Review of Naked Truth
Posted: 30 Dec 2021, 14:12
[Following is a volunteer review of "Naked Truth" by Carrie Hayes.]
It is 1868, the American civil war has been over for almost four years. Through the eyes of author Carrie Hayes, we get to see what the lives of Tennessee Claflin and Victoria Woodhull may have been like. The novel Naked Truth or Equality, the Forbidden Fruit, takes us through the years of 1868 to 1877 in New York City where new ideas such as woman’s suffrage are being touted by the likes of Harriet Beecher Stowe, Susan B. Anthony and for the purposes of the novel Tennessee and Victoria.
Before the war, the Claflin family would not be what one would call on the up and up. From false cancer cures, seances, and clairvoyance, the Claflin family cond their way through the 1850s and 60s. Now that Tennessee and Victoria are adults and have their own beliefs and ideas. They want to be respectable non-con artists. However, they also want to push their radical beliefs about women’s rights and sexual freedom.
Along with their lurid behavior and association with celebrities with questionable antics, Vic and Tenn were also the first women stockbrokers, newspaper women, and the first to run for any government office. This novel ends with the end of their US political careers, but the story continues with Carrie Hays´s sequel A Well-Dressed Lie.
As a fan of history, especially that of the United States in the late 1800s, I enjoyed this story. I was constantly pausing the story to look up different characters and events. It was thrilling to see how much was based on facts and real people. The story that the author created from the rumors circulating at the time makes the reader actually feel as if they could know them. The joining of storytelling and historical events makes this a fun and educational read.
There were only two disappointing things for me. One was the writing style; I often felt as if I were reading a play. It would take me several minutes to get my headspace into the story and not feel that I was reading stage directions. That being said, there was not a single typo or error, making it a pleasure to read. The second was the verbiage used in some of the dialogs as in the case on page 254 when the character Bennett yells “I don’t give a rat’s ass about that.” Rat's ass and a few other terms in this novel were not, or at least not widely used in the U.S. in the late 1800s; making it a bit out of place.
Overall, I much enjoyed this novel. I give it a 4 out of 4 stars. I recommend this book to anyone who likes history, feminism, and romance. There is enough action, storyline, and sex to keep various types of readers interested.
******
Naked Truth
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
It is 1868, the American civil war has been over for almost four years. Through the eyes of author Carrie Hayes, we get to see what the lives of Tennessee Claflin and Victoria Woodhull may have been like. The novel Naked Truth or Equality, the Forbidden Fruit, takes us through the years of 1868 to 1877 in New York City where new ideas such as woman’s suffrage are being touted by the likes of Harriet Beecher Stowe, Susan B. Anthony and for the purposes of the novel Tennessee and Victoria.
Before the war, the Claflin family would not be what one would call on the up and up. From false cancer cures, seances, and clairvoyance, the Claflin family cond their way through the 1850s and 60s. Now that Tennessee and Victoria are adults and have their own beliefs and ideas. They want to be respectable non-con artists. However, they also want to push their radical beliefs about women’s rights and sexual freedom.
Along with their lurid behavior and association with celebrities with questionable antics, Vic and Tenn were also the first women stockbrokers, newspaper women, and the first to run for any government office. This novel ends with the end of their US political careers, but the story continues with Carrie Hays´s sequel A Well-Dressed Lie.
As a fan of history, especially that of the United States in the late 1800s, I enjoyed this story. I was constantly pausing the story to look up different characters and events. It was thrilling to see how much was based on facts and real people. The story that the author created from the rumors circulating at the time makes the reader actually feel as if they could know them. The joining of storytelling and historical events makes this a fun and educational read.
There were only two disappointing things for me. One was the writing style; I often felt as if I were reading a play. It would take me several minutes to get my headspace into the story and not feel that I was reading stage directions. That being said, there was not a single typo or error, making it a pleasure to read. The second was the verbiage used in some of the dialogs as in the case on page 254 when the character Bennett yells “I don’t give a rat’s ass about that.” Rat's ass and a few other terms in this novel were not, or at least not widely used in the U.S. in the late 1800s; making it a bit out of place.
Overall, I much enjoyed this novel. I give it a 4 out of 4 stars. I recommend this book to anyone who likes history, feminism, and romance. There is enough action, storyline, and sex to keep various types of readers interested.
******
Naked Truth
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon