I read "The Lives of Diamond Bessie" not having paid much attention to the synopsis, When the big event of the story took a twist about halfway through and the perspective shifted, and I was absolutely floored. I gasped aloud. This was an excellent mix of historical fiction and ghost story, and I was captured by the writing. Our protagonist's story felt incredibly relatable in spite of the 150+ years between her life and my own, and her struggles and obstacles felt real and tangible. A truly enjoyable read. I hope to see more historical fiction from this author!

I really enjoyed this book. It seemed to have two halves within it but that just made it a lot more interesting to me, there was no time to grow bored and I found the character's so interesting and very well researched. The time period too is fascinating and being it is my favourite genre "Historical" it felt like a treat for me to have this novel in my hand. Would recommend.

This book is historical fiction based on real people and events and follows the life of Annie Moore who became known as Diamond Bessie, a much sought-after lady of the night - a demi-mondaine - in the mid to late 1800s. She worked in brothels in Watertown and Syracuse NY, Chicago IL, and also travelled to Hot Springs AK, New Orleans LA, Cincinnati OH and finally Jefferson TX.

The book is well researched and well written and I thoroughly enjoyed the first half. Diamond Bessie seems to have made a deep impression on people she met along the way and even some she didn't meet. I'm not a believer in the afterlife and don't normally read books to do with it or with the spectral. I shouldn't have been too surprised where it went given the word "Lives" in the title and reference to The Lovely Bones in the blurb but I really wish the author had chosen another way to relate the second half of the story. I found it really interesting to read how boarding houses (brothels) worked - the author made it sound like a desirable way of life! In spite of my reservations, I'd still recommend the book as historical fiction. It's a great debut novel.

Deepest thanks to SparkPress via Netgalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Publication Date: April 5, 2022

Annie Moore becomes pregnant at age 16 and is sent away to a convent by her family. After escaping from the nuns, Annie is determined to be reunited with her infant daughter, but she has no rights or resources as a woman in the 1860s, so she becomes a sex worker at an upscale brothel and becomes known as Diamond Bessie. Then she makes a fatal mistake by marrying the wrong man, so one chapter of her story ends and another one begins.
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Annie/Bessie was such a fascinating character, even more so because she was based on a real woman. I enjoyed watching her development from a naive country girl who got duped into a sexual relationship into a self-contained, successful sex worker, who then gets duped again by a smooth-talking man. The Lovely Bones-esque parts were really satisfying -- big fan of vengeance here! I did lose interest in the extended trial scenes because they dragged a bit and kind of lost focus. Overall, this was a strong debut and a good historical suspense read.

This story was well written, and easy to read. I felt connected with Annie (aka, Bessie), and loved the glimpse into the beginnings of the women's suffrage movement and early feminism. I have a very basic understanding of this history, and I felt that I was able to grasp not only a good connection with the character but even a harsher understanding of how it must have been to be a woman in this time. I don't want to give anything away, but there are some very unexpected twists and turns that really brought this book to the next level.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Honestly, I did not enjoy the entirety of this book. The first half of the book was interesting and quite enjoyable as the author depicted the life of Bessie Moore. Bessie, originally Annie Moore, got pregnant out of wedlock at 16 and was sent to a convent, where she was abused in an effort to make her repent her sins and was forced to give up her baby. After escaping the convent, she looked for a respectable job, but there were none for a woman with no references and out of wedlock. The author did a great job of telling how life was for a disgraced woman in the nineteenth century and how the only available work to keep her fed, was to work as a prostitute. The brothels and activity of the brothels was nicely written, more “Best Little Horror House in Texas,” then what your brain might imagine.

Bessie falls in love with a scoundrel and like many abused women, Bessie misses all the signs of an abusive man and marries him anyway, as leaving the life she knows clouded her judgement. It is at this point the book takes a very strange twist, one that I cannot give away in this review. This happens at a little over 50% of the book. From this point through the end of the book, I found the book to be farfetched, fantastical, and boring. If you read the “Afterward” section of the book, you will find out that the author chose to tell this true story in this manner. The author did tell the true story of Bessie Moore, to the best of her ability, as there were many holes that the author had to fill in, but I personally believe she could have told the second half of the story in a way that was more historical and less fantastical, more in line with the first half of the book.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
"The Lives Of Diamond Bessie" by
Jody Hadlock was a very unusual & interesting story.
It started out as one type of story and in the middle it ended up becoming something so much more.
I was pleasantly surprised with the supernatural switch midway through the novel & I was shocked to discover that this was Ms. Hadlock's debut novel.
I will definitely be on the lookout to see what she decides to write next.

This book grabbed my attention from page one. The story moves along fairly quick. Bessie’s story is a sad one and typical for the time. I was kinda surprised by the turn of events in the book. It completely becomes something I wasn’t expecting.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy

Nope. It was going ok the first half then it took a turn that i wont share so as not to spoil it. That turn was so stupid and ruined the whole book for me. I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Lives of Diamond Bessie depicts the life of a young woman who had became a prostitute after having given up her daughter. The novel illustrates how difficult it was to survive in those circumstances in the 19th century. Bessie had a knack for choosing the wrong men, especially Abe. He was no good and she didn’t learn her lesson until it was too late. When the story takes on a spectral realm, I lost interest. I understand why the author chose that angle, I just didn’t care for it.
I appreciated the author’s note at the end, offering more information about the true life story the novel was based.

Thank you Netgalley for the digital ARC!

I think this was a beautiful book about a story that needed to be told. It was a good book but I think the characters backstory’s and the character development could’ve been better so the readers would connect with them more.

