As my first foray into historical fiction, I had a surprisingly great time with this one. It tackles some hard hitting subjects in a way that’s respectful, but also inventive. It takes creative liberties that are initially subtle, but devolve into absolute insanity by the end. The intensity and mystery coupled with the insanity were enough to enrapture me until the final pages.

This story follows Adelaide Henry, the daughter of an African American farmer whose family hides a dark secret. From page one, Adelaide is dousing her dead parents in gasoline, ready to light up the house. Meanwhile a wagon awaits out front to take her to the port so she can sail from California to Montana and start her new life as a homesteader. This drama is immediately intriguing and goes even further by showcases the mysteriousness of Adelaide’s trunk. It’s a massive piece of luggage with a padlock that took her and the wagon driver to lift and put into the wagon. She leaves her childhood home with some grief but also relief that she’s finally getting to experience something new. When she makes it to Montana, she’s not treated unkindly despite the era, but single women traveling to the area to homestead aren’t uncommon. Essentially homesteading provided people the opportunity to purchase a plot by making a living off of it. If they could make it profitable, they could keep it for their lifetime. Adelaide is inspired by another black woman who did it on her own, after all, how bad could it be? The answer, pretty bad. She makes friends with another single woman who has a son that lives a few plots away and she helps support Adelaide initially. She finds this kinship with a few other women in the town, finding a place of her own in their society. As she starts to integrate, her dark secrets, along with the town’s, start to come to light and everything goes off the rails from there. The natural progression of the story from the reveal of what’s in the trunk, to more information about it to the finale is a satisfying rising action overall. However, the ending chapters felt a bit too fast paced. It’s a satisfying conclusion at least, but some of the supporting cast seems to change on a dime, which I wasn’t a fan of.

Characterization is severely important to me and Adelaide is a phenomenal protagonist. She’s guarded and careful, but also big hearted. Her trauma influences her in ways that I could relate to and she isn’t perfect. Adelaide carries her burden with purpose and when tragedy strikes or when push comes to shove, she stays strong. She hears her mother’s mantra (“a woman is a mule”) constantly in her mind and feels like she’s disappointed in her, but she also has to make her own choices. Though her parents are dead, their expectations for her are still weighing on her mind. The battle for her own independence is a struggle that I could relate to on some levels, but on others I could never understand. I really loved exploring her viewpoint. Grace is really the only other character that I felt like got enough development. Many of the others change their perspectives on a dime and I wasn’t too attached to them, but as I learned more about Grace, the more I respected her. She’s a single mother with a “strange” son and is somewhat ostracized because of it. She takes it in stride and does her best for her child anyways. She’s one of the first people to become a true friend to Adelaide without expecting anything in return. The vigor with which she defends her child, and Adelaide, highlights her integrity and I just love her for it. Easily, the second best character in the narrative.

Though the story is more fantastical than historical, it’s still very rooted in reality. The idea of setting a “horror” novel in the early 1900s during the settling of America, is genius. On top of the absolute tragedy of politics and the harshness of the environment, the protagonist also has to deal with a monster in a trunk. It’s a story that starts off unassuming, but blossoms into a wild flower unlike any you’ve seen before. It does get messy as it inches towards its conclusion, but Adelaide’s characterization and the insanity of the events are entertaining enough that I wasn’t too bothered. It’s a read that spices up an era that’s somewhat droll and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I’d recommend it to people that are interested in horror, but don’t have the stomach for anything too scary or gory. Also those that like historical stuff, but want a twist; it delivers that wholeheartedly.