Status Updates From The Wild Olive (Large Print...

The awkwardness here is hilarious.

The kiss! The description of a knight! The way this chapter links itself with the beginning of the book so beautifully! I love it!

Miriam’s parents’ story is a bit sketchy. I’m not quite understanding exactly what happened. It was both wicked and noble. But, history repeated itself in Miriam and Ford. The same thing happened...only here, it seems, without the wickedness. History repeated itself yet at the same time the cycle was broken?? My. Oh. My. How...fantastic.

I really like how Miriam’s native ancestry is so highly praised. She’s commended for it! It’s something not often seen in old books like this! Something else not seen is just how fantastic she is...for a woman in 1910. She’s the hero. Brave, intelligent (quite!), self-commanding, self-sacrificing, AGH. She’s wonderful!

THIS IS SUCH A BRILLIANT TRIANGLE THO

This makes sense, too. She quite grateful to Conquest because he did so much for the person she loves, Ford. She doesn’t love Conquest but she does want to make him happy, because he’s made her happy in what he did for Ford.

WE HAVE THE PRIVILEGE TO SUFFER FOR CHRIST.

This shows the truth of that perfectly! They both love each other so much it would be a joy to suffer; and indeed it is a joy to suffer, for her. Just to know he will live with a restored reputation because of it.

That middle paragraph is EPIC.

Ahhhhhhhhh

This is glorious. Ok, if she would “plead and beg” him to release her, he would feel he did the “high and noble” thing—and still feel victorious. But she isn’t. She is calmly going along with her promise, proudly, and it’s killing him. He knows he’s in the wrong. Her decency heaps coals in his lap. Woooooow.

Looks like it’s Conquest whose going to have to save the day; not Billy, exactly. Conquest is interesting. He’s quite complex. He believes he’s a right to Miriam, but he knows it would be the unselfish thing to give her up. But that’s against his “every man for himself” ideology. This is interesting.

Ok, so Miriam didn’t tell Conquest about that. I wasn’t sure if she did or not. Oh, this is interesting.

And Ford says it’s been a lark. Goodness, you get through your troubles and you see the fun.

That was dramatic.

Not sure how he realized he loved her so quickly. What was going on in that mind of his? Peculiar. I kinda see though.

“I realize more and more that I was asking her to do the impossible.”

This Mr. Conquest is getting to be a bigger and more important character than I imagined. The manipulation in this book! The words spoken between the lines! This is brilliant stuff! At least to me.

Ford got his life back from Miriam, but at the cost of his NAME and his honesty. He has never felt the same since. Felt like a con. A bad guy. He KNOWS he can’t marry Evie in good faith, but he fought it so long. So he’ll take his life back to Miriam by giving it to the law. No, he didn’t commit the crime, but he was condemned under the law, and he must be acquitted by the law, or else he’s a brute. I see.

She’s saving her pride by saying she’s marrying the old man. Then Ford won’t feel obliged to her—won’t feel he’s done her wrong—won’t feel she’s gotten hurt waiting for him.

Goodness.

Ahhhhhhh!

WAIT. THIS IS THE SAME BILLY WHO WAS AT HER HOUSE AS A LITTLE GIRL. I knew that Billy had to be someone!

Such a commonplace name gets forgotten in the rush of the story. I had to look back at my notes.

Will Billy dear save the day?

Miriam is trying her hardest to plainly talk Ford into not marrying Evie, because it is so unwise. He’ll be found out. Evie will find out. It will kill Evie. But Miriam is worried Ford thinks she has another purpose in separating the two. If she married this old man that another supposed purpose would be put to death.

I am tired and so did not follow their conversations as well as I should have. They were very interesting—lots between the lines. This is a very interesting book. There’s a lot going on—a lot of coincidences, too, although not completely surprising ones.

This is just...brilliant. This is as good as anything else good I’ve read, in this style. Goodness.

THIS IS SUCH AN INTERESTING BOOK.

This book has a very interesting, lowkey complaint against human law/capital punishment. This book also has a running theme on Fate, new identity, and the results of being cast out of and failed by society. The latter is manifested both in Miriam’s social standing (illegitimate, treated poorly, yet still part of high social circles) and Ford’s being falsely accused and condemned by society. There are parallels.

Yes, I forgot the old woman called her Evie. Is Billy part of this mystery? I’m sure I don’t know who he is either.

AHHHHHH

I didn’t guess her connection with Judge Wayne! Goodness no I didn’t! Although I should have!! Ahhhhhhhhhh.

This is DEEP.

Oh, ok. The girl’s almost eighteen, not a little girl. Goodness but I already got the secret figured out. I feel kinda bad. But I do like this “secret” anyway.

See? Stranges of Virginia. That’s her father’s name—she just gave him her father’s name flat out.

Miss Wild Olive’s guardian’s wife must be Mrs. Colfax remarried, the sister-in-law of Mr. Jarrott. Her daughter from her first marriage is Jarrott’s niece...this is the little girl Olive loved.

There must be something to that bit of rambling. :)