Lizzie Boylston has been married less than a year when her young husband is killed in battle in 1775. After his death, Lizzie is left alone in a small town on a small farm, after refusing to go live with her distasteful in-laws and with no living relatives of her own to turn to. Determined to be independent, she turns to her midwifery and healing skills to care for the community and make a way in the world. Eventually, she begins to build a community with friend Abigail Adams that is her close neighbor and Martha, a young girl who comes to live with her and learn the midwifery trade. But when she is called to two separate deathbeds and begins to suspect poison, Lizzie unwittingly pulled into a web of spies and political intrigue that threaten her friend Martha, her own household, and the fact of the fledgling new nation itself.

I really loved the historical setting of this of this book. Daynard clearly did a lot of research to make this as historically accurate as possible, even though Lizzie and most of the characters (aside from Abigail Adams of course!) are entirely fictional. I really loved Lizzie's character and was instantly reeled in by her plight and how she finds herself alone on a small and isolated farm. I loved that she was a midwife and enjoyed all the scenes where she is helping young mothers deliver, even while mourning the loss of her own potential motherhood with her husband's death. I really loved that this is an independent household of women, who must make do during wartime and a cold, long winter with little cold, provisions, or assistance. The friendship that grows between Eliza, Martha, and Lizzie - a very unlikely trio of women at first blush - was such a tender and lovely aspect of this novel.

I will say, I heavily suspected the guilty party behind the mysterious deaths so the great twist at the end wasn't as great a shock to me. I did not enjoy the extent to which the political intrigue played a role in this book and found it far-fetched that Lizzie was galivanting around in disguise. It did not feel believable, and I was not at all shocked to find out in the author's note that it was not based on fact.

I will add that the historical setting and themes of this book (midwifery, strong female leads, murder and suspense) reminded me of The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon, a book I greatly loved.

The Midwife's Revolt is set in and around Boston in 1775. It is the middle of the War of Independence, and Lizzie Boylston loses her husband in the battle of Charleston. Lizzie's in-laws want to take her to Britain with them, but she refuses. She is a midwife who is needed as well as the owner of a farm that needs to be worked. She takes comfort in her deepening friendship with Abigail Adams. Soon, word spreads of Lizzie’s extraordinary midwifery and healing skills, and she begins to channel her grief into caring for those who need her. She ends up doing more than just midwifery as their are not many doctors and is called in when 2 patriots die. She realized they have been poisoned and ends up in the middle of the investigation, spying while in disguise. The plot could easily end in death for Lizzie and others as well as determine the outcome of the war.

I enjoyed this book. I haven't read many set during the War of Independence and I found this interesting. I also connected to the setting as I spent a week in Braintree, Quincy and Weymouth just last year. This is a book about strong, smart, independent women who were an important part of the war. This is a story of friendship, courage, love and espionage. I learned about the health issues of the time, as well as how women were treated. I suggest you read the author's note as she explains about her research and which characters are real, and which are part of her imagining of the story.

No longer interested as I clear through my old galleys to see what I want to keep.