Thank you NetGalley for an advance copy of this novel. I love reading about Appalachia and this novel had all the parts: prohibition, abuse, trauma. I liked Conn writing style but much was predictable.

Rosalee, the main character of this book, had such a depressing life. I was continually rooting for things to turn around for her, but the sad reality is that this was what it was like for many women of this time who had no agency in their lives and like Rosalee were controlled by their fathers and husbands.I enjoyed the Appalachia setting during the Great Depression. It's so different from my own life and definitely makes me grateful that I didn't live during that time as a woman.

I thought this was an excellently written book, especially for it being the author's first fiction novel. I did find the ending to be a bit rushed though and wish we could have had some resolutions on a few things. The main thing that I'm still scratching my head about is Anna. Was she a ghost? A figment of Rosalee's imagination?

Please be aware though that this book contains multiple instances of sexual assault and domestic abuse if you're sensitive to either of those.

I was unable to finish this book. I didn’t enjoy the start. The hints of magic, the family dynamics but I couldn’t gel with the female protagonists unfortunately.

A moving novel of historical fiction set in a Kentucky holler, Conn's fiction debut gives us Rosalee, a young woman trapped in a marriage to her stepmother's volatile and alcoholic son, striving to survive in a time and community where women were often physically abused and worse. Set in the Prohibition Era, though the novel has some very dark moments, Rosalee is a survivor with a heart of gold, and her brother Michael is testament to the fact that the acorn can indeed fall far from the tree that produced it, being a good, kind man.

After release, I listened to the audiobook, beautifully narrated by Shannon McManus.

I would love a sequel novel, giving us Rosalee's chapter, and hopefully more time with Michael and Bethany, who deserve some happiness.

I received a digital review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have started to develop a real soft spot for Kentucky fiction and memoirs- there is something about Appalachia that feels comforting and resilient, as if these authors have finally decided to let their stories be heard instead of letting the "hillbilly" reputation speak for them. A Woman in Time is such a beautiful example, where main character Rosalee gives readers a perspective of life growing up homesteading during prohibition times. Using the knowledge gained from the women before her, Rosalee navigates marriage, motherhood, sickness, hard times, and many other obstacles through hard work, gumption, and a little Appalachian medicine. Conn's writing is very beautiful, although there is a heavy dose of foreshadowing throughout. Rosalee has a powerful voice that grows in confidence through the hardships she overcomes. While I really enjoyed the read, it was a tad predictable at times (because of the foreshadowing) and a slower pace, so it might not be for everyone. However, I would still recommend the read to others.

A multi generational story taking place in Appalachia Kentucky, from 1899 thru 1930's.
Bessie & Maryann, mother & daughter are medicine women, healers, midwives & are whispered about that they are witches. Rosalee is Maryann's daughter & she tries to follow in her grandmother & mother's footsteps but so many challenges are in her way.
The hardships were hard to read at times & the women in the story seemed to bear the brunt of living in poverty, being uneducated & with abusive men.
The writing is beautiful & gentle but the story line is tragic, abusive & sad.
It was a quick read for me.

This was my first time reading a book by Bobi Conn but something about the books description pulled me in. The cover is beautiful but I think it had more to do with that it was an Appalachian tale as it took place in Kentucky. The story centers around Rosalee, a young girl when it begins who loses both her mother and her aunt very early on. Without them she feels lost and alone. Not long after, her father takes a new wife that has two sons. Her father then decides that Rosalee is to marry the oldest son Samuel. Rosalee has a really hard and unfulfilling life because both Samuel and his brother Joseph have horrible tempers and are mean and abusive. It doesn’t help that they both, along with her father become bootleggers and are always intoxicated. I found it interesting to read how they had to live back then with all the day to day struggles like collecting enough food for winter and all the other hardships that we today take for granted. It was truly a story of endurance and survival. I’d like to thank NetGalley for the arc that I received off the Read Now section. I enjoyed reading this and would recommend it to others who enjoy historical fiction. I’m giving this a 4 star rating!

Set in Kentucky from 1899 to 1939, this is well done historical fiction. Know, however, that the women in this generational tale experience many bad things but also that they remain resilient (did they have any choice?). Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A good debut.

A Woman in Time is the story of several generations of women raised to be healers in the late 1890's to the next century.

This story is well written and tells the story of long-suffering abused women during the period where women were considered the property of the men in their lives. Rosalee is as strong as the women before her; however, she finds that going along is easier to bear than fighting against her lot in life.

Reading this story left me with mixed emotions. While I liked the writing with its vivid descriptions of poverty in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky, I kept waiting for something to happen, waiting for Rosalee to get some happiness in her life. It is a rich and well-developed story, but it was very sad. The ending was not what I expected and left me thinking I had missed something. I had to reread the last two chapters to see what I missed. Unfortunately, I didn't miss anything, the ending is not where dreams come true.

A Woman in Time is set in rural Appalachian Kentucky between 1899 and 1939, amidst the backdrop of the Prohibition Era and reminiscent of Lee Smith's Fair and Tender Ladies, set in Virginia's Appalachian region.

The novel explores the multi-generational inheritence that women receive from their foremothers, the line of knowledge passed from one generation to the next, in a place where survival was dubious at best and quality of life and love was best measured with a low bar.

The start of the novel was a bit jarring as a quick run through the family tree, which read like a destination in search of a story, to arrive at the main character, Rosalee, but that is really my only criticism of this novel.

A Woman in Time explores the daily life of Rosalee and her extended family in early twentieth century rural Kentucky. Pregnancy and childbirth provide what appears to be an outsized role, while likely also serving as a realistic reflection of the impact this had on the life of women, both in terms to their own health and well-being and also the way in which it limited their lives and tied them to men who are generally abusive in one way or another.

Rosalee and the other women in the novel have limited agency and certainly none after they marry. The forest seems to be the only place where Rosalee and her mysterious forest-dwelling friend, Anna, can escape the yoke, which is perhaps why all the deceased women of the family are buried in the woods, in a place that seems to appear with each death before being subsumed into a fairy land that is remiscent of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

The impact of drink and illegal alcohol production is part of the Prohibition story, though mostly behind the curtain in the world of the men. While there has always been a divide in the experiences of city-dwellers and those in rural areas of the United States, arguably these differences peaked in this time period. Rosalee's husband, Samuel, spends significant time away from home on moonshine business and returns from the city with fancy dolls and dresses as gifts for his wife. These gifts are both wholly apropo and ironic given the Rosalee was only a child when she was forced to marry him and that she would never have an instance to wear a fancy dress. Samuel returned home with great expectations of the types of meals Rosalee should cook from her homegrown garden based on the extravagant city restaurant meals.

Conn is an expert storyteller with beautiful, moving prose, even - perhaps especially - when her characters explore the ugliest sides of humanity. She tackles tough topics with sensitivity and perspective and brings the wilds of Kentucky from a century ago into light.

While not overtly stated, A Woman in Time cannot explore the inherited wisdom passed from one woman to the next in the McKenzie line without subtle hints at the inter-generational trauma that must also be passed along.

This story is based in the early 1900’s where we meet and follow Rosalee.
We follow her from a little girl picking herbs with her grandmother who teaches her to make holistic potions that she hopes one day will help people. But Her dreams of helping people change when she loses everyone she loved. She then finds herself being forced into a Marriage with a man she does not love who is also abusive and corrupt. Can she leave and get out of this life and get back,to her dreams. You need to read the book to find out.
This a well written story that deals with, abuse, corruption, difficult pregnancies and finding a way out

Bobi Conn strikes me as a woman with an old soul, and that shows through in A Woman in Time. This is a historical fiction novel that you don't want to miss!

Rosalee is trying to follow in the footsteps of a strong generation of her women ancestors. Her aunt Bessie was a medicine woman and taught Rosalee all she needs to know about herbs and flowers. Rosalee's mother was a beautiful woman who loved and cared for her husband and babies. Heck, even her great-grandmother was rumored to have punched her husband a time or two. So when these women die and Rosalee is forced into a marriage with the son of her dad's new wife, she's frustrated. She doesn't love him... she doesn't even like him! However, life on the farm must go on and Rosalee must channel the strength of the women before her.

