Reviews for The Rebellion of Jane Clarke
"Gunning's blazing third historical (after Bound) takes readers into the heart of Revolutionary War-era Boston, where young Jane Clarke has been sent to care for her great-aunt Gill after refusing to marry the man her loyalist father has chosen for her. Not long after settling into her aunt's house near the British Custom House, Jane is thrust into the milieu of violence and intrigue that eventually leads to a declaration of independence by the American colonists. She befriends the bookseller Henry Knox and meets John Adams, who employs her brother as a clerk. As tensions mount, Jane watches the men around her grow more aggressive in their aversion to British rule, and less concerned with truth. When she is caught up in the Boston Massacre, she must come to terms with the importance of honesty over personal and political passions. There's a history textbook's worth of well-done cameos, but it's Gunning's fluid writing and attention to the larger issues of human nature that really make this move. Good historical fiction offers new perspectives on old stories. