LoveReading Says
At once enchanting and arresting, Inga Vesper’s This Wild, Wild Country is a thought-provoking feat of fiction. Through the stories of a business-woman working in New Mexico in the 1930s, through to her granddaughter in the 1970s, it’s a stirring story that unpacks male domination through three inspirational women seeking self-determination and the truth behind a decades-old disappearance.
It’s 1933 and single-minded Cornelia Stover lives in Boldville, New Mexico, a small, isolated town populated by small-minded folk who judge everything about her. In the 1970s, Joanna, a former cop flees an abusive marriage and arrives in Boldville. Instead of finding a place of sanctuary, she walks headlong into a murder cover-up in a commune, and meets Glitter, Cornelia’s hippy granddaughter.
The multi-narrative structure is brilliantly, smoothly done, and the writing is electric as Joanna and Glitter uncover the darkest of truths about Boldville, and what happened to Glitter’s grandmother. With roots to the Gold Rush, this hooked-from-the-opening paragraph novel is gorgeously atmospheric, and 100% immersive.
Joanne Owen
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This Wild, Wild Country Synopsis
Three women. A small, isolated town. A decades old mystery. 1933. Cornelia Stover is not the kind of woman the menfolk of Boldville, New Mexico, expect her to be. A widow, she ought to be taking care of her house and her daughter. Instead, she's meddling with things that should not concern her. 1970. Joanna Riley, a former cop, packs up her car in the middle of the night and drives west, fleeing an abusive marriage and a life she can no longer bear. Eventually, her car runs out of gas and she finds herself in Boldville, a sleepy desert town in the foothills of the Gila Mountains. Meanwhile a young hippie, Glitter, is struggling to realise her plan for a commune. She thought a life of free love, away from the perils of consumerism, would bring her happiness. But things haven't quite turned out the way she had expected. Soon, Joanna and Glitter encounter a shocking modern-day crime and find themselves caught up in a decades-old mystery - the unexplained disappearance of Glitter's grandmother Cornelia . . . A captivating, atmospheric new novel from the lauded author of The Long, Long Afternoon, This Wild Wild Country simmers with secrets, lies and terrible betrayal, unravelling the lives of three women at the mercy of their times.
About This Edition
ISBN: |
9781838776688 |
Publication date: |
4th August 2022 |
Author: |
Inga Vesper |
Publisher: |
Manilla Press an imprint of Bonnier Books Ltd |
Format: |
Paperback |
Pagination: |
416 pages |
Primary Genre |
Historical Fiction
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Other Genres: |
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