What do you think?
Rate this book
Edgewise
Jude Alta has her music, her friends, and the love of smart, sexy Toni Dilano. Yet, there is an inexplicable void in her life.
She visits her dying friend Rosalie, whose disposition of her vast property is awaited by several concerned factions - including the inhabitants of nearby Circle Edge, a secluded and mysterious feminist community.
Eagerly welcomed by this community, Jude finds herself entranced by the beauty of her surroundings, by the charismatic La and the beguiling Amagyne. Soon she learns the secrets of the community's religious belief, and discovers that her arrival at Circle Edge is no accident - it has been precisely foretold, along with the world-altering role which is her destiny.
Jude's relationship with Toni becomes threatened by Toni's certainty that Jude has been brainwashed by a cult. And Jude is assailed by her own doubts: what do La and Amagyne really want of her? And the rumors of her death is an essential part of the doctrine she has embraced - surely this is mere symbolic ritual ... or is it?
She visits her dying friend Rosalie, whose disposition of her vast property is awaited by several concerned factions - including the inhabitants of nearby Circle Edge, a secluded and mysterious feminist community.
Eagerly welcomed by this community, Jude finds herself entranced by the beauty of her surroundings, by the charismatic La and the beguiling Amagyne. Soon she learns the secrets of the community's religious belief, and discovers that her arrival at Circle Edge is no accident - it has been precisely foretold, along with the world-altering role which is her destiny.
Jude's relationship with Toni becomes threatened by Toni's certainty that Jude has been brainwashed by a cult. And Jude is assailed by her own doubts: what do La and Amagyne really want of her? And the rumors of her death is an essential part of the doctrine she has embraced - surely this is mere symbolic ritual ... or is it?
360 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 1989
1 person is currently reading
84 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 5, 2020
This is a lesbian novel about Jude, an intelligent thirtyish woman who is lured into an apparently warm and loving women's community with its own religion. Her lover and her friends are alarmed.
This is a well-told story set in rural Colorado. I'm allergic to woo-woo, but this community is a believable group of mostly good women. Mostly.
I particularly enjoyed the development of the story and Jude's friends efforts extricate her from the new religion.
This is a well-told story set in rural Colorado. I'm allergic to woo-woo, but this community is a believable group of mostly good women. Mostly.
I particularly enjoyed the development of the story and Jude's friends efforts extricate her from the new religion.
September 4, 2018
I read this book long time ago, I really love the work of Camarin Grae (it is a real pity how little recognized is) and this book in particular is a gem. The psychological development of the characters is stunning, the narrative very fluid and of course a good dosis of radical-lesbian feminism. The main history is about some kind of feminist cult in a women's land with a semi-apocalyptic nature, and the way Jude enters it, at the same time she discovers its dark secrets.
A must read!
A must read!
June 8, 2020
This is my third Camarin Grae novel, and it's the best one yet. It's not for everyone, though. In The Winged Dancer, she explored the same themes of psychology, feminism, culture clash, folklore and religion, but from a mystery slant. Edgewise is a cult seduction story. In gorgeous prose, we see about to turn 30 Jude Alta being groomed for membership in the goddess-centered community of Kwo-ami. Against the advice of her partner, friends and family, Jude leaves her comfortable life in Chicago, moving to a Ladies' Farm in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Guess who happens to be the group's Catalyst, sent to change the world forever? Fortunately, the people who love Jude won't let her go without a fight.
As a practicing therapist, Grae has great insight into how the human mind works. The Sage at the center of Kwo-ami, La, is a charismatic, manipulative cult leader, but Grae never makes her a cheap villain. Instead, she weaves layers upon layers of backstory as La's motivation comes unravelled. To her credit, there's none of the overt brainwashing and psychological torture of Grae's earlier novels. Instead, like Jude Alta, the reader gets caught up in the delusions and is compelled to keep reading. Even the ending of the book leaves the Kwo-ami with some mystique intact.
It is criminal that Grae's novels are out of print. They're lighter than Patricia Highsmith, though not by much, with comparable insight into human nature. I chose this title for a challenge prompt; Edgewise, sadly, fits as an underrated and overlooked gem.
As a practicing therapist, Grae has great insight into how the human mind works. The Sage at the center of Kwo-ami, La, is a charismatic, manipulative cult leader, but Grae never makes her a cheap villain. Instead, she weaves layers upon layers of backstory as La's motivation comes unravelled. To her credit, there's none of the overt brainwashing and psychological torture of Grae's earlier novels. Instead, like Jude Alta, the reader gets caught up in the delusions and is compelled to keep reading. Even the ending of the book leaves the Kwo-ami with some mystique intact.
It is criminal that Grae's novels are out of print. They're lighter than Patricia Highsmith, though not by much, with comparable insight into human nature. I chose this title for a challenge prompt; Edgewise, sadly, fits as an underrated and overlooked gem.
November 3, 2023
i wish i could've given this book a higher rating but lesbian loneliness is not so bad that any self-loving womon can/should overlook being cheated on by their partner that they're willing to sacrifice everything for. that plot point actually ruined the book for me. i would've given it 2 stars if i didn't think the rest of it made it at least somewhat worthwhile for others to read
at least it's interesting to read a feminist novel where the protagonist is exceptionally anti-feminist if it makes things harder for her
at least it's interesting to read a feminist novel where the protagonist is exceptionally anti-feminist if it makes things harder for her
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews