I just reviewed Lone Women by Victor LaValle. #LoneWomen #NetGalley

I really wanted to like this book, but after she burns her house down at the beginning and walks away I just couldn't get into it. Not my kind of book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved Victor LaValle’s The Ballad of Black Tom and The Changeling, so I requested this one from NetGalley as soon as I heard about it. It surpassed my expectations, and I liked it even better than the two previous LaValle books I’d read. Set in 1915, it follows Adelaide, a Black woman who has left her home after a family tragedy. She sets up in Montana as a homesteader, carrying with her a monstrously heavy steamer trunk. Contained within that trunk is something that must never, ever be released.

Contrary to what I thought going in, the title doesn’t mean that all the women featured in the story are truly alone. Some, like Adelaide’s nearest neighbor Grace, are widows with children. Others, like Bertie and Fiona, who live in the nearest town to Adelaide’s homestead, are part of lesbian couples. What makes these women “lone” in the eyes of society is that they’re unaccompanied by men. The society they live in expects that women will be supported—and led—by men, but the women in LaValle’s book don’t have and/or don’t want that option. Instead, they form a network of mutual support that grows into friendship. That portrayal of female friendship is one of the most powerful parts of the novel.

Lone Women is something of a mashup between the Western and horror genres, which I’ve sometimes seen referred to as Weird Western. As one would expect from LaValle, the horror elements are very well-done. There’s one particular scene, where Adelaide and Fiona visit a ghost town, that was beautifully creepy and unsettling. LaValle is an amazing writer, and he knocked it out of the park with this book.

This historial fiction was something I needed. This book follows a lone woman across America looking for a fresh start from her past. With only a few items to start her new future- including a giant box, she has no idea what’s in store for her.

Also… what’s in the box?

Read to find out.

So good!!

Adelaide Henry has just burnt down her home with her dead parents inside. As she hoists her cumbersome trunk onto a wagon, Adelaide looks back at her smoldering home, and thinks about the secrets that precipitated this act. Her secrets are born from shame, have kept her disengaged from her community, and has caused suffering. Her parents kept many secrets, and it had cost them their lives. The acts she has taken have made her a fugitive in her farming village of Lucerne Valley, California. However, she is now free. Secrets; shame; burdens; silence; and isolation. These are just a few of the themes that are peppered into Victor LaValle’s newest book of horror, Lone Women.

As Adelaide leaves her family farm, she yearns for the promise of a new life in Big Sandy, Montana. She has read a letter in the newspaper titled “Success of a Lone Woman” and is spurred to relocate. She will take possession of a shack and some land provided by the government, that she plans to make her own. However, she is not really a lone woman because she carries with her a burden: the entity that arrived at her house on the same day she was born.

Dualities within and between characters create the horror and tension in Lone Women. Adelaide is both a victim and a villain: she experiences hardship and pain through the actions of her parents, herself, the entity in the trunk, and the citizens of Big Sandy. However, she is also a villain in how she views and treats the entity in the trunk. She sees herself as the light/good half compared to the dark/bad half in the trunk. She keeps the entity hidden and treats it as an albatross around her neck: a heinous burden that weighs her down and keeps her from being free and successful. Another example are the brothers Joab and Delmus Mudge. They have yet to reach the age of thirteen; however, they have partaken in much adversity and violence. Delmus hangs back and is quiet while Joab embraces crime and brutality with relish. Their trajectory mirrors a pair of Old Testament brothers. Much of the book can be viewed as a retelling of one of its stories.

Victor LaValle has written another compelling book that stretches the bounds of horror. I highly recommend this book.

I would like to thank NetGalley and One World Publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Victor LaValle delivers a historical creeper, which doesn't offer much in the way of surprises (if you've seen MIDNIGHT MASS, you know where the plot is going, and so many people who are going to read this book have absolutely seen MIDNIGHT MASS) but does bring some pleasures all the same. There's a lot of fun in the early going, including a gang of strangely coordinated youths and the unrelenting chill of the Montana steppes in winter, and its a terrific look at race and gender politics through the lens of a place we don't see often at a time we often hear too little about. Things lose their way a bit, when the plot rushes to a conclusion, but more time with LaValle is always appreciated and this is no exception.

Whew! This one threw me. I didn't know what to expect and the author did not disappoint.

