Seeing Red

by Davonna Juroe

It's 1962.

Audrey Hepburn’s iconic Breakfast at Tiffany's gown sets the standard for the decade's little black dress, Marilyn Monroe’s sultry rendition of "Happy Birthday" to President John F. Kennedy heats up the New York stage, and James Bond makes his first big on-screen appearance. It is a time of glamour, where martinis flow freely and socialites puff cigarettes as a symbol of class. The petticoat is on its way out and the pillbox hat is in while the birth control pill penetrates American bedrooms.

In the midst of sweeping change, one convention remains. The American Dream: A fairytale based on a white picket fence and a woman’s commitment to being a perfect housewife. Bridget Jeane, a 22-year-old New Yorker, is about to say "I do" to this idyllic domestic future. Until the night she's almost killed in a car accident.

Waking up in a hospital room, Bridget recalls a fight and her drunken fiancé losing control of the car. In the aftermath, Bridget abandons her matrimonial future. She says goodbye to the Midtown lights and swanky nightclubs of the Big Apple. On the eve of her move, Mr. Frank Connery, a successful Madison Avenue advertising executive, asks Bridget for a date and won't take no for an answer. Mr. Connery shakes and stirs Bridget through a cocktailed dreamscape of Manhattan’s glitzy nightlife. But there's a twist in the evening's drink that she doesn't see coming.

Inspired by the popular AMC television series Mad Men and garnished with themes from Ira Levin's novel Stepford Wives (which was twice adapted to film), Seeing Red is an historical, coming-of-age New Adult novella that examines traditional values and gender roles during a rapidly changing era.

111 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 23, 2013

About the author

Davonna Juroe loves ghost stories…as long as they’re not too scary. She tends toward an overactive imagination and startles easily, making her wonder why she’s writing ghostly tales.

When she’s not playing her harp and writing spooky novels, she’s exploring old buildings or daydreaming about her next 80s-inspired Halloween costume.

Besides reading and writing full-time, she can also be found taking photos of all things whimsical and fantasy-inspired in parks throughout the Pacific Northwest. Davonna currently lives in Seattle, Washington, home of the famous and magical Troll Bridge.

Winterbay Abbey is Davonna’s third book. She is also the author of the Amazon-bestselling young adult novel Scarlette, a dark retelling of "Little Red Riding Hood" set in France. Davonna is currently working on Origin, a supernatural pop-science novel about the existence of mermaids.

Reviews

[John Bladek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mad Men and the 50th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination have put the early 1960s into the spotlight lately. This heavily mythologized era marks the heyday of the “good-old-days” for many Americans who have seen them on TV but aren’t old enough to remember them directly. But the new novella by Davonna Juroe, SEEING RED, wastes no time on mythology. The story of 21-year-old bride-to-be Bridget Jean, SEEING RED takes an unsentimental look at the lot of women in 1962, a world far more different from today than the swank fashions might indicate. In a time when “career woman” was a derogatory term and sexual harassment was the norm everywhere and recognized nowhere, Bridget does the unthinkable and walks away from an abusive, narcissistic fiancé only to face public abuse, little sympathy, and an uncertain financial future at best. When the chance to escape her self-imposed exile from matrimony appears almost as a miracle, Bridget finds that miracles aren’t always what they seem.

SEEING RED accurately depicts the ugly side of the good-old-days and avoids the pitfalls of many a romance. It does not fall into the trap of making successful men who treat women as objects into heroes. The past is rarely what you think and SEEING RED does a wonderful job of making that clear and does so in a fun way without becoming pedantic or lecturing. Bridget’s journey develops organically and flows with the essence of believability. Bridget is an entirely sympathetic character and you will find yourself rooting for her and wanting to kick her antagonists in someplace best left to the imagination. I wanted to see Bridget do the kicking, but she’s a classy 1962 girl and doesn’t lower herself to that level.

If you’d like to read a riveting story with finely drawn characters then SEEING RED is for you. Well written and researched SEEING RED portrays both the allure and the dark underbelly of 1962 Manhattan without being exploitative or maudlin and never strays into good-old-days mythmaking. Don’t expect to finish this fine story with the foolish notion that a little black dress is a substitute for equality. But you will finish SEEING RED with a warm feeling of an evening well spent with a good book.

[Hurricane Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prepare to be transported back to 1962!

The exceptionally talented author Davonna Juroe has produced another masterpiece of historical fiction. Utterly engrossing, "Seeing Red" brought 1962 Manhattan to life before my eyes. I could practically hear the rhythms of the city pulsating around me and smell the subtle, masculine aroma of lingering cigarette smoke rising from the pages.

Bridget Jean's struggle to find her place in what was decidedly a man's world reveals the startling reality behind the oft glamorized "Camelot Era." I couldn't help but root for Bridget as she began to throw caution to the wind, staying true to herself and turning outdated conventions on their heads.

I can't wait to see what Davonna Juroe comes up with next!

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

short but sweet

[Tanya · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was free on Amazon. The afterword was very well-written.