The Downstairs Girl by Stacey LeeMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed from ARC received from publisher. To be published August 2019.
I do love reading a historical fiction title about a period/place that is new to me--this novel covers Atlanta during the Gilded Age from the perspective of a Chinese-American teenage girl. I had never thought about how Chinese men would come to be in the South during that time period, so I found those historical tidbits fascinating. Jo and Old Gin sneakily live in the basement of a house in Atlanta, working in horse barns, in shops, and, eventually, as a lady's maid. But the basement is below a newspaper's office, and Jo becomes an anonymous writer for a "Dear Abby" type of advise column that stirs up controversy. There were a few plot details that were a bit too convenient for me and a bit too out there--some unmentionables that probably wouldn't have made it into a newspaper column, outcome of a horse race, etc. But I know that sometimes modern readers want to see some of their thoughts and ideas brought into a historical novel, which seems to have been done here. It's a fast read, and readers will be cheering for Jo to find her place in the world. Also, if the hardback cover is anything like the ARC, it will be BEAUTIFUL.
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment