The Indigo Girl

Everyone who's been through Carolina history knows about the Pinkcney family, particularly as they relate to the Revolutionary War. However, this is the story of what came before....the strength of Eliza and how she changed the agricultural history of this region. The story was well-researched, interesting, and easy to read. I loved following her life and learning more about this facet of history.

The Indigo Girl was compelling from start to finish. Eliza's story immediately caught and held my interest, and it was wonderful to journey with her as she sought to make a success of her father's holdings. The fact that it is based on fact makes the story even more delightful. Eliza must have been a formidable young woman! If you enjoy historical fiction with a kernel of truth, this is most definitely a book for you. Well-written and perfectly paced, it is a wonderful, captivating read. 4.5 stars.

I loved the writing, it was fluid and the story was well-paced.
I liked the issues that the author addresses in this novel.
By bringing Southern town-life to life in the pages of this novel, the author gives the reader a glimpse into the colourful life of Eliza Lucas, a spunky girl who is wise beyond her years and truly ahead of her times.

An intelligent young woman is left in charge of her father's plantations in South Carolina while her father pursues his military pursuits. As her ambitions grow, she must fight the disapproval from her own family and her own family.

What I especially loved about this novel is how it is based on reality. Eliza did refuse to conform to society. She did learn to produce indigo dye, when everyone save for a few people, said she wouldn't be able to. I love the references to her letters that are the basis for the narrative.

The fictional characters add dimension to Eliza's story and how they interact with each other. The story does have an an abrupt ending, but beyond that it has an enjoyable flow. The author does an excellent job of creating the atmosphere of the time.

For any reader who enjoys novels based on history, this is a must read.

I wasn't aware of Eliza Lucus until I read this book. I had to go find some info on her. After having read her bio, I opened this book found the read very enjoyable. It's a historic fiction account of her life and a quick read. Not nearly enough stories about strong and successful women from early American history. Inspiring! Ya up.

Sixteen year old Eliza Lucas has acquired an unexpected vocation. Living in South Carolina in the 18th Century, she must oversee the running of the Lucas family plantations including three tracts of land. Each plantation is run by a manager who oversees slaves as they work to plant and harvest crops in order to turn a profit. Eliza's father, nicknamed Big Lucas, has returned to Antigua, the family's original domicile, in order to advance his military career. Debt has accrued in his military venture and only successful crop production will keep the family afloat in South Carolina..

Eliza is no stranger to the running of the family enterprise. She has routinely assisted Big Lucas in recording family transactions. She is not the child of choice for this operation, however, her two brothers are away at school. The plan is for Eliza to keep the business solvent until her elder brother George can assume the reins. Eliza does not believe in convention, she believes in individual freedom. Women should not be chattel to be married off to unburden the family. Eliza will not settle for being a figurehead for the plantation...but...how will she be successful? Two of her plantations are heavily mortgaged to support her father's military aspirations.

Eliza is determined to grow indigo. Indigo is a weed that has been grown with limited success in Antigua. Perhaps it can grow in South Carolina soil. She enlists the help of neighbor and botanist Mr. Deveaux and family friend, lawyer Charles Pinckney, as well as trusted slaves Quash, Togo, and Sawney. Indigo is difficult to produce. Success is unlikely. Frost can destroy indigo seeds. Indigo stalks must be cut at the exact hour of their potency and before they flower. She is embarking upon an uphill battle.

Eliza Lucas is a teenager ahead of her time. While her mother worries about making a good match for her daughter, Eliza wants a husband who will treat her as an equal. She believes in compassion. Her slaves live in cabins free from draft, a dwelling has been built to serve as a schoolhouse and she has taught Quash and others to read. Her kindness has won her respect. There are those, however, who do not want Eliza to succeed and will thwart her efforts on a continual basis.

"The Indigo Girl" by Natasha Boyd is a remarkable historical account of a girl's determination to introduce indigo as a staple crop in South Carolina. Kudos to Natasha Boyd for creating Eliza's journey.

Thank you Blackstone Publishing and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "The Indigo Girl".

I received this ARC from netgalley.com in exchange for a review.

At the age of 16, Eliza Lucas is tasked by her father to oversee three plantations while he returns to Antigua to pursue his military and political careers. After many failures and set backs, Eliza succeeds in growing an Indigo crop. What Eliza accomplished changed American history.

This is a great book, the writing was easy to read and the story was very interesting. I really liked reading portions of Eliza's personal correspondence. I definitely recommend this to anyone who like strong and inventive women in a historical setting.

4☆

I loved the book. It took me away from reality and told me a very nice story. Hard work pays off always. I highly recommend this book.

For me the lure of this book was the subject matter. Having recently visited SC I learned about the importance and culture of indigo. Wanting to know more, I was hoping this book would enlighten me and hold my interest.
I was not disappointed. The author seamlessly combined historic facts with an intriguing storyline. The characters were well drawn, whether they be slave holders, slave, or a mighty young woman. The book held my interest from the start and did not drop along the way at all. Relationships among the characters were well described and often powerful. Romantic relationships were subtle in description, but meaningful.
This book is highly recommended and I suggest others will not consider it just a regional historical fiction. This bit of Americana would interest all.

Imagine my surprise to complete this book and find it was based on a real person. If I had informed myself better and known this going in, I might have been more appreciative of (or patient with?) what felt like stilted conversations and the repetition of restraints. Now that I've read the afterword, and found out Eliza Lucas actually existed, I understand the necessary to have some degree of accuracy in those social and written customs. Perhaps, knowing Eliza was a real person would have helped me chafe at the restrained presentation the way Eliza chafed at her restrictions.
I do appreciate the author's need to keep Eliza and her contributions alive. I actually would have appreciated knowing a bit more about the indigo itself.

*****5 fantastic reading stars*****

*I received this ARC from Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Eliza Lucas is just sixteen years old when her father leaves her in charge of their plantations in rural South Carolina. The year was 1730 when there were both Indian and slave uprisings. Her father returns to Antigua and has great military ambitions also wishing to become the governor of Antigua. He mortgages these plantations, unbeknownst to Eliza, because he is in need of money. Eliza, a strong willed brilliant daughter, resolves to make the plantation she and her family reside on, a success. The way she decides to do so is in the production of indigo. Her mother wishes for her to fail so that the family can return to England so she offers little to no support and actually thwarts Eliza's efforts.

Eliza, a botanist at heart, is helped by a neighbor botanist, a gentlemen lawyer, and her slaves who knew the secret of indigo extraction. They strive to make a go of it. Eliza is the epitome of courage and determination. She will get what she wants and entices the slaves to share their indigo secrets by promising to teach them how to read, something that was against the law. She forms hidden attachments to her slaves, spurns those who are against her, and sacrifices everything to make this dream of hers come true. Along the way Eliza is met with many adversities but through the support of a man who she will eventually marry and her slaves who she treats with fairness and concern, she succeeds. Her indomitable spirit at such a young age makes her a woman of that fosters admiration, strength, and resilience.

