2.5
Adelaide is on her way to Montana. She heard any person that is able to cultivate a property will then become owners of that property. As a single black woman this is a unheard of chance. She is also running away. Her parents are dead, she puts them in their bed and burns down the house. Traveling with a trunk and a secret.
The town seems welcoming but there are still rules and classism.
I was hoping for something more in the trunk, with the being surviving bullets, the harsh Montana winter, and having claws that can tear through flesh. There may have been more metaphorical context, but I'm not trying to dissect a book in English class.
There are the realistic treats of a woman and her sons hunting and stealing what they want and trying to survive in a cruel climate and without resources except for those you create.
I thought so much more could have been done with surviving in a new area and the strength of Adelaide and the town people that help her.

This book was not at all what I expected and I feel like it fell short of the “horror” aspect I was anticipating. The mystery of what was in the trunk kept me intrigued, but the ending felt rushed and somewhat disjointed. I’m didn’t exactly dislike the book, but I didn’t love it either.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited for this latest release from Victor LaValle that I was afraid it wouldn't live up to my expectations. It exceeded them and more! A true gothic horror set in the sparse and desolate Wild West, this story was lovely in a devastatingly eerie way, and there are a few expertly handled twists that make the reader's heart stutter with each reveal. A book horror fans will read again and again.

This was an amazing book!! I really enjoyed reading it!! It was definitely worth reading. I got a copy on here and from book of the month!! Definitely worth the money

They came on their own to Montana. In Montana, a woman could get a homestead although in most places it was unthinkable for a woman to own land by herself. If she could stick it out for three years and improve the land, it was hers. Adelaide Henry is one such woman. She left her dead parents behind and came out West with a hundred dollars and a large steamer trunk. Once she gets there, she wonders how she ever thought she would be able to handle this.

But Adelaide has a secret in that big steamer trunk. Something that lives. Something that kills. Something that will protect her from the villains she meets. There is the woman she shared a cart with on the last leg of her journey and her four blind sons. They seem harmless but are in reality conmen who travel the land stealing and killing. There are men who come by sure that Adelaide would welcome male company and are determined to make her enjoy it. There are the townsfolk who are easily led by a group of vigilantes.

But Adelaide finds friends as well. Her closest neighbor, another lone woman with a young son. The only other black woman in the territory who makes and sells liquor. The Chinese woman who does the town's laundry while searching for the grave of her father so she can honor his bones in their country's traditions. These strong women welcome Adelaide into their midst and together this group is as dangerous as any men could ever be.

Victor LaValle has exploded onto the writing scene. He works the territory between horror and fairy tales and this novel does that successfully, giving the reader chills along with the history of the Montana territories and a view of the West they won't soon forget. Adelaide is strong when she arrives but by the novel's end she learns that strength is doubled and tripled when matched with other women's strength. She also learns that family is everything and that family is who you choose for it to be. This book is recommended for fantasy and horror readers.

that went so fast lmao I realized I just started it yesterday on my walk and am already finished the audiobook? cinematic and satisfying, I enjoyed myself immensely. i love folklore master/genresmith/black lesbian appreciator/definite bloodborne player Victor LaValle

"An Enthralling Journey Through the Pages"

Within the pages of this book, I discovered a profound appreciation for every word, savoring the sheer delight it brought. The story bursts to life with a captivating opening chapter, sustaining its momentum through a succession of short, fast-paced chapters. At its heart is Adelaide Henry, a central character embarking on a westward journey while harboring a significant secret. The narrative unfolds in the year 1915, immersing readers in its meticulously crafted backdrop and thought-provoking themes.

This atmospheric tale, populated by a diverse and intricately developed cast of characters, positions Adelaide at the forefront, resulting in a narrative that is undeniably engaging. Delving deeper into the storyline would only diminish the firsthand experience that awaits readers. Suffice it to say, this book offers a truly distinctive and enthralling journey. My admiration for it was so profound that I procured a hardcopy to adorn my personal library.

