and mistreated. No swearing or sex, other than a few innocent kisses. We learn that a mother lost a child and a husband deserted his wife.

Spiritual/Moral Lessons: Jane does not learn anything in this book. As always, she defends the rights of her Chinook friends, which is admirable. However, I don’t agree with how she dealt with bully Sally Biddle. Really, there are no great revelations in morality and no resolution between Jane and Sally.

Impressions: The title kept my interest, but ended without much closure. It was not as exciting as the previous two volumes. I find myself forgetting much of the plot even though I finished it less than a week ago. Read only to conclude the series, and even then you may be disappointed.

[Aviann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was shocked that Sally Biddle returned. She certainly added new character development for everyone, but goodness girls can be mean. Some of the development in this one made me sad, such as how Native Americans were treated. Even so, I appreciated how Jane prevailed and remained true to herself. More than anything I was grateful for closure. And my kids are probably glad to have me back as I’ve only been reading the past few days.

[Ellie Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jennifer Holm’s Boston Jane trilogy is the best trilogy I’ve every read. Though the reading level is easy. These intriguing books are full of Jane’s stubborn, but loving and loyal personality,along with the neverending adventures. I would definitely recommend all three books. And this whole trilogy should be condensed into a spectacular movie. It has all the aspects that are needed for a movie.

[Hannah Degn · Rating 2 out of 5]

LOL gotta still post this one to get credit for my goal!

A definite re-read but I mostly hated it. I just feel sad that she is never friends with Sally/everyone is kinda mean spirited and that there is so much racism????? Also I still don't know how to pronounce Jehu's name and I definitely remember the love story being better.

[Tina Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the conclusion to this trilogy. Interesting time and place in history, a heroine I liked all the way through, and an accurate retelling of the hardships of the day. I read this whole series in less than a week which is a sign that I loved it.
Could be read as a JF because of the writing style but I would recommend it as YA because of some of the subject matter.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed for local school library. I enjoyed it! Squeaky clean language. There are references to Indians (the period correct term) and they are called Injuns by the people who are racist. But it's all handled very well and it's abundantly clear the morals of the story - treat others as you want to be treated, no matter their race or culture.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing itself was fine. But that story! Ugh. I feel like it could have been SO much more than what it was. I adore book one!! It set the trilogy up for such a gripping adventure! This third book was a major let down for me.