We meet Adelaide Henry in the wild west of the early 20th century. She is in her early 30s and has already led a hard life. Adelaide flees California to Montana to begin new as a homesteader....with a locked trunk filled with secrets. True to its nature, Montana is hard as winter sets in.

Adelaide is a strong woman that I loved following in this story. She is a survivor at her core. This will not be my last LaValle read!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a chance to read this amazing tale.

At this point, Victor LaValle is a must read author for me. After loving The Changeling, I picked this one up without even reading the synopsis. I'm not a fan of westerns. I'm not super big on the paranormal. But his writing, the characters he creates, how he takes true history (did you know there were communities of Black farmers in early California? did you know there were single women homesteaders in Montana?) and gently, slowly twists it to create an amazing world for the reader draws me in! It was like a lullaby and a fairy tale all at the same time. But, of course like those Grimm tales, there is the dark side and this one came out in the form of powerful feminism! And Adelaide wasn't the only character with a secret. The messages in this story, both subtle and in your face, made for an impactful read! Plan your time accordingly or you will be "just one more chapter"ing yourself into a night of little sleep!

Okay. Honestly? 5 stars. I want to call this a Western Horror. I don't know. I loved it though. I laughed, I "awwed" and I was shook. It was an evenly paced journey. This book was so interesting. The narration, the way they kept calling each other "Mrs", the twists and the humor. I want to hug this book.

"History is simple," Mrs. Reed said. "The past is complicated."

ooooh this was a deliciously dark horror story. I loved that it is set in the times of free land claims and settling the vast, unknown west. Our story mainly takes place in the unmapped, barely tamed Montana. It's a story about Adelaide as she crosses the land from California to Montana to buy a claim and try to make a start for herself. She's worried, appearing to travel alone as a women but also as a black women. But she is reassured her neighbors (who are still miles away) will be welcoming the help of new people nearby.

But this isn't only the story of Adelaide. It's of a small town. It's of connections to community, of family, of togetherness. It's about burdens, passed down from parents to children, and the secrets we keep from others. It's about what happens behind closed doors and when we feel the world is small. It's the ugly side of people and isolation. And about women standing together, stronger than when they are alone.

Because even though Adelaide appeared to travel alone, she traveled with a very heavy locked case. It's her physical and emotional burden, and she'll do anything to keep it locked. Anything.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

This is not what I expected but in a very good way. My advice would be to go in blind and enjoy the ride as this book was so well-written and engaging. Would recommend this to my audience and I am grateful to the publisher for allowing me to view this book. It was my first but not my last by this author.

This one kept me on my toes without keeping me up at night (which is good, since some of LaValle's work is too scary for me). Good pacing, some twists you see coming and plenty you don't, and gripping characters. The author comes down firmly on the side of the misfits, and the most chilling moments are the ones that are so easy to imagine happening in our everyday world, here and now. Our heroes prevail in the end, though, and I can't wait for this to reach its publication date so I can start recommending it to people.

This book.. what to say. I thought it was going one way, then the story went another way, and another way, and another. What a great book!!!!

I just reviewed Lone Women by Victor LaValle. #LoneWomen #NetGalley

This was my first Victor Lavalle book but it definitely won’t be my last. What an incredible mix of adventure, historical fiction, horror, and magical suspense; centered around the lives of single women making homesteads and trying to survive the harsh territory of Montana in 1915. I absolutely loved it. Thank you to the publisher for sending me an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Lone Women was not what I expected and I was delighted with the difference. Adelaide Henry is fleeing her homestead in California, leaving her dead parents and her sins behind. She travels to Montana to become a homesteader, one of the "lone women" who by law is permitted to homestead without a husband, brother or father taking control. Adelaide travels light, with only a small bag and a large trunk, a trunk only she is allowed to touch and one she checks constantly to make sure it is safely locked. The lone woman finally gets to her land and is immediately struggling with the harsh environment. Fortunately she finds other lone women is the same predicament and soon has a group that stick together. The strange thing is that Adelaide isn't really alone - the secrets she contains within that trunk are deadly. Soon she may be forced to face those secrets and release the horror to help her and her new found neighbors survive. Lone Women is a well-paced, excellent story. I stayed up all night to finish it.. Readers who want something new and different and exciting should read this as should anyone who enjoys a well-crafted story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House - One World for gifting me an early copy of this book. Below, you'll find my honest review.

This one starts off with a bang... Adelaide, the main character, is leaving her home and her life behind to head out west and try to start a new life on a land claim. And even her exit is eventful!