I don't believe it when I'm told that this is Bobi Conn's first novel. The setting, the land, the trees, the flowers... It's all described so beautifully. I almost thought I was there at times. I could smell the manure and feel the petals of the flowers on my fingers. It was amazing. If you want to read a novel about strong women and what they've endured from 1899 to 1939, this is your book. The only downfall was that it felt slow in the middle but it was definitely worth it in the end.

Thank you, NetGalley and Little A for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I could tell Bobbi Conn has talent in her debut memoir. Her writing is deep and poetic in a way that her "old soul" shines through. There are those who are tied to the women who we share blood with in ways they can't completely understand. It's like a heightened genetic memory. Conn is one of those women and so am I. There is a quiet dignity and strength that Appalachian women possess. I enjoyed Rosalee's story but wasn't thrilled about the ending. I was invested in Rosalee's character development and really wanted to see what life would bring her in her later years. Highly recommend for fans of Appalachian/Southern novels.

** spoiler alert ** This book was enthralling. It was hard to read about all of the abuse and oppression of the female characters, but I was eager to see what would happen next.

I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 for two reasons: I thought a bit too much time was spent talking about the earlier generations of women. Those first chapters could have been shortened without losing any significant parts of Rosalee’s story.

The other reason is the ending. I wanted to know what Rosalee’s life looked like after Samuel. And did Bethany and Michael get together? Did she ever see Jimmy again? Was he actually a decent man, or did he sleep with women in every town? I wanted answers. But it was still an excellent, mysterious book

I can’t recall the last time I picked up a historical novel or a literary fiction novel. They are the kind of thing I really need to be in a certain mood to seek out on my own, but when Bobi Conn’s novel came across my radar, I must have been in that very specific mood. And I’m very glad I was because I enjoyed this quite a bit.

Conn weaves a tale of women finding their strength at a time where they felt like they had none. Her characters were realer than real—I felt their struggles, fears, anger, joy—all of it. Even the “bad guys” offered me moments where I just felt sorry because they were thrust into lives and worlds they weren’t prepared for. They did some truly terrible things and I’m not absolving them of any of it, but this book definitely touches on how life doesn’t always go the way we planned. Everyone reacts to that in a different way. I hoped for the people who felt burdened by their roles in life. I pitied people who refused to try. I raged at people who took out their lack of understanding on others. The human condition really shines in this book.

I had a connection to Rosalee that other readers may not have, but I’ll mention it anyway. Through much of the book, Rosalee grapples with the constraints of motherhood, both as she prepares to become a mother and after she has children. As someone who, for as long as I can remember, never wanted kids of my own, this felt very genuine. Parenthood, much like college or a long-term relationship with one person, is not for everyone. Years ago, I might have felt intimidated to admit I didn’t want kids, didn’t want to have the responsibility of being a parent, wanted the freedom to do what I wanted without having to be concerned with raising children. Thanks to characters like Rosalee, I feel very comfortable saying that, no, I never wanted kids, and that doesn’t make me selfish or unwilling to grow up or any “less of a woman.” It is what it is, and I appreciated finding that part of myself in this character.

I couldn’t quite tell if there was a bit of magical realism baked into this or if it was just meant to be symbolism. Either way, the feminine power of it worked very well. I can whole-heartedly recommend this book to anyone wanting a story rooted in history and that makes you think. I would definitely read more from Conn and look forward to future books.

This was a very interesting Great Depression/Prohibition era story of Rosalee who lives in Kentucky with moonshiner husband who is abusive. You sympathize with how difficult it was for Rosalee, left alone much of the time to take care of house, kids and farm.

Rosalee relied on the things her mother and aunt taught her after they passed on. She also ends up forging a friendship with her mother-in-law and later her sister-in-law, showing how important friendship is to help us through hard times.

I am rating 4 stars because the ending was a bit wishy-washy. I wanted to know what happened, especially with the handsome salesman. Otherwise, it was an intriguing tale.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading, A Woman In Time. I do wish the book was longer, but I think it's normal to want that when you really enjoy a book!