This novel is based on letters from Eliza and other historical documents. Through Eliza, her eventual husband, and the slaves, she is able to lay the foundation for the indigo industry that will eventually become one of the largest exports from South Carolina. It was quite an incredible book to read and enjoy as this little known figure in history came alive in this novel. Incredibly interesting is that no one really has heard of her exploits as she played a major role in the route that US history eventually took. Mentioned in the author's notes was that President George Washington was a pall bearer at her funeral.

Eliza was a independent woman hundreds of years before that came into vogue. Her achievements, given that it was 1730's and was a woman need to be both admired and made know so that all women know that no matter what constraints that are placed upon them, having the will and the determination to succeed they will eventually do just that.

An interesting piece of historical fiction that I suspect most Americans are not familiar with. I know I wasn't. This is a fleshed-out story about Eliza Lucas, a 16-year old girl who is left in charge of her father's plantations as he returns to Antigua to pursue a military career. Eliza is faced with moral dilemmas and situations that would rattle an experienced adult. Her courage and often reckless behaviour earns her a reputation amongst the other plantation owners. Although slaves had few rights at the time, the possibility existed for them to buy their freedom. Women, however, had no such recourse. They remained their husband's property.

An interesting and page-turning account of plantation life as well as one women's quest to protect her family's interests and those of her slaves.

This book, The Indigo Girl is beautifully written, the language of that era and the detail made me feel as if I was truly living in the 1740's with Eliza on her plantation. The imagery used and the story telling brought me into her world and I almost felt as if I was living the experience with her. I absolutely loved reading this book, the beauty of her character, the wonderful way she navigates through a brutal, slave owning world as a compassionate, caring and very independent minded woman, a world that is also dominated by men who expect women to be seen and not heard. Eliza is her own person and the author Natasha Boyd does a remarkable way of telling this story and showing Eliza's strengths, but also her weaknesses. I highly recommend this book!

Historical fiction like The Indigo Girl that tells the story about a person in history that has actually excisted is my absolute favorite to read. Especially if they are about women who accomplished amazing things, like Eliza Lucas.

Starting the book I knew nothing at all about her but I'm now so glad that Natasha Boyd wrote about this book. It made me want to find out even more about Eliza's life. I'm so fascinated by her right now.

I absolutely loved Eliza. And they way the author wrote her. Eliza was ahead of her time and I just loved her courage and ambition and how in the end she never did give up on making indigo dye, even though people kept telling her she wouldn't be able to and even sabotaged her. She was a bit naive, it's true but that made her spirit even more lively and I was really rooting for her to succeed.

Overall, The Indigo Girl ended up being my favorite book by Natasha Boyd so far and even one of my top favorite historical novels. I loved how well-researched the story was and that it was based on historical documents. The writing was amazing and I really liked reading the excerpts from Eliza's actual letters. They gave it all a little extra and made it even more enjoyable.

Eliza's father leaves her to run the family's South Carolina plantations. If the plantations fail, Eliza, her mother and younger sister will be forced to move back to Antigua. If the plantations succeed, Eliza may be freed from the prospect of marriage. When Eliza risks the success on Indigo, she encounters many challenges and betrayals.

I really enjoyed this book. I did not realize until the epilogue that it was based on historical figures. Eliza is certainly a heroine, a feminist years before the movement. I thought that Eliza's interaction with societal norms was fascinating. Particular her thoughts on slavery, and how that set her apart from her peers. Overall, a book well worth reading!

I really enjoyed this book! Please check out my full review at https://bigbaldbooks.wordpress.com/2017/06/12/book-review-the-indigo-girl/

The Indigo Girl tells the fascinating true story of Eliza Lucas, the girl who made indigo profitable in the Carolinas. Eliza is truly a girl born before her time - intelligent and driven, the only thing her mother wants to do is marry her off. Eliza doesn't want that though - she only wants her plantation to turn a profit and for her slaves to be safe.

This book captivated me from the very beginning. We are thrust into 16 year old Eliza's world, which is vividly described by Boyd. I was truly moved by Eliza's life- I felt so much sympathy for Eliza in times of trouble and cheered when things went well. This remarkable woman lived a remarkable life and Boyd does that life justice in this story.

Natasha Boyd did an amazing job with this story. It is very well researched and very well written. With real life letters from Eliza included seamlessly in the book, it feels like the reader is really re-living Eliza's life.

In 1739 Ms. Eliza Lucas is tasked with the job of handling her family's property and farming production-- for the time this proposition, requested by her father, was unheard of. But from the vantage point of Eliza it was the perfect position for a young woman that romanticized the idea of freedom from marriage and the overseeing of a man. She set her eyes onto the prized production of Indigo, which, at the time, was only being produced by the French... and was bringing them quite a fortune. That fortune was something that Eliza deemed necessary for her family and possibly her freedom from the roles set before her and many others that surrounded her.

This was part historical fiction and non-fiction. There was love, a love triangle...and a strong heroine. I loved Eliza's character and am glad that she was a real person with real ambitions. I hope that she really was as strong a person as Boyd has painted her.

She fought valiantly and Boyd has represented her well in this book.

I grew up in South Carolina, and I was pretty sure I knew everything there was to know about South Carolina history. Yet, somehow, I had never heard the story of Eliza Lucas! I am so grateful that was given the opportunity to read this book and learn more about heroine who brought indigo to our state. I really can't say enough good things about this book. It reads much better than many historical fiction novels out there. The details of Eliza's life are so fascinating that you forget you are learning about actual events. A must read!

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Historical fiction is most interesting when the subject is known the least. This book brings a story of a remarkable young woman who became a footnote in history. And the author brilliantly revives her appearance in history. This story is so profound; it will linger with you long after you are done reading.

Set in South Carolina in the first half of the 18th century, when Charleston is known as Charles Town, Eliza Lucas conveys her extraordinary story. At the age of 16, her father leaves her in charge of their plantations, while he travels to Antigua to further his political ambition. While inspecting plantations before her father leaves, she learns about indigo, used as a die of dark blue. Indigo is known as hard to cultivate and the dye-making process might be even harder. Her love for botany makes her eager to experiment in horticulture. And her determination to succeed makes her commit to trying and retrying to harvest this plant.

This page-turner, which is very hard to put down, captures Eliza’s spirit and fire.

This book reminds me of Help by Kathryn Stockett, which went straight to stardom and the big screen. I’ll be very surprised if this book doesn’t make it to the big screen.

I firmly believe I could gush about this book until the world stopped spinning...
But who knows how long that could be?

So in the meantime, I will do my best to honor The Indigo Girl by writing as good a review as I possibly can.

My love for Eliza is endless. I am SO in love with her--everything about her. Her strong character, her fiery spirit, her unwavering dedication to the ones she loved, her endless ambition.

She was plucky, compassionate, and not afraid to put a man (or two, or three) in his place--no small feat for a woman in the 1700s!!! Basically what I'm getting at is she is everything I could hope to be as a human being.