My heartfelt gratitude extends to Netgalley and the publishers for generously providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Victor LaValle does it again! This book was a page-turning, unsettling historical horror novel and I loved every moment of it. Like all of his novels, Lone Women takes the tropes you are expecting and adds a subtle twist to them. He's a master of characterization and has an inventive imagination. I highly recommend this book as well as all of his other novels. He is an auto-buy author for me, with good reason.

This book is as spare and bleak as the wintry Montana plains upon which the book is set. Adelaide Henry has reason to disappear to somewhere remote. In Montana in the early 20th century, women were not excluded from being able to "prove up" land. In other words, if women could successfully homestead for 3 years, they had the ability to own their own property, which was almost unheard of during this time period. Adelaide is dragging her past with her in a giant, heavy trunk.

She meets quite a few different sorts of folks as she begins to create a new life for herself. As happens in so many post-apocalyptic novels too, the most dangerous things on the plains are other people, more so than weather, starvation, or accident. And Adalaide meets some dangerous people. But people are also her salvation. She meets people with whom she forms bonds in adversity and begins to wonder if she could perhaps trust someone with the truth of her past after all.

The book goes quickly. I could maybe have used a bit more time on certain things. And although gore isn't the point of this book, there is suffering and death and some gore too. Victor LaValle said he wrote this book to write people of color and women back into the history where they had always been, but never seen.

Wow I really wish I hadn’t taken so long to read this. It was amazing. That wonderful line of just the right amount of horror and the continuous reading to find out what happens. So well written and I can’t wait for anything else by this author. Next time I will definitely be faster.

This is my first book by Victor LaValle. Hmmm. The premise of this story is very compelling. It’s a horror/historical fiction novel centering women homesteaders in 1915(ish) Montana. I knew nothing about this slice of US history, so it was interesting.

The novel gets off to a strong start, with our main character Adelaide traveling from California to Montana after a life-changing event happens. The thing is, Adelaide is traveling with an incredibly heavy, very mysterious trunk. Tbh, we all know what’s in that trunk. The reveals slowly unfold in the beginning half of the novel in a way I found enjoyable. It adheres to classic horror tropes, with chilling realizations and some gory scenes. I enjoy these things about the horror genre, so I was into it. The Mudges are another creepy aspect of the book, at least in the beginning.

The second half of the book is what lost me. The pacing completely changes, and we’re introduced to a slew of new characters that were somehow supposed to care about/be suspicious of? Sure, Mrs. Reed was vaguely introduced in the beginning half, but then she disappears until she’s suddenly a main villain character. Huh?! And the side-story about Sam and Grace was kind of random and underdeveloped. I feel like it was only included to get certain characters together in one room. Weird. All the other action, “reveals,” and plot “twists,” were so incoherent that I just stopped caring.

I am satisfied with the very, very end (aka like literally the last chapter that wraps everything up), but I found the character development and thematic explorations lacking. It just seemed odd that Adelaide had kept this big huge secret her whole life and then suddenly was just going around telling her besties? Also, I felt like Adelaide met Grace, Bertie, and Fiona, and they were all suddenly friends. While that’s totally possible, the writing didn’t convince me.

I relished each and every word within the pages of this book, finding immense enjoyment in its content. The story commences with an explosive opening chapter, maintaining its momentum with a series of quick, fast-paced short chapters. Our central character, Adelaide Henry, embarks on a westward journey burdened by a profound secret. Set in the year 1915, the narrative masterfully immerses the reader in its richly detailed setting and thought-provoking themes. This atmospheric tale, coupled with its intricate cast of characters, with Adelaide at the forefront, weaves together to create a truly compelling narrative.

I hesitate to divulge further details, as this is an experience best savoured firsthand. Suffice it to say that this book offers a truly unique and captivating reading experience.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the mixed of genres of this one - historical fiction, horror, mystery, suspense, and supernatural. I was hooked by the first page, and I couldn't put it down because I just wanted to know what was in the trunk. The writing was atmospheric and the ending was satisfying. It was a such a unique read.

I really enjoyed the novel until the end. It was very creepy and atmospheric. However, the ending ruined it. Still, I recommend this for fans of gothic horror.

3.5 stars for this haunting thriller and historical fiction piece about homesteading -- with a dark twist.

Adelaide Henry arrives in Montana with hopes of a fresh start. But she is literally and figuratively weighed down by a large steamer trunk. The contents weigh heavy on her heart and put everyone around her in immediate danger. And yet it is her cross to bear.

Despite the forced loneliness that comes with such baggage, Adelaide begins to make friends with some of the other women in town -- the other outcasts. And it is through these fragile alliances that she begins to forge a new path for herself -- and the secret she is hiding in that trunk.

Creepy and weird but compelling all the same. Not typically my favorite genre but I enjoyed the way this one played out!

Lone Women, Victor LaValle, author
In the early 1900’s, a lone black woman sets out from the California homestead of her parents, Eleanor and Glenville Henry, to homestead alone, to settle and work on land in Montana that the government would happily transfer to her, although she was a “Negro”, and a single woman, as long as she stayed for three years and improved it. The land had no creature comforts and the hardship she would face was something she could not imagine, but she left anyway, taking only a large and heavy steamer trunk. What was in the trunk? Did she pack items for survival? Was she prepared to live alone in the wilderness? Adelaide Henry was determined to leave, but not before destroying all evidence of her having lived in the farmhouse for 31 years. What would compel a woman living on a prosperous farm, producing Santa Rosa plums, to flee her home? What was she running from, or toward, and why?
Arriving in Big Sandy, Montana, after a long and arduous journey, via Seattle, still in possession of her heavy steamer trunk that was securely locked, she saw some of the townsfolk that had homesteaded there successfully. Mrs. Jerrine Reed was the head of the Busy Bees and the Suffragettes. She met every train. Fred Harndon, who worked for the Bear Paw Mountaineer writing the local news, was there too, looking for newsworthy copy. Still, no one paid much attention to her, so she felt relatively unbothered by her isolation and “difference”. As time passed, some residents came to her aid, or she would not have survived. She needed food and wood to heat her cabin. She had brought none.
On her trip to Montana, she met the Mudges, a mother and her four blind sons. They disappeared before the end of the journey, only to resurface later. She met Grace and her child, Sam. She met Bertie, the only other black woman, and Fiona, who lived with Bertie and was of Chinese background. She attended the Opera House of Mrs. Reed, the wealthiest family in town. These few people, plus a few others, will highlight all of life’s conflicts. They will be deftly introduced by the author, and all of the issues will be resolved one way or another, by LaValle, so that neither the horror or the happiness will seem unusual. He blends the commonplace with the bizarre, seamlessly.
The Mudges are evil. Bertie and Fiona’s relationship is suspect. Grace is a teacher, and a fearsome protector of her child. What happened to her husband? Her child is shunned. Why? Who is Elizabeth? There are many secrets revealed, exposing human frailties, human kindness and human cruelty. Vigilante justice exists. Do the townspeople have a moral compass or the appearance of superficial virtue? Who and what is the real monster? Man’s inhumanity to man was on full display in this remote hinterland, but so was the milk of human kindness.
By enlightening the reader on the history of women’s struggles, racial injustice, immigration issues and vigilante justice in the past, the author has also expertly introduced the same issues that still exist today. Those who march to the beat of another drummer or come from another place or look different than expected are often exposed to the foolishness of our rash judgment. Perhaps we need to step back and think a bi more, before we react and pass judgment.

I thoroughly enjoyed this Little House on the Prairie meets a Stephen King novel. It was definitely not what I was expecting but it was really really good.

Really enjoyed this title, and it was a diversion from the typical psychological horror novels I typically read. The characters were multifaceted and deep, the setting was vivid and unforgiving. The story told reimagines the story of conquering the American West from a rarely told perspective- that of the lone women; who homesteaded and claimed land as their own without the help of a man.

Read for Books & Brews at my library/work. Discussing tonight and look forward to hearing what patrons thought.

Blue skies, empty land—and enough wide-open space to hide a horrifying secret. A woman with a past, a mysterious trunk, a town on the edge of nowhere, and an “absorbing, powerful” (BuzzFeed) new vision of the American West, from the award-winning author of The Changeling.“

I am such a huge fan of Victor Lavalle he has such a great way of writing and Lone Women was amazing. Even though it was a quick read I enjoyed every page.