Once she hits the west, things begin to happen that have you wondering what's going on, with just enough information coming at you to keep you interested. Eventually, the trunk full of secrets is burst wide open, and the you know what hits the fan.

As Adelaide begins to let people into her heart, antagonistic forces surround her from all sides, threatening this new life she's building for herself.

I'd read The Ballad of Black Tom by this author last year, and was glad to be approved for this novel, as I've wanted to read more of LaValle's work. I'll definitely be reading the rest of his novels!

Highly recommended for horror/thriller fans, western with a twist fans, and fans of strong female protagonists.

What I love to read is a good story of the settling of the old west. That is what I expected once this book started out with our leading lady leaving home with her possessions, which was a large trunk. What in the world would be so heavy? Of course we have to continue to read in order to find out! And nobody wants to stop a good book or cheat and read ahead to find out. Awesome suspense with very unusual happenings all the time. It gets weird but then continues to become even more thrilling and mysterious. I enjoyed this book so much that I am going back to read his other work. Thank you Publisher and NetGalley! I love you guys!!

This is a spoiler free review because giving away the details, really spoils the book.
I went into this book JUST reading the publisher description and nothing else. But this is the line that caught me:

Adelaide Henry carries an enormous steamer trunk with her wherever she goes. It’s locked at all times. Because when the trunk opens, people around Adelaide start to disappear.

Say what now?

Typically, historical horror is not my lane, But my goal this year is to read more books not in my comfort zone. The opening of this book was so...strand and intriguing and eerie that I could not put it down. I was RIVETED. I loved that there were people of different races and ethnicities and queerness. And there were several twists that I didn't see coming until they were right there including the...main plot as you might say.

Overall, this was a pleasure and a thrill to read!

Thanks to Netgalley for th the free ARC. All opinions are my own.

“Blue skies, empty land—and enough room to hide away a horrifying secret.” Yeah, if that isn’t enough to capture my thoughts and terrify my imagination.

Lone Women is a historical horror story and a brilliant one at that. The story starts out innocently enough, well for a horror story that is. Adelaide Henry is moving; she is taking her steamer trunk and she is moving to the wide-open range of Montana. She just needs to escape her isolation (a different kind of isolation) on her family’s farm in California, she has her reasons.

Her goal is to move to Montana, work the land for a few years in order to claim her piece of the world, to settle down and make her new home and life; but life has other plans and they are in the form of… well, just read the story.

I really loved following Adelaide on her journey, she is strong woman with the grit and determination. She has this perfect balance of heart and soul and love and strength and fearlessness. Yeah, this story is atmospheric, it has tension, fear, heartbreak, loss, and of course horror.

The horror mixes perfectly with the setting and the boldness of the characters. I loved the subtleness of some of the themes and the story expresses more than just horror.

I haven’t read any other books by this author yet and I immediately went out and bought a few of them after reading this one because if they are even remotely as wonderful (and I HIGH believe they are) I have found a new favorite author!

If you are looking for something unique, exciting, atmospheric, pulse pounding and adventure wrapped this story is for you!

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House, One World and I am leaving an honest review.

Adelaide is a tall, strong, independent black woman moving from California to Montana. She carries a small bag of belongings and a large, heavy trunk. She’s running, trying to leave her past behind.
When Adelaide finally completes her journey at her cabin in the cold and gusty hills of Montana, she questions her own logic but knows she must push on. She remembers her father’s words that she was built to plow with mules. Her mother simply stated on numerous occasions, “a woman is a mule”. With these two mantras in her head, she toils and survives. She meets other stragglers living in the harsh hills of Montana and builds friendships with a few. But Adelaide didn’t come to Montana alone.
Adelaide has a horrible and terrifying part of her history in the trunk and it’s alive. She attempts to live a normal life, but her buddy in the trunk has other plans.
Adelaide’s friendships and future are tested in the following weeks and much is revealed about the true nature of women and men. But she’s already as low as she can be; she came to Montana in that frame of mind. So there’s nowhere to go but up. The struggle to survive and save the ones she loves is a fast-paced thriller full of unexpected twists. The closer I got to the end of the book, the faster the roller coaster went. And I absolutely loved the ending. Kudos to Victor LaValle!
Thanks to Random House Publishing Group- Random House for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date is March 28, 2023.

Wow - my second Victor LaValle book, and this one was even better than the first. Jordan Peele meets Stephen King. I loved it!