She's an idol. There's simply no denying that.

In the past, when I heard someone ask the question, "If you could go back in time and meet one person, famous or non-famous, who would it be?" I cringed. Literally. I never had a proper answer to the query, and I would always wrack my brain for a good answer...
But after reading The Indigo Girl, I know within my heart of hearts that if I had the chance, I would go back in time to meet Eliza Lucas. Hands down.
I feel that to simply be in her presence would be one of the highest honors I could ever imagine. She's so inspiring, it's mindboggling!!!

At merely 16 years old, Eliza faced more challenges than most men twice her age probably ever did. Yet she pulled through each time necessity called for it. Just when I thought she was going to break down at the news of yet another setback and fall to the floor, wailing and carrying on like the young women of her time were expected to, Eliza persevered. She kept on trudging. She assessed the situation from a rational standpoint, always wanting to remain fair to those around her, and she made it work. More than that, she made it better.

To think that a woman like her actually existed takes my breath away and makes me so, so, so proud to be a woman. And quite frankly, when I read in the afterword that Eliza had (FINALLY) been inducted into the South Carolina Women in Business Hall of Fame, I bawled like a baby. Eliza, though long dead by now, finally received the recognition she so justly deserves.

Boyd did a superb job capturing Eliza's very essence. There was not a single portion of the book where I doubted the authenticity of Eliza's story. And while I realize that an author can only do so much for a story when it's historical fiction, I truly hope (albeit unrealistically) that every bit of it was true. For any part of it not to be true would be an incredible shame!
I found myself rooting for Eliza nonstop, and I feel that her choices would have been my choices had I been faced with the same challenges. She is an altogether unforgettable character.

Beyond her tenacity and the determination she possessed to make her indigo crop a success and pull South Carolina out of its reliance on indigo trade with France, her treatment of and interaction with many characters in the book (Ben, Quash, Indian Pete, Sarah, Eliza's mother, and Mr. and Mrs. Pinckney) spoke volumes about the type of person she was. Her refusal to punish the slaves for their wrongdoings, her illegally teaching them to read, and her eventual manumission of Quash was remarkable, to say the least.

It was an absolute honor to read The Indigo Girl, and I know that I will be thinking about and reflecting on this book for years to come......
And I can say with certainty that Eliza Lucas, though I never met her, is a woman who is very near and dear to my heart.

*Note: A copy of this book was very kindly provided by NetGalley, the publisher, and the author in exchange for an honest review.*

On a steamy plantation in South Carolina in 1739, a young girl of seventeen is left in charge of the family enterprise so her father can seek a position in the military. Unlike most young women of the time, she is well suited for the challenge for she loves botany and has been schooled in the business of running a plantation. Because of her father’s expenses, she tries many different ventures to increase profits but she knows if she can master the difficult task of growing, harvesting and producing Indigo from the indigo plant, their future will be set. Her name is Eliza Lucas and this is her story.

The author tells this story in the first person and it brings Eliza to life. You feel her frustration as she struggles to fulfill her obligation when her mother impedes her every step by admonishing her and expecting her to prepare herself for marriage. Her actions and morals fly in the face of convention as she works along with her slaves and treats them as equals causing ill will and conflict. Because of the author’s finesse at storytelling, Eliza’s exasperation with the difficult indigo process is palpable as she tries and fails and then tries again. This left me rooting for Eliza and turning pages to discover the outcome.

I enjoyed this story immensely. It is informative and gives you insight into the life of a young girl who lives her life as she saw fit, not as society dictated. It can be read by pre-teen to adult and each will take something different away from the telling. I especially recommend it for young teen girls. It is a wonderful example of what a young woman can do if she follows her convictions.

Indigo is the most beautiful color I can think of. It is blue’s blue. I’m not sure many people realize that in the early colonial days of our country we were a top producer of some of the finest indigo dye in the world to date. That’s why I was excited to be given a chance to read The Indigo Girl for NetGalley.
When Eliza Lucas was just sixteen years old her father left her in charge of the family’s holdings, three South Carolina plantations, while he travelled back to Antigua to manage his businesses there. Eliza was a bit of an amateur botanist and she knew that to keep the economically troubled plantations afloat she had to diversify, to find a crop that was not only needed, but valued in the market. She remembered the indigo that was produced in Antigua and she discovered a couple of her family’s slaves knew a little of the production of the dye so she attempted to grow the crop.
It wasn’t as easy as it sounds, indigo is a fussy plant, the timing of the harvest can be measured in minutes, and the transformation of plant to dye is a painstakingly exact alchemical miracle.
Being a girl of sixteen and expecting respect was another matter, but you didn’t fuss with Eliza. She knew her head and with the help of family friends she managed to command the respect she needed. All in the face of failing crops and slaves who refused to share their knowledge, even sabotaging her attempts.
And, it turns out, Eliza Lucas is real. She was the real influence and initial planter of indigo in this country, defying all odds and naysayers and the dye came to be the top export of South Carolina, and as production grew, providing immense wealth for the founding families of the state.
The historical novel references Eliza’s letters and reestablishes her in the annals of the history of our country. This young girl became a founding “mother” and it was noted in the author’s notes that upon her death, George Washington was one of her pallbearers.
If the story itself was just a story it would have been good enough but in the end, finding that Eliza was who she was makes it even more important that we remember story.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book...it was long, but it ended too soon. I hate to give spoilers away, but I could go on and on about this one. The complex characters, the feisty heroine, and the seemingly-docile setting all combine for a story well-written and read.

It is often said as a compliment that a novel reads like factual real-life. I would like to reverse this and say this tale, based on historical documents, including the heroine’s letters, reads like fiction. Nowhere does the author flout her research or include facts just because she can. The story seamlessly mixes the private with the public in showing the difficult choices available in colonial South Carolina, especially to a young woman with no personal power at all.
We know from history that Eliza will ultimately succeed in her quest to grow the elusive indigo commercially, but it’s how she does it, the people who help – or obstruct her – and the pitfalls she faces along the way that keep us gripped.
I loved it.

This novel is a fictionalised account of the life of Eliza Lucas (1722-1793), who was left at the age of sixteen to look after the family's plantations in South Carolina on her father's return to Antigua.

Eliza Lucas appears to have been spirited and ambitious in an age and society that decried such traits in young women: in order to improve her family's financial security, she attempted various agricultural experiments including the growing of tropical indigo plants for lucrative indigo dye. Her seasons-long battle to succeed is described in detail, including the real-life sabotage of the dyeing process that took place. We learn of Eliza's life and hopes, and this novel also attempts to show the involvement of slaves in indigo-production - it was slaves who had expertise and knowledge of indigo, and Eliza relied upon their skill. The book also chronicles Eliza's decision to teach slaves to read. We learn a great deal about Eliza Lucas from this novel, which quotes excerpts of her letters and prayers, and I am now keen to find out more by reading her published letterbook.

I received this book free from NetGalley and the publisher.

The description of this book did not do it justice. I was not that excited about reading it, but it was a wonderful surprise. I was totally mesmerized by the story and the wonderful unforgettable characters. Raw and fascinating account of that part of the US. Marvelous read

I found myself googling "indigo" as I read this fascinating tale based on history. It is impossible not to admire bright and ambitious Eliza as she takes on roles that were not available to a woman in her time and to suffer with her as she has loss after loss despite her vision and hard work and to want to learn a lot more about her legacy, indigo. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to feel enpowered despite not being born with any real power, or to anyone who has a vision that is their's alone, or to anyone that hasn't found love in the usual paths. Great read full of learning and inspiration!

Reviews have been posted on Goodreads and online retailers.

Having enjoyed the contemporary book writing of Natasha Boyd I was thrilled to see that she was giving us a historical tale. I’m a lover of period tales and jumped at the chance to read this book. A great five star read for me.

This book is historical fiction so although there is some conjecture about interactions ad other bits there is also a lot of fact that underlies the whole book. This is a story set in the 1800’s and gives a story about a courageous and intelligent girl who was far, far ahead of her time. At the tender age of sixteen Eliza Lucas is taken by her father to oversee his plantations while he follows his military pursuits elsewhere.

It is hard not to admire Eliza Lucas and be extremely impressed by her forward attitude and the goals she sets. As her father is bleeding his estate dry to feed his military ambitions she tries to be successful and make changes for the better. In order to be the success she wants Eliza enlists the help of some close confidents but there are many who are threatened by her.

Ahead of her time in how she views herself and her own self-worth as well as those around her. It is because of her attitude and spirit that make this such an interesting and engrossing read. I will always pick up books by Natasha Boyd but I thrilled that she told this story that she was obviously very passionate about.

I was given an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

From the first page, this book captures the romance, strife and heartache of the time. I found myself rooting for Eliza's success. The author superbly weaves an intriguing blend of historical fact with fiction. I definitely recommend this as a good read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story! Natasha Boyd’s magical pen has worked miracles again and in a brand new gender for her. She managed to merge historical facts and people into a fascinating tale that kept me transfixed till the last page.

Eliza Lucas is a woman ahead of her time. And I say woman because even if she’s only 16 years old she is mature in mind and spirit beyond her age. A twist of fate has Eliza, instead of marrying off to some featherheaded nobleman to appease her mother, stepping in her father’s position as head manager of his estates in South Carolina, at least until her younger brother becomes of age to assume responsibility.
Eliza is no stranger to the estate’s affairs, her father’s been training her for many years and she’s been acting as his aid keeping his correspondence and accounting books.
It’s unfathomable the burden that is laid upon her young shoulders. Not only she has to make profitable decisions about crops, sales etc, she also has to discourse with managers, bankers, sales-persons and manage the slaves, all in her father’s name because she is a woman and her gender induces no respect.
Her courage is inspiring, her determination admirable. With her kind heart, fairness and ambition she manages to overcome all obstacles and win over respect from her slaves to her most strict competitors.
There were times in the story that I totally hated her mother. Not only she is incapable to provide the smallest amount of help in managing the household, she keeps sabotaging Eliza’s attempts. But then, she’s the typical woman of her age and can’t help herself from being small-minded and socially confined.
I have to cut half a star from my rating because I was annoyed by the evolution in the relationship between Eliza and Ben. I have to say that the whole romance aspect of the book was unsatisfying for my tastes but the rest of the story is so powerful that I find this lack insignificant.
The reading experience is enhanced by the interval addition of original letters from the real Eliza Lucas sent to her father in Antigua and her nanny in England that shows her hopes, aspirations and frustrations and are in total harmony with the person’s character presented by Natasha Boyd.
An excellent attempt at historical fiction! I would recommend it to EVERYONE who loves the gender.

Long before women took part in the Women's Liberation movement Eliza Lucas managed to run the family's plantations. She turned he love of botany into a profitable venture as she learned how use indigo dye.

If you love historical fiction, and spunky women, you will love The Indigo Girl.

Recommend.

Review written after downloading a galley from NetGalley.

This book needs to be made into a film. Powerful, factual, thought provoking and a pleasure to read. It is so well written that you can visualise it all. An author to follow.

A book has not truly touched my soul like this one has in a LONG time! Even though this book has 346 pages in it's hardcover edition it felt like a much shorter read because it was just that good! It was not a book that you say to yourself, geeze I have to slog through this to finish it. It kept me captivated throughout the whole book! It was so fascinating learning about the flower Indigo. It explained the while process from planting the seeds through harvesting the plant through the dyeing process of cloth and how you prepare the dye. I had heard of the color indigo and knew the color came from a plant but never knew it was an actual flower grown in South Carolina. At times I just wanted to scream at the injustice of things I had read and I actually had to take a short break from reading at the unfairness of things that had made me sad. The story contained within is based on a true events and historical documents. Brilliantly fascinating. I will be looking for more books by this new to me author,Natasha Boyd.
Pub Date 03 Oct 2017
Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for a review copy in exchange for my honest review.

I loved loved loved this book, it is one of the best historical fiction books I have read in a while and I am sad to have finished it.

The story is very interesting and gives a detailed view on the way of life in the 1700s in terms of industry and society and the language used in the book is apt but well used so you can get a feel for the time but still read it easily.

I loved the characters and the waves of emotion it takes you through, Eliza is a true heroine and I was rooting for her the whole way.

Thank you for such a great book!

Fascinating and fabulous. An insight into 18th century plantation life, the trials and tribulations (and expectations) of a young woman plus how to create indigo dye... (who knew it was quite so difficult)

I absolutely loved this book - was very taken with Eliza - and even more so when I discovered that her sons became founding fathers of the USA

5* highly recommended

The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd is historical fiction at its very best! It was a gripping read that I could not put down. Its fascinating main character was a REAL PERSON at whose funeral in 1793 George Washington served as a pallbearer. But it was also very well researched with documentation at the end explaning which plot details and characters were fact and which came from the author's imagination and supposition. Eliza Lucas Pinckney-- at the young age of 16--changed the course of American history in an era when women had few rights and were not thought to have much stamina. In 1739, she is left in charge of her family's three estates in rural South Carolina, while her father goes off to pursue his military ambitions. Her father spends too much money chasing those ambitions and her mother seems to undermine everything that she does to keep their family afloat, but Eliza perseveres in ways rare for a young woman of her age or any age. She looks for new and inventive ways to make their plantations pay, and when she hears about the premiums paid for Indigo grown in the French Caribbean, she dreams of growing it in the Carolinas. No one believes she can do it except an aging horticulturalist neighbor, and two family friends from Charlestown, an older lawyer and his wife. Growing it is a tricky process, and she needs someone to teach her how, so she strikes a deal with a slave who agrees to teach her the process if she will teach her slaves to read. The law says you cannot teach them to write, but says nothing about reading. The author does such an excellent job of bringing this historical person alive, and making the reader care about all of the hurdles she has to overcome. Excerpts from Eliza's real-life letters are interspersed throughout the book. I highly recommend this book which is currently available for preorder prior to its October 3, 2017, publication date and thank NetGalley and Blackstone Publising for the Advanced Readers Copy and allowing me to review it.

Indigo Girl is an excellent read. It's based on the life of Eliza Lucas Pinckney and how she developed the important cash crop for colonial South Carolina. The author follows the real life of Pinckney fairly closely, relying on her letterbook in which Pinckney copied all the missives she sent to people. Pinckney wouldn't have been successful without the knowledges and labor of the enslaved people, who deserve as much credit, if not more, than she. It was very interesting to read about the processing of the indigo plants.

“1739

The Negroes were singing.
Light danced over the dark, inky ocean, and I blinked my eyes awake.
No ocean.
Just the faint blue of a breaking day casting over the white walls of my bedchamber.
A dream still clung damp to my bones. Always the same since I was a child. Sometimes threatening. Sometimes euphoric.
Breathing in deeply, I fancied the day held the weight of destiny.”

Thus begins Natasha Boyd’s The Indigo Girl.

This is a story of conspiracy and deception, love and romance, ambition and sacrifice, secret alliances and betrayal, of intimidation and trust. Trust given and trust earned. A story of free men and slaves, of a young women who dared to insist on her right to choose to marry, or not, who dared to assert herself as a woman as competent as the men who tried to intimidate her. A woman who dared to choose her path in life in Colonial-era South Carolina. Eliza Lucas was a woman who dared to be kind to her childhood friend from Antigua; a friend who returns to her life as a slave owned by the man her father has sent to teach her the ways of growing indigo and turning it into dye.

This would be a wonderful historical, fictional, story, a story that would inspire many, but what makes this an exceptionally moving and inspirational story is that Eliza Lucas lived and breathed, was a real woman who became known as the woman who changed agriculture in South Carolina. The Indigo Girl.

In the South Carolina of old, young sixteen-year-old Eliza Lucas is left in charge of her family’s plantations, her father has left in order to further enhance his position with the military, and has returned to Antigua, leaving Eliza, her mother and her younger sister there. It hasn’t been that long since he brought his wife and daughter to this plot of land seventeen miles outside of Charles Town, six by water originally purchased by her father’s father. Her two brothers are attending school in England, but in a few years, her brother George will be able to take over for her.

Eliza has had a formal education in a finishing school in England when she was younger, but she was encouraged from a young age to seek out more knowledge, to read, to follow her inquisitive nature. One of her interests was botany.

She has plans, which include a grove of oak trees with an eye to future ships needing the wood, but she is drawn to the indigo plant. She remembers the clothing she saw back in Antigua, and when she sees two women wearing skirts of that same rich blue when in town, she decides to look into growing indigo. A plant notoriously difficult to grow in South Carolina, subject to many failures in growing and many more failures in the process of being turned into dye.

Based on an immense amount of research including many historical documents and Eliza Lucas’ own letters—excerpts of some are included in this story—this is the story of a woman who was so highly regarded that, upon her death, George Washington requested to serve as a pallbearer at her funeral. In 1976, a marker commemorating the location where Eliza Lucas planted indigo seeds in 1741 was erected.



Pub Date: 03 Oct 2017


Many thanks for the ARC provided by Blackstone Publishing

OMG YOU GUYSSSSS!!! Have you ever read a book out of your normal comfort zone? Like one that isn't remotely what you would normally read but you ended up LOVING IT all the same???

❝It was so unlike me, but yet, it was me. Something was unfurling within me from behind the fear of societal expectations. Something true and deep. A part of my soul I'd always known was there but never acknowledged. I knew I'd never completely stop playing the role assigned to me in this life, but I would never ever let it compromise me.❞

'The Indigo Girl' by Author Natasha Boyd was PHENOMENAL! There was so much passion within the pages of this book that my heart ached! ACHED!

This is not a typical romance, so don't go into this book expecting that. But 'The Indigo Girl' was filled with passion; passion for life, for love and humanity. It was a story filled with guarded intimacy, and forbidden love, a story that reminds you what it is to be human! And this piece of fiction is BASED ON A TRUE STORY!!! It was incredibly inspiring.

Based on true life, 'The Indigo Girl' tells the story of Eliza Pickney. At 16, her father leaves her in charge of his plantations in the Carolinas. Her two brothers (the rightful heirs at that time) were away at school in England. So when her father had to return to Antigua, it was just Eliza, her mother, and younger sister. The family needed a Hail Mary to survive while her father was gone. They could not sustain all of the plantations they owned and her father's commission. It was up to 16-year-old Eliza to find a way to financially sustain her family.

Indigo.

One day while touring one of her families plantations, Eliza sees clothing on the women that reminds her of the Indigo her beloved Ben used to make. Having grown to love horticulture, she wondered if she could grow Indigo, there, in South Carolina. And if she could, would this be what saved her family?

Not having seen her friend in many years, Eliza petitions her father to send Ben to teach her how to grow Indigo. Her father denies her request. Both for Eliza's reputation and the safety of her friend. Ben is the first friend Eliza made as a young girl and grew to be her best friend. He was also a slave. So Eliza presses on, she studies and asks questions. She befriends people and slaves who have experience growing seeds similar to Indigo as well as those who have knowledge of Indigo.

Eliza was put in a precarious position. On the one hand, her father left her in charge of plantations and slaves. Her father wanted her to save the family of financial ruin or at the very least, keep the family afloat until her brother came of age and could take over in her father's place.

On the other, her mother was dead set on marrying her off. Women weren't celebrated for their knowledge, this was a time when women didn't have power or a voice. Her mother didn't understand Eliza's exuberance, her independence, nor her strong sense of self. Eliza wanted to work. She was strong willed and had opinions. As a 16-year-old female, men were more interested in patting her on the head or dismissing her entirely than they were with accepting that she might be intelligent enough to make good decisions. Her value and worth were only what she could bring to a marriage and how she could provide for her husband.

❝This was perhaps my only chance to show my father I was destined for more than being some man's wife. Perhaps one day. But not yet. What was wrong with being a spinster anyway?❞

I so admire Eliza Pickney. She had a strong sense of right and wrong. Her fortitude was admirable. She was strong before her time. Had she been born today, she would have been celebrated for her ideas and her intelligence.

This story evoked a myriad of emotions in me. I cried from sadness and I cried from anger. But I also gained a sense of appreciation for how far our gender has come!

I first read this author when she penned 'Eversea', and the follow-up book, 'Forever, Jack'. I liked those well enough. But 'The Indigo Girl' was a superb! I am so happy that Natasha Boyd felt compelled to tell the story of such an amazing woman. While parts may be fiction, it is clear that Ms. Boyd did her research.

Phenomenal! Exquisite! Passionate! I didn't want it to end!

This historical fiction novel is based on the true life story of Eliza Lucas.   Lucas was only sixteen when her father left her in America to oversee and run his three plantations in South Carolina.  Lucas constantly battled against her mother who was left in her care and the outside world due to her age and most importantly her sex.  In the 1700's most did not believe a young lady could manage one plantation much less three.  In history, Lucas is most famous for her growth and manufacture of indigo dye, a new crop for the new world.

This novel was well researched and I believe stayed close to the true actions of Lucas.  It held my interest wanting to find out what would happen next.  Even though I knew she would eventually succeed in her indigo efforts, I still found myself curious about each crop she tried to develop.

In an attempt to round out Lucas's story, Boyd also covers the friendship she has with several of her slaves and also Charles Pinckney.  As history tells us, Lucas does eventually marry Pinkney but this novel expands to include the length and friendship nature the relationship held for many years before Pinkney's first wife died.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced reader copy.

An absolutely breathtaking and touching novel that I couldn't put down! Highly recommend!

In her afterword, the author explains how a snippet of conversation overheard whilst visiting an exhibition about indigo became the inspiration for The Indigo Girl. I was reminded of a quote I read recently by Bernie McGill, author of The Watch House: ‘As a fiction writer, I am always looking for the gaps between recorded events, the spaces in between’. In this case, the author has taken the true story of Eliza Lucas and using historical documents, including Eliza’s own letters, filled the spaces in between to produce a fascinating book about life in 18th century America. The book includes excerpts from Eliza’s letters at relevant points in the narrative.

In case this is making it sound like The Indigo Girl is a dry treatise on the process of producing indigo dye, I can reassure potential readers that it’s much more than this. It’s also an enthralling story full of action, intrigue – even a hint of romance – with an engaging central character. In The Indigo Girl, Eliza emerges as a much more lively individual than the rather formal style of her actual letters would suggest. However, the letters give a hint of the determination and independence of spirit exhibited by the Eliza of the novel.

Given charge of running the family estate in South Carolina when her father is forced to return to their holdings in Antigua, Eliza sets out to transform the family’s fortunes by growing indigo, fuelled by her interest in botany. The only trouble is the cultivation of indigo and its transformation into high quality dye seems akin to a mystical process, the knowledge of which is held only by some of the slaves on the plantation: ‘The secret has been passed down through generations, perhaps even from ancient times.’

Gaining access to this knowledge brings Eliza into conflict with one of her father’s overseers because of his cruel treatment of the estate’s slaves. And her involvement in running the estate is looked at askance by Eliza’s mother, who is worried that it will ruin Eliza’s marriage prospects by going against the norms of polite society. Much to her mother’s horror, Eliza is more interested in the accounts and researching cultivation techniques than in tea drinking and embroidery.

In her heart, Eliza knows that she has only been placed in charge because both her brothers are at school in England. Her appointment is one of necessity not a sign of female emancipation. However, she clings to the vain hope that if she can make a success of it she can escape the inevitability of marriage.

‘Three crop seasons to get it right. If I didn’t succeed by then, marriage was my only option. A marriage not to save the family or our land – a wealthy man could buy himself a more biddable wife than I – but marriage so my family would not have to support me any longer.’

After several unsuccessful attempts to grow indigo, Eliza eventually persuades her father to hire a consultant. However, this sets off a chain of events that will ultimately end in tragedy for some, their just desserts for others and happiness for the people who matter.

I knew nothing about the growing of indigo or the production of indigo dye and its economic and political importance before reading this book so I found this aspect of the book particularly fascinating. As a keen gardener, I could also appreciate the challenges of experimenting with different sowing times, growing conditions and aftercare in an effort to achieve success.

I now know that the export of indigo dye from South Carolina laid the foundation for the wealth of many Southern families meaning Eliza’s accomplishments influenced the course of US history. Indeed, the author notes that, when Eliza died in 1793, President George Washington served as a pallbearer at her funeral. I’m so glad the author was able to celebrate the achievements of this remarkable woman and, at the same time, craft such an enjoyable novel. If it were needed, this reminds me why I enjoy reading historical fiction so much: entertainment and education in one lovely package.

I received an advance reader copy courtesy of NetGalley and publishers, Blackstone, in return for an honest review.

Lately, I've been searching for books that are outside the contemporary romance sphere. Has it been because I've read the same thing too many times, or are original plots about unique characters genuinely becoming more scarce? I can't say. Here's one thing I can say with certainty:

The Indigo Girl is special and it deserves to be voraciously devoured and appreciated by readers. Those who are hungry for a story that will move them and linger in their minds. You WILL soak this story up like a sponge, passionately shouting your enthusiasm to anyone who will listen.

Like me, it's very likely you'll say to yourself, "How did I not know about this incredible woman?" She was so revered and respected that our first president publicly acknowledged and honored her contributions to the country. In colonial America, women were quite literally dismissed as silly and inferior as the general rule. Yes, gender inequality is alive and well today. But there's no comparison to how women's choices were taken away and their lives completely controlled in Eliza Lucas' time. The enormity of what she accomplished is immeasurable. Especially when you consider that this was a teenage girl who shattered the limitations placed around her by society.

Eliza grew up in the Caribbean island of Antigua, and moved to South Carolina with her affluent family as a young girl. With racial and political tensions rising, moving off the island was a move considered for everyone's safety. She and her father developed a close relationship as she matured, one that grew out of respect and love. He unconventionally fostered her fascination with botany and her interest in the management of the numerous plantations they owned.

Encouraging interests outside of finding a husband was virtually unheard of in those days. However, as the oldest sibling of four, she was depended on to help as her younger brothers obtained their education in England. When her father leaves to report to the British Army, his desire to rise in the ranks of the military lead him to entrust their plantations in Eliza's capable care. Much to his wife and many neighbors' dismay.

Unbeknownst to Eliza, her family's livelihood was quickly deteriorating due to her father hemorrhaging money towards his military ambition. She soon realized that with their homes heavily mortgaged, they were barely scraping by and paying the bills. One wrong move, and the whole house of cards would come tumbling down.

Her solution was diversifying into the extremely profitable, but mysterious indigo plant. Everyone knew that the dye extracted from indigo was highly sought after and desired. The challenge wasn't just finding someone willing to share the delicate process of accurately producing it. There were few that had faith that a slip of a girl could succeed where so many men before her had failed. But she didn't let that stop her, because she had nothing to lose. With the faithful help of her neighbor, Mr. Pinckney, she set out to prove everyone wrong.

Intertwined with Eliza's urgent struggle to prove her worth and bridge an independent life for herself, is a heartrending story about forbidden friendship. Ignorance and hatred separated two children whose bond could never have been accepted. The boy she knew in Antigua had been sold, but never forgotten. And his reappearance in her life had an immense emotional impact on her.

This book made me feel so much, and not all of it was comfortable. Boyd doesn't shy away from depicting the horrors and injustice of slavery. It was enough to make your chest ache and your throat clog, thinking of the silent suffering that was endured. Eliza's mother enraged me on so many occasions. She had absolutely no sense of her daughter's strength and courage, often belittling her, or intentionally preventing her from succeeding. Her ambition for her daughter began and ended with marrying her off, while her brilliant and progressive mind was stifled.