Such an ambitious book, especially for a debut. There is a big twist halfway through, but there's so much more to the story and the characters that you will be just as entertained reading about how a young Irish immigrant becomes pregnant out of wedlock, and ends up in prostitution as a means of survival. It's heartbreaking and frustrating at times to relive what women were/are subjected to and how so many struggled against the limits society forced on them. And don't miss the bonus at the end, with a note from the author on how she was inspired to write this (based on a true story!). Reading that after the fact really makes the story stick with you.
My thanks to NetGalley and and SparkPress for an advance reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

I reviewed this book for the May issue of Historical Novels Review magazine, the magazine of the Historical Novel Society. Per their policy, I cannot post a review online until this review is published on their website on May 1st. I will update the review after that time.

An interesting novel based on a true story, depicting how very limited women's choices were in the 19th century. If you stepped out of line and were "ruined" your choices were nearly non-existent...poverty and an early death as a mill worker, or the chance of venereal disease and brutality, plus the inevitable loss of your looks and a downward slide in a house of prostitution. I enjoyed the first portion (where there was still some hope that Annie/Bessie would "better" her situation) much more than the later portion. I did admire Annie's pluck and determination, but on the whole, while I "liked" this book I certainly didn't love it.

I have mixed feelings about this book. It follows Annie Moore or new named “Bessie” through a tumultuous time period in which “fallen women” were heavily mistreated and prejudiced against with their male counterparts not feeling the same shame. Annie is first held in a Convent during her pregnancy and separated from her baby. In an attempt to reunite with her child, she escapes and struggles to find her way. Resorting to prostitution (in high-class brothels) to make a living, she finally finds success and realizes her beauty. Unfortunately, brothel women are shunned in proper society, so in order to gain “independence” she must marry. When her new husband starts to use her for success and worth, she must fight for her rights in life…and in death.

I loved the premise to this novel. Annie/Bessie is a strong female lead and easily likable. I find Women’s rights discussions important and this book did not fall short of details of how men were treated significantly better than women through a good part of the 1800s. I was pleasantly surprised with the supernatural switch midway through the novel. I love ghostly elements and I liked following the crime solvers without them being aware of it. However, I did feel like some of the story was rushed through - such as the details of her pregnancy, escape and child loss. I also felt that the murder trial wasn’t as strong as it could of been. Between suicide attempts, movement of the defendant and superfluous details of changes in prosecutors, new witnesses and endless trial delays. I think there could have been more to the story if Bessie’s murder had multiple suspects and her trial had more suspense. I chose 3.5 stars rounded up for this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Sparkpress for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This flowed so easily; with some books, I’m frequently checking to see how much I’ve read and how much is left, but this read so well that before I knew it, I was almost halfway through. And what started as a mid-19th Century story about family, friends, lovers - both voluntary and involuntary - and above all, hitting rock bottom and rising up, turned a 180 into something sinister and otherworldly, and it was the last thing I expected from this tale. Maybe I should have seen it coming, but I didn’t. It is genre- and mind-bending, incomparable to anything else I’ve read.

This could easily have flitted between narrators and viewpoints, but sticking solely with Bessie was, in my view, the strongest writing choice. It is definitely a book of two halves, both entertaining in their own way, connected through the topsy-turvy twists.

The amount of research required is immense, and it is so well done it feels like you’re reading a real biography, rather than a fictionalised adaptation of a poor woman’s life, and death.

It doesn’t sound plausible that this could be based on a true story, but I think that’s what makes it all the more extraordinary. A great debut book and I devoured it within a day.

This book can be clearly divided into two halves and while I enjoyed reading the first half, I thought the second half was a bit of a drag.

Annie, a teenager who gets pregnant out of wedlock in the 1800s and is shunned by her family is someone I couldn't stop reading/thinking about. Her transformation into a prostitute with strong opinions on the women's' movement and her independence despite her circumstances will make you cheer for her.

But although the research is well done and the author has tried her best to stick to the accuracy of the real Bessie's story, the writing falls flat in the second half. I found myself reading just so it would be over.

I am highly impressed by the author's research and with Annie/Bessie story. I will not only be on the lookout for her work but will definitely try to read more historical fiction.

3.5/5

Bessie's life told in a story that reels you in from rhe first page! As a pregnant teenager is sent to live with other " like" girls and the sisters . Her life takes several turn as an adult that keep you thouroughly engrossed

Jody Hadlock takes us on an emotional tale inspired by a true story of a feminist heroine. Annie Moore is a young teen who has a child in 1800s born out of wedlock. She is forced to give her child away and is disowned by her family. In order to survive, she finds herself out the door of a brothel, where the women embrace her and take her in. Where will this new life style take her? Will it bring her happiness or suffer betrayal after betrayal?

I couldn’t believe this was a debut novel. The captivating story telling and the rich layers that weave this story together is that of a seasoned writer. I loved the way Hadlock combined historical fiction, mystery, and a ghost story to create such a magical novel. She didn’t miss a single detail when she wrote about the characters, especially Annie. I felt her pain and emotions. I am so happy I was granted the permission to read this novel. I would recommend this novel to my bookish community who are in the mood to read historical fiction with lots of mystery.

I received this from Netgalley.com.

Inspired by a true story, "Bessie yearns to become a “respectable” woman. Instead she endures the ultimate betrayal. After her death Bessie seeks to bring her killer to justice."

Hadlock did a good job portraying what life was like for women in the 19th century. Ultimately, I thought the story was slow and Bessie was overly and frustratingly naive given the lifestyle she led.

2.75☆