“Sewing Girl’s Tale: A Story of Crime and Consequences in Revolutionary America” by John Wood Sweet
The tale begins with a young 17-year-old girl who dares to walk the Battery in New York City with a gentleman who said his name was Lawyer Smith. In 1793, the United States was testing the standard British laws to determine which were universal and applicable in the newly formed governing bodies.
Lanah Sawyer had no inkling that Lawyer Smith was a well-known rake who later dragged her into the back room of a brothel where a crime was committed. This kind of drama was typically kept a secret to preserve the reputation of the victim. However, Lanah decides to charge the supposed gentleman with rape.
John Wood Sweet is a professor of history at the University of North Carolina. He has super skills for sleuthing in newspapers, historic records, as well as letters. There are more than 50 pages of notes documenting his research of this case.
There is remarkable detail about Lanah’s family and her stepfather, a well-known marine pilot. There were only three safe passages into the New York harbor, and all required a pilot to steer the course. This gave him a considerable reputation even though he was considered working class. He was able to hire an attorney to represent his stepdaughter, while the accused man’s family hired six prominent attorneys, including Alexander Hamilton.
The drama persists into a 15-hour trial with the sewing girl’s reputation established by other working-class citizens, and Harry Bedlow’s (Lawyer Smith) reputation confirmed by other aristocrats connected to his family. Lanah’s family did not have access to the same competence of representation as Bedlow did.
The trial and its results set off riots in the streets. The house where the crime was committed was dismantled piece by piece and hauled away by those men who thought that the brothel’s owner was just as culpable as Bedlow. Anonymous letters were printed in newpapers supporting one side or the other.
In 1793, sewing teachers would take a perfectly good piece of cloth and cut a series of holes in it. It was the skilled woman worker who could demonstrate with only needle and thread how to repair the damage and match the repair to the original fabric. Lanah could see her right to equality in this new world, but was the legal world ready to challenge the advantages that money brought?
Always there is the question — was justice served?
— Review by Lizz Taylor, Poor Richard’s Books
“Havoc: A Novel” by Christopher Bollen
I have a friend who says they could be dyslexic because when they saw the word “misled” they read it as “mizled.” I like this term and feel it applies to the novel “Havoc.” I thought this would be a sweet novel about an 80-year-old woman, Maggie, and an 8-year-old troublemaker boy, Otto. And yes, I was mizled.
However, this elderly woman has a past that is never totally revealed but we know that she had to leave the Swiss hotel where she had been staying because of an “unfortunate incident.”
This all happens during the COVID lockdown, and that limits the countries where she can relocate. But Egypt is not under restrictions, so she moves into the Royal Karnak Palace Hotel in Luxor. Maggie thinks she has the power to see failures in relationships and the ability to help those couples move to a better situation. She does so with deceit and some skill.
However, Otto is on to Maggie from the get-go, and he initiates a blackmail scheme where Maggie will arrange a better hotel room for he and his mother in exchange for his silence.
Otto’s mother has escaped a prickly situation in Paris with the boy’s father.
She seems easily distracted and unaware of Otto. He takes to the hotel staff, especially the caretaker of the hotel’s notable cockatiel birds.
When the birds suffer a massacre from the local cat after their cage was left unlocked, Otto steps up his attacks on Maggie. This becomes an ever-escalating, psychological “cat and mouse” game. And I was totally surprised with Otto’s ability to match Maggie’s villainy. Maggie and Otto launch a full-scale war to see which one can rule the hotel and its staff.
Though this dark, twisted tale has quite a surprising ending, there is also much to consider about entitlement, aging, loneliness and jealousy.
“Havoc” was one of the New York Times Top 10 Suspense titles of 2024.
— Review by Lizz Taylor, Poor Richard’s Books
“The Crimson Crown” by Heather Walter
“The Crimson Crown” by Heather Walter is a Sapphic love story, dark fairy tale retelling, and origin story of the wicked queen from Snow White. It explores a well-known character and breaks down the tragedies and moments that transform a naive witch into the powerful wicked witch queen.
Before she was the evil queen, she was Ayleth, a young, free-spirited witch who lived in the forest with her coven. Magic was outlawed by the decree of the White King, so the coven lived in disguise. After her sister’s death, Ayleth became the heir to the coven, though many doubted her capability, especially her mother.
To prove her worth, Ayleth embarks on a quest to find the bloodstones that are imbued with great magical power to keep the Veil closed and the evil Malum out of the world. During her search, she encounters the last person she wants to see, the person who once held her heart until she abandoned Ayleth.
Jacquetta, a witch on a quest to end the White King’s reign, is now the person Ayleth must work alongside. Can she trust Jacquetta not to betray her again? Can she set aside old wounds to work together? Will she find her inner magic and become the most powerful witch of them all?
— Review by Heather Avila, Paul Sawyier Public Library
“Not Too Sweet” by Jessica Seinfeld
With Valentine’s Day coming up, many of us turn to sweet treats to celebrate the occasion. But what if you’re trying to be more mindful with your eating in the new year, or you simply want to avoid the sugar crash that comes after the indulgence? “Not Too Sweet” by New York Times bestselling author Jessica Seinfeld (with Sara Quessenberry) may be your solution!
In this cookbook, Seinfeld offers 100 delicious dessert recipes that utilize either naturally occurring sugars (think fruits, vegetables, maple syrup, honey, etc.) or significantly reduced amounts of processed sugar than we would traditionally see in these types of dishes.
Through stunning color photographs and easy-to-follow directions, home cooks are introduced to new takes on cookies, bars, cakes, pies, pastries, puddings and much more. Seinfeld even adds essentials that can be used across a variety of recipes including pie doughs, purees, compotes and whipped creams. Many of the recipes can also be adapted for gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free or vegan diets with a few ingredient swaps.
Be sure to check out “Not Too Sweet,” and feel good about satisfying your sweet tooth!
— Review by Diane Dehoney, Paul Sawyier Public Library