Treachery, betrayal, and tragedy pave the path to Eliza's dreams. Told in Natasha Boyd's beautifully descriptive narrative, The Indigo Girl captivated me, inspired me, and transported me to a volatile time filled with terrible despair and fragile hope. Eliza Lucas dared to reach for the impossible and changed the course of history. Even if you're not typically a reader of historical fiction, I believe you should give this powerful book a chance. It's been almost a week since I finished reading it, and my mind is still drifting back to Eliza's remarkable story. It's one I can easily say that I won't soon be forgetting.

4+ stars

If I didn't know that this was based on a true story, a real person in our history, I would have found it to be pretty unrealistic that in the 1730's, a British man would leave his sixteen year old daughter in charge of his plantations when he leaves South Carolina for Antigua to further his military career. There are several things that I really liked about this book. While this is a fictionalized account of the life of Eliza Lucas, it not only appears to be well researched, but excerpts of letters written by Eliza Lucas are interspersed throughout. Eliza Lucas was a determined, smart and tough woman who was in many ways, a woman ahead of her times. How heartening to know that in spite of the societal demands of the times, that there were women who were bold enough to do things considered to be only in the realm of men. She is remembered for bringing to SC the indigo crop that changed its economy.

The author in her notes tells which characters are based on real people and which are imagined. I always love to hear what the creative spark was that prompts an author to write a particular story. In this case, Natasha Rosenfeldt Boyd was attending an indigo exhibit in South Carolina and overheard a conversation between the gallery owner and one of Eliza's descendants. "I caught snippets of a story that would light a fire in me. It was a story about a sixteen-year-old girl who ran her father's plantations in her father's name. "This girl," the unknown person said next to me, unaware of my eavesdropping, " made a deal with her slaves : she would teach them to read, and in return they would teach her the secrets of making indigo." And thus the spark for this novel and the story of this young woman whose story is inspiring and relevant even today.


I received an advanced copy of this book from Blackstone Publishing through NetGalley.

Eliza Lucas Pinckney is a well known name in the Carolina Low Country, and it was a real pleasure to read this historical fictionalization about her life and career. She was a brilliant and bold woman who pushed the limits imposed by her time, and Boyd does her justice. Boyd has taken a historical framework and created characters who will stay with me for a long time.

The Indigo Girl was a captivating story! I was pulled in from the first page.

Certainly stories of strong historical women aren't unusual; even if history barely remembers them. We seem to want to tug on these journeys until their story unravels. Indigo Girl is a mostly true story. Eliza, our lead gal, was a women of not even 17 living in the American colonies in mid-1700s.

The primary purpose of the story appears to be about Eliza but I actually think (based on the afterword); that this is really a story about indigo production and how to get by in the mid-1700s.
The perseverance and no quit attitude portrayed by Eliza in The Indigo Girls is something I think anyone can admire and wish for; regardless of time period or gender.

As it's the mid-1700s on a plantation in what would later become South Carolina; inevitably much of the book is about slavery. Eliza was a very progressive woman for her time and truly loved her slaves like family. This caused her a lot of heartache but also meant she fought hard for her slaves and treated them well.
At one point I did get tired of how 'special' Eliza was that she saw her slaves as real people instead of, well, slaves. I suppose that is because to us, today, it seems so obvious that everyone should be seen and treated equally. This was the largest annoyance I had in Indigo Girl is that it got a bit repetitive about Eliza's special bond with the slaves.
However, without a doubt Eliza's love for anyone with a good heart is what makes this a poignant and sometimes sad story. Especially the elements of it that are definitely true. Natasha Boyd makes a point at the end of letting the reader know what characters were fiction and which were real people. In a historical book built on truth I always appreciate this. There's also a bibliography if you want to read more about Eliza. I love that most of the letters are quoted direct from Eliza's real life letters.

I would highly recommend The Indigo Girl for anyone that loves historical stories; but also to those with a keen interest in some of the building blocks of the future that people in the USA laboured so hard to create. This Canadian is very glad to have learned the story of Eliza and her Indigo dye.

In 1739, Eliza Lucas is sixteen years old when her father leaves her in charge of the family’s three South Carolina estates so he can go chase his dreams of a military career. With the estates floundering on the edge of ruin, Eliza decides that producing indigo is the family’s only hope.

But not even her family wants her to succeed, and no one will share the thousand-year-old secret to making indigo dye, so Eliza must form a forbidden friendship with a slave who promises to teach her—if she breaks the law and teaches the slaves to read. Eliza is on her own as she fights against tradition and the law, except for the friendship of an aging horticulturalist and the married lawyer who is a friend of the family.

Somehow, I did not realize The Indigo Girl was historical fiction until I finished reading it. Though the issues of slavery and women’s rights in the book bothered me, that stuff happened, and erasing history means we won’t learn from it. Eliza was a wonderful character—and the fact that the character is at least partially based on a real-life woman who fought tradition and oppression is even better—strong, determined, and with the courage to stand up for what she believes in and fight even her family to do what’s right. This is a great read!

(Galley provided by Blackstone Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.)

This Indigo Girl is the perfect example of why I adore historical fiction. Natasha Boyd has really outdone herself with her latest novel. With completely immersive writing she brings to life the story of an exceptional young woman, Eliza Lucas Pinckney.

Eliza was a sixteen year old girl living in South Carolina in 1739. Her father left his plantation and family to attend to his interests abroad. Having no of age male children on the land, Eliza's father makes the choice to leave her in charge of seeing to the Plantations.

Struggling to deal with life in the new colony, a looming war with Spain and financial distress both personal and of the budding colonies, Eliza seeks to find a way to keep her family's land. She has a vision to do the near impossible. She wants to make indigo dye, a precious and lucrative commodity.

Meeting with adversity on nearly every front, Eliza endures and over several years finally finds success. Nearly forgotten, her life and important contributions arguably altered the course of colonial history. Eliza Lucas Pinckney would be considered remarkable in any time period but was nothing short of a miracle in the 1700's when women were at such social disadvantage.

Natasha sought to bring to life Eliza and highlight her intelligence, bravery and accomplishments. She has undeniably succeeded. The Indigo Girl is Natasha's first work of historical fiction and I truly hope there is more to come from her.

Please see Reviewer's Opinion..........................................................................................

Indigo Girl is based on the true story of Eliza Lucas, the author even included excerpts from her letters in the 1730s adding a wonderfully authentic touch.
The novel starts off slowly but before you have time to notice you are engulfed in the story and you'll find yourself captivated by something as random as the production of indigo.

I highly recommend to lovers of no gimmick historical fiction. By that I mean the author doesn't have to rely on a dual timeline or some kind of fabricated drama to tell a wonderful story of triumph. Beautifully done Natasha Boyd!

In 1739 sixteen-year-old Eliza Lucas is left in charge of her father’s plantations in South Carolina – an unheard-of thing for a woman in those times! Eliza already has a keen interest in plants thanks to a childhood friend but when her father takes her along when he goes to inspect one of his plantations, before he leaves, her interest is caught by some slave women carrying bundles of sticks back towards the dwellings wearing faded blue sack skirts swishing against dusky dark skin. Eliza made a deal with her slaves: she would teach them to read and in return, they would teach her the secrets of making indigo. Thanks to Eliza’s vision and perseverance indigo went on to become one of the largest exports of the colonies, laying the foundation for colonial wealth that shaped United States history.
The story is based on true events and historical documents but certain elements had to be created to demonstrate character or give fabricated reasons for actions where the truth behind certain deeds has been lost to time. Being a woman and of farm stock myself I identified with Eliza. She was ambitious and headstrong, she didn’t always conform to society’s expectations, she made friends with whom she chose and not who was expected and she did not have an idle bone in her body. Two hundred years after her death, Eliza Lucas Pinckney was inducted into the South Carolina Women in Business Hall of Fame and in 2017 she will be the D.A.R. Woman of the year. Also, to this day, the South Carolina state flag is blue in honour of indigo.
Saphira
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

What I love about this book is that this is based on a true story. There’s nothing more interesting to me than when you take someone’s story and share it with the world who may not have known it. Eliza Lucas is sixteen when her father leaves her in charge of her family’s plantations when he goes back to to Antigua to serve as lieutenant governor during the English and Spanish conflict. In a world where women are supposed to sit pretty and marry well, this is a unique opportunity for Eliza and one that she relishes, though her mother would prefer to see her married off and her husband tending to overseeing the plantations. It’s through her own determination and hard world that she avoids the yoke of marriage and instead struggles to see if indigo, a highly sought after dye, could be grown in the colony. Her determination and her willingness to work with the slaves of the property, whom she treated like family, teaching them to read in exchange for their helping her with the crop.

Even though she’s sixteen, there was a naivete about her, which is stripped away through time and in its place a new grit is formed and adds to Eliza’s already unique personality and mindset. I loved how she refused to be let down, that she kept fighting until she succeeded and continued with that same indomitable spirit throughout the rest of her life. She is also remarkable because General George Washington was one of the pallbearers at her funeral in 1793. She was truly amazing and she seems to have passed that down to her children, her two sons both were Federalist Vice Presidential candidates, the elder son was a signatory on the Constitution.

Included in the novel are actual snippets from Eliza’s letters and it’s lovely to hear Eliza’s own voice in this tome about her. Granted, it is a first person perspective, but there’s something special about including Eliza’s actual words.

I loved this book and I can’t wait to reread it. Ms. Boyd has a gift for storytelling and how to make things come alive. It was an absolute joy to read and I forced myself to take my time–I’m usually a fast reader–because I wanted to savor the story and to really get to know Eliza and her family. It’s a book you should enjoy and share with friends; it’s truly a wonderful read.

Totally adored this immaculately researched book. Although I had it here I also went out and bought a copy as I loved it so much. I think that it takes the conventions of this kind of writing and totally subverts them to bring the reader something totally fresh and exciting and it certainly had me hooked from the start. Natasha Boyd certainly can write! I felt that the characterization of Eliza Lucas was extremely strong indeed and the ending was something that I was longing to reach and yet kept delaying as I really didn't want it to end. I am always on the look out for fresh and original voices for our senior library and to get our senior students reading more diverse and interesting fiction and I'll certainly be recommending this to them. The Indigo Girl is a first rate piece of contemporary fiction that I kept thinking about, for a long time after I'd read it. I really hope to hear more from Natasha Stewart and I'm looking forward to seeing what he comes up with next!

Historical fiction is my favorite genre, and this is a perfect example of why I love it. Based on a true person, this is a fictionalized account of Eliza Lucas Pinckney"s successful development of indigo as one of the most important cash crops of Colonial South Carolina. The author paints a vivid portrait of 18th century southern society, her characters are well crafted and the story interesting. Bravo!.

When a father gives his teenage daughter responsibility for his plantations, she must fight against society’s conventions and established gender ideas to prove that she’s up to the task. As she manages the land, she discovers an entrepreneurial spirit she didn’t know she possessed. Author Natasha Boyd delves into pre-Revolutionary life in the grounded novel The Indigo Girl.

It’s 1739, and Eliza Lucas has recently moved to a plantation just outside of Charles Town, South Carolina, with her parents, her younger sister, and several slaves. The move from Antigua provides a shock to the entire family; South Carolina is nothing like the island they called home and an even farther cry from their home country of England. While Mrs. Lucas finds herself discomfited at every turn, however, Eliza begins to get comfortable soon after moving.

Her father doesn’t stay for long, however. He plans to return to Antigua to make a bid for governor, but he needs someone to manage the plantation while he’s gone. Because Eliza already manages the household and handles some of the correspondence related to the plantation, she’s a natural choice to become its new mistress.

Eliza doesn’t allow her age—all of 16 years old—nor her gender hold her back. She throws herself wholeheartedly into running the plantation. Soon enough she learns of her family’s financial difficulties. Eliza becomes more determined than ever to induce the plantation to make money so that when her younger brother, George, arrives from England to take over as the heir to the family business she can give him a profitable one.

Challenges abound, however. Rumors swirl that the French and the British may go to war against one another. Some of Eliza’s own employees scorn her decisions based on the fact that she’s a woman. The crops, too, don’t bring in the kind of money she expected.

Eliza knows she’ll have to do something drastic and decides to invest in the risky business of raising indigo plants to make cakes of indigo dye. If she can just get the formula and the process right, she’ll be able to prove to everyone that she can run the plantations as well as any man. Extracting the formula, a closely guarded secret, is much more difficult than she ever expected. She knows she has no choice, however, if she wants to save the plantations once and for all.

Author Natasha Boyd brings to life a little-known historical figure. Using Eliza Lucas’ own letters and journal entries, as well as other reliable sources, Boyd has constructed a novel that pays homage in the best of ways to its main character. She lets Eliza tell her own story in first person, bringing the reader that much closer to the conditions of life on a plantation before the Revolutionary War.

If the novel can be faulted anywhere, it’s in the fictional construction of a potential love interest. Boyd shares in her author’s note at the end of the book that she went with her instinct in creating this character based on Eliza’s letters. The scenes may be compelling on their own, but the contrast they provide to the larger story is too stark. The rest of Boyd’s narrative flows together organically, but this point doesn’t mesh with the rest of her book.

Overall, however, Boyd has brought a little-known trade of South Carolina to life. Considering the heavy emphasis placed by various books on other periods in history, Boyd’s tome offers a fresh reminder that the past does back beyond 1939. Lovers of historical fiction will enjoy this book, but so will those who consider themselves close to the south and South Carolina in particular.

I recommend readers Bookmark The Indigo Girl.