Thanks so much to the publisher and to NetGalley for giving me access to this book.I enjoyed this book. Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres. This book ticked a lot of boxes for me - setting, plot, and great characters. I will be recommending this book

Placidia Fincher lives with her doting father in Holland Creek, South Carolina. Seventeen year old Placidia is beautiful and ill prepared for life, but it is 1865 and women married young. Major Gryffth Hockaday, a 32 year old widower, asks her father for her hand in marriage and the wedding takes place within a few days. With the civil war in full swing, Placidia is whisked off to his 300 acre farm and young son, while Gryffth is called to the front. Placidia depends on the slaves and hired help to manage the farm, but finds that she has to get involved as well. During the two years Major Hockaday is gone, Pacidia and those that live on the farm with her, endure a lot. With raiders from the union army confiscating their crops and animals and deserters from the confederate army stealing food, money, property and slaves, Placidia and those who live with her, are constantly in danger. When her husband returns he finds out she gave birth while he was away and that the baby died, or did Placidia kill it? Who was the father? Was she unfaithful? She refused to tell him what happened. After spending time as a prisoner, he is a broken man and he ends up leaving Placidia and brings charges against her.

This is an epistolary book, told in letters, transcipts and journals. I found what Placidia shared to be very personal and heart-wrenching to me. As the truth comes out about what she suffered and went through during those years, I was heartbroken for this young woman whose life was changed so drastically within a very short time. We get to know more about the recipients of her letters by their responses as well as how much she shares with them. Through this, I felt that they were well developed. Her servants/slaves were devoted to her in most cases, but she had earned their respect and trust by her actions. She became very strong in a short time and didn't hesitate to work side by side with others.

I had a couple of issues with this story. First, this in the 1860s during the civil war, these were not servants but slaves. The author needed to call them what they were. At times I was confused. I also found some of the letters rather long-winded with extraneous information that had my mind wandering a bit, but that is the nature of letters. Overall, I enjoyed this story and recommend it to those who enjoy Historical Fiction, with some emotional issures involved.

I really enjoyed this book. I found it to be moving, heartbreaking, and at times inspirational. It's hard to imagine a more difficult existence but that is exactly what faced young Placidia, a mere teenager left to care for her husbands farm and child while he is called away during the civil war. This is a moving, exciting, captivating, heartbreaking and breathtaking epic tale. I could not put this book down, great story, strong, bold characters and a smoothly written narrative.

I love books like this: dossiers of a crime with journal entries and interviews about something tragic. This story fol.lows Placidia, who eventually becomes Mrs. Hockaday. She's left to fend for herself during the Civil War, and when her husband returns, he brings charges against her for some of her actions. I love stories that highlight what women went through during the Civil War, and this one happens to be based off a true story. I'd recommend this for fans of Cold Mountain.

This is a really great story; the author does a fantastic job of using the format-- letters interspersed with diary entries and legal documents-- to engage the reader and add interest and suspense to the story.

It was sometimes difficult to follow the timeline, or who was writing: the various documents are presented in an order that does make sense for the story, but not in chronological order, so the reader has to keep track of 2 different timelines. More annoying, there were letters from at least five different people, but the sender only signed the letters-- it wasn't indicated on the first page who was speaking-- so the reader has to flip ahead to know what's going on. The voices were all pretty much the same, which didn't help.

A good story, best for readers with a little bit of patience and who are wiling to do a little bit of work.

Unfortunately, I was unable to get into this title. It just wasn't a good fit for me. Thanks so much for the opportunity to read this title. I will not be posting a review online, in order not to skew the ratings. Thanks for the opportunity to read it.

Imagine marrying man a day after you meet him. Then imagine spending 2 days as his wife before he’s called back to fight in the Civil War and being abandoned on his farm, far from your home and friends. This is the plight of 17-year-old Placidio, a young girl who is left to care for her husband’s infant son and to manage his farm. Gryffth Hockaday needs someone to mother his little boy after his wife dies. It seems like a marriage of convenience for him but in truth, he really cares for his young new wife. Letters he sends home indicate the depth of his feelings for Placidio. Her letters to him also show her true affection for this man she barely knows.

Gryffth is caught and held as a Prisoner of War, causing him to be absent for two years. Meanwhile, Placidio has many difficult choices to make and faces threats to her personal safety. She must quickly learn about running a farm, managing the help and raising a child. When she is arrested for burying her newborn baby, rumors and questions arise about the parentage and the cause of death. Despite pressure, she remains silent. The story ends abruptly and readers are taken fast forward to the story of Placidio’s son, instead of continuing to follow the arrested young woman.

Part two takes place years later, after her death, when her son finds her diary and decides to uncover the truth of the buried baby. Warned against learning the facts, he ignores family petitions and pursues the details of his mother’s scandal. His reading of the diary and interviewing people slowly reveals the details of what happened to Placidio.

Based on a real event, Rivers explores a story of a young woman who is resilient and brave. She loves her husband, despite their short acquaintance, and she is a good mother to his son.

There is a bit too much emphasis on not uncovering the truth; of the damage the revelations will cause. The vehemence of the pleading to keep the truth buried was over-the-top. The story is certainly tragic and Placidio’s secrecy is understandable but her son needs the truth. One can’t help but admire Placidio and her strength of character and Gryffth shows he’s a tender husband who demonstrates his emotional side in his letters. There’s a slave who worked for Placidio for a time, and his story is very mysterious which adds more uncertainty to the plot. The sudden switch to new central characters in Part 2 was odd but it did allow the story to unfold. However it might have been more cohesive if her storyline was not dropped so abruptly. The pace is a little plodding but overall, this was an interesting Civil War tale. Certainly Placidio's story of surviving a brutal war has merit and could have been explored in more depth.
3.5*

I voraciously read this book in only two sittings! I had to make myself turn out the light and get some sleep. One of my favorite genres told in the setting of the Civil War. I'm a sucker for a taut piece of fiction with a Southern voice. Loved it!

RATING: 2.5 STARS
(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY)
(Review Not on Blog)

I was so excited to read this book but after a few pages it was a real chore to finish. The novel was a bit slow and dull. I did finish the book so I had to give it a 2.5 stars.

I was blown away by Susan Rivers The Second Mrs. Hockaday. What a captivating read. This book was definitely a character driven book for me. However, I loved the setting, the deep south during the Civil War. I could picture the farm perfectly. I read this book in three days, I couldn’t put it down. Absolutely a must read for a book club! We purchased this book for my library and are using it as a book discussion book. This has been the best book I have read all year hands down.

This is an interesting historical fiction novel set during the Civil War that chronicles the difficult life of Placidia Finchler who is raised in privilege and then is thrown into hardship at age 17 when her new husband is sent away to rejoin the war after their brief honeymoon.  The story is told through letters, diaries, and court records, revealing how she came to be married to Major Hockaday, a recent widower.  When he returns to the war, Placidia suddenly finds herself in an unfamiliar place, alone, and in charge of his farm and young son.  When he returns after 2 years, he finds that Placidia had been pregnant and is accused of murdering the child. She will not reveal what happened because she wants to protect someone who had protected her. The truth of what happens eventually unfolds over the course of the book. This is a relatively short book, but I didn't find it to be a fast pace or quick read.  I usually love most books published by Algonquin; however, I wasn't over the moon about this one like I expected, although I did enjoy it.  The story was good, but I didn't feel as attached to the characters as I felt I should be.  I was enticed to find out what happened, but felt that took a little too long to unfold.  In addition, although usually stories going back and forth in time aren't a problem for me, I think this time it contributed to my lack of a strong connection.  If you are a fan of epistolary books, historical fiction (especially the Civil War period), and books with strong female characters or a bit of a mystery, I would still recommend this book.

The Civil War isn't usually my preferred period for historical fiction, but I was immediately fascinated by this novel. Written in epistolary form, the author vividly creates distinct and powerful voices for each of the writers, skillfully stitching the thread of the story through letters, court documents, and diaries. This format lets the mystery of Placidia's - the second Mrs Hockaday - dead infant be revealed bit by tense bit as time passes and letters are sent and diaries are found. I did feel that the final reveal of the baby's fate was passed over with too little remark, but I suppose, given the source of the information, that's not too surprising. I would have liked to see more of Placidia and the Major's personalities revealed, to show them as we are told they are in family letters. I would have enjoyed better understanding them and their remarkable marriage. Life on the Hockaday farm in the waning days of the Confederacy are brought to vivid life here, and I enjoyed reading the author's sources and inspirations at the end.

I received this ebook for free in order to write this review; all opinions are my own.

How much can a life change in two years? Is it possible for a person to experience a completely different world overnight? 

The truth is harder, as the truth often is. We are no longer blessed with innocence, nor do we deserve to be. Paradise may have been lost, but paradise is a bad bargain. It costs too much. It conceals serpents, and is littered with graves. I would rather have this: my husband wrapped around me, his breath against my face. The cord, or something like it, sustaining me. 
Well that is exactly what happened in this story.

Placidia, a child bride, married one Major Hockaday who was getting ready to be sent back to the front during the height of the Civil War. Placidia is left behind to care for the infant son of the Major's first wife. Not only must she care for the babe but she also must oversee the running of a 300 acre farm. She find herself completely unprepared to face the new life that is laid out in front of her.

She is alone for 2 long years and keeps her sanity by writing in her journal. This enables her to keep many of the trials and tribulations that she has to overcome to herself. She feels alone and completely unable to share her difficulties with anyone for fear that she may shame her husband. She writes to him often and he writes to her and shares his many experiences with her. She feels sorry for him and continues to keep her troubles to herself so that he is not burdened by the knowledge of the horrible things that are happening to her. 

Major Hockaday returns after 2 long years to find his young wife heading to jail. The crime: giving birth to a child in the absence of her husband and killing it. No one knows who the father was, no one knows what really happened.

"All I had known for certain when I came around the hen house that first evening in July and saw my husband trudging into the yard after lifetimes spent away from us,  a borrowed bag in his hand and the shadow of grief on his face, was that he had to be protected at all costs from knowing what had happened in his absence. I did not believe he could survive it."
We see the world around the Hockaday newlyweds through the lens of the time. Race, slavery, gender, family, and violence all are evident to the world they live in. The way both Major and the Second Mrs. Hockaday survive and continue with their lives being surrounded by so much darkness is a wonder. It astonishes me how Placidia continues to hide things from her husband in order to protect him even though she knows that she will carry the punishment.

Wow! I had this book for a while via Net Galley, but only got to it last week. Once I started it, I could not stop and read it in almost one sitting. It was a really intriguing Civil War story, told through various voices and documents – letters, diary entries, court reports – in various voices across years.

Highly recommended for those who enjoy a story of this era, along with some mystery and lots of details that are true to fact!

I have to say, that I never have read a lot from the point of view of a Southern woman trying to keep her farm going doing the War. Every day was a battle of survival, and while this is understandable, the way this novel is written, the facts are so bare and gritty that it shed a new light for me on women’s experience.

Thank you for my e-copy to review!

The first couple chapters of this book had me confused and wondering what I was reading, although part of that was the arc. However, once past those chapters I couldn't stop reading this book. I was hoping the book wouldn't end without knowing how the baby died and who was the father of the baby, it did not disappoint.

I really enjoyed this one! At first, I was annoyed about numbers being omitted (not sure if that was intentional or just an issue with the galley), but eventually it didn't matter because I was so drawn in by the story. Placidia is a young bride that marries a civil war soldier who has to return to war the day after their nuptials. Two years pass and all the things happen. Court cases and drama and mystery all conveyed through letters. I'm sure I'll be recommending this one often!

Extraordinary.

This was the first of two books I coincidentally read in recent months which described the horrors of the Southern homefront during the Civil War. Here the horrors were more tangential, dealt with more matter-of-factly, never the main focus of the story but a backdrop for the central question of what happened to the Second Mrs. Hockaday, and yet those horrors were just as successfully conveyed <I>as</i> horrors here as in that other book, where they were more closely detailed. It's for damn sure that when the Doctor finally lands in my living room and asks me when and where I want to go, my answer may be "anywhere but the Confederate States of America anytime in the late 1800's".

But that is not the main point of the narrative. That would be too easy. What it actually is is the slow and gradual unraveling of a terrible secret– the sort of mystery that you're warned against trying to unravel, because it will change you forever. The first Mrs. Hockaday, the second Mrs. Hockaday, slave and master, infant and adult, death and life – all are tangled and entwined into a knot of pain … and a little surprising joy.

<I>I thought of Gryffth's mouth on my neck, his laughter shaking the bed. Can one die of loneliness, I asked myself? I thought I heard the first Mrs. Hockaday's voice in my head, saying: </i>I did.

The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.

This beautifully written book is told through the voice of a young seventeen-year-old girl named Placidia through her diary and letters. It is an epistolatory novel that reveals the truth of the murder mystery bit by tantalizing bit. The tale kept me engrossed to the end. With a touch of mystery, secrets, and an enduring love, this is one book set during the Civil War that is not to be missed. Susan Rivers has written a spell-binding first novel. Look for more by Miss Rivers as she has a wonderful talent for storytelling. Definitely highly recommended.

Placidia is only 17 when she marries a man she's just met. She journeys to his 300-acre South Carolina farm with him on their wedding day to meet his young, motherless son. The couple spend two nights together before he is called back to the front lines of the Confederate army. Placidia spends the next four years struggling to keep the farm going and her family and slaves fed and safe. But her husband finally returns to dark rumors of a pregnancy and infanticide that occurred years after his departure.

I expected a rather lurid novel given this plot outline, but what I got instead was a nuanced portrait of a place and time and of an extraordinary couple. Told in letters, journal entries, and depositions from Placidia's indictment, the novel has a powerful immediacy.