Lucy Lied

by M.J. Daspit

In Monterey, California of the late 1870's religious tent camp meetings are held cheek by jowl with lynchings. At this intersection of the righteous and the profane, a triangle evolves linking Doctor Jason Garrett, would-be healer accustomed to putting the truth through a contortion or two, the mute Lucy Strang, and gunman Matt Clancy, eviction agent who forces settlers off railroad land yet stalwartly defends Chinese immigrants. Under suspicion for the murder of her brutish common-law husband, Lucy is saved from the noose when Garrett falsifies medical testimony at trial. He plans to marry the maligned redhead and cure her muteness. But it's whispered that Lucy has been dallying with the reviled Clancy. The fabric of love begins to fray. LUCY LIED has received early praise from Will Howarth, coauthor (writing as Dana Hand) of DEEP CREEK who comments, "The characters are set up strongly and swiftly, and the plot is hard to beat!" Through a story of deceit and desire, the novel explores nineteenth-century women's health issues, anti-Chinese political rhetoric, conflict between grangers and the Southern Pacific Railroad, and vigilante justice.

348 pages, Paperback

First published July 16, 2014

About the author

MJ was born in Princeton, New Jersey in 1951. After graduation from Cornell University in 1973, she became managing editor for The Writings of Henry D. Thoreau in association with Princeton University Press. She subsequently joined the Navy and served in the anti-submarine SOSUS community and in the Navy Recruiting Command.
Retired as a Commander in 1994, she taught English at Southwestern College in Chula Vista, California and later moved to Oregon to pursue a career in writing. She currently lives in the vibrant theater town of Ashland with her husband Gary Greksouk.
Daspit’s published works include a nonfiction book titled ROGUE VALLEY WINE, co-authored with winemaker Eric Weisinger (Arcadia Publishing, 2011) and a historical novel, LUCY LIED (Fireship Press, 2014).

Reviews

[mad mags]

(Full disclosure: I received a free copy of this book for review through Goodreads' First Reads program.)

Set in the late 1870s, Lucy Lied is about a young woman who, through a series of misfortunes, ends up the slave/common-law-wife of a beet farmer in the dusty Spanish missionary town of Monterey, California. When Flynn Talbot turns up dead in his bedroom, brains bashed in, Sheriff Taylor immediately focuses his "investigation" on the Chinese immigrants and laborers who exist on the margins of Monterey society. At the suggestion of Doctor "Doc" Jason Garrett - who's purposefully misrepresented the evidence to further his own agenda - Taylor zeroes in on "Chinaman Joe," a giant of a man who travels through town, collecting discarded items and reselling them to make a living. But when Joe's defense attorney produces the missing Lucy Strang Talbot - and with her, an alternate theory of the crime - the town's attention turns to the mute redhead.

Or at least I think it does? I DNF'ed at 33%, several days after Lucy's testimony at the trial. The fate of Joe had yet to be announced and, after a quick skim through the rest of the book, I couldn't seem to find another mention of him, or any subsequent trial - though I could be wildly mistaken.

For whatever reason, the story failed to hold my attention. Historical fiction can be rather hit or miss with me, and I guess this one was just a miss. While I was intrigued by the titular Lucy, I found the presence of multiple additional protagonists distracting. Glimpses of Lucy's life come infrequently, as the story shifts between one character and the next. For long stretches, nothing much seems to happen, even though there exist multiple sub-plots. I found the writing a little dry and sometimes confusing, though this could be at least partially attributed to the old timey vernacular.

Trigger warning for violence against women, as well as historically accurate racism, sexism, homophobia, and associated language. Some of this - such as Doc's quaintly sexist postulations as to the cause of Lucy's muteness

(e.g., "Physical manifestation of a mental weakness. It's often the case in women. The womb and its functions drain vital force from the brain, which, as it happens, is smaller than in the male, so less able from the start."; "The uterus and ovaries, being connected to the other organs by a network of nerves, were involved in most of women's complaints. Further, many of these complaints were brought on by masturbation, the root cause of unhealthy excitement of the sex organs. He was hopeful that he might discover if a predisposition to this secret sin was evident in the shape of Lucy's skull.")

- I actually found rather amusing in a satirical, you've-got-to-be-kidding-me kind of way.

http://www.easyvegan.info/2014/12/05/...

[Edwin Battistella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lucy Lied is a historical adventure tale of the West, featuring an abused wife, a murdered husband, a troubled MD, an eviction agent with a soft-spot for Chinese immigrants, and richly drawn supporting characters—conmen, artists, madams, church ladies and more. The depiction of Monterey and California in the 1870 is well researched and evokes the period details—the sights and sounds of the California frontier: you can taste the dust. There’s a lot of interesting period history in the book—Chinese culture, the bigotry against the Chinese, legal issues, faith healing, medicine, 19th century medical superstitions, and more—all of which helps to drive the central tension of a tragic romantic triangle. A terrific first novel by Daspit.

[Janet Sola · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lush historical page-turner

Lucy, a mute redhead with a mysterious past, is at the center of this intriguing novel set in 19th century Monterey, California. The story opens with a murder and a trial that reveals the dark threads that wound through that community: domestic brutality and rampant racism, particularly against Chinese workers. M.J. Daspit’s assured and evocative voice (hard to believe it’s a first novel) spins a page-turning tale of a complex woman, hardened by her struggle for survival but who won’t give up on her search for happiness—no matter the cost. Rich characterizations abound, from the obsessed doctor to a strange little woman trapped in a perennial childhood. A rich and rewarding read.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full disclosure: I was chosen a First Reads winner, and received a paperback copy of Lucy Lied by M.J. Daspit in the mail. That in no way influenced the review that follows.

This was a most interesting book -- a "western" set in 1870s Monterey, California and featuring a most interesting cast of very diverse characters. It took me nearly half of the book, though, to keep them all straight.

There were times when I found the story fascinating, but others when I couldn't find a single character I liked. Despite that, it's very well written and, if historical westerns are a genre you enjoy, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a delayed First Reads Review.

This book is hard to review because it is good, but it is missing....something. Excitement, love, mystery...something. Therefore at times, the story was a bit boring to be honest.

I think the writer does a great job with characterization in this book. I think that the characters were believable and they had a lot of depth. I also really enjoyed the writing style. The writer definitely has talent and I really appreciated that. I think this book has quite lot of potential, but for me the plot just fell a little short.

I didn't really enjoy the ending and I am not going to spoil it, but for me it was not satisfying.

[Renee Senters · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I received this book from goodreads in a giveaway.

I hate to say it, but as much as I tried I just could not get into the book. I have very mixed feelings about historical fiction...sometimes love it, sometimes hate it. I would be hard pressed to say what about this I didn't care for and if you like historical fiction this may be the perfect book for you.

Thank you goodreads for the opportunity to read/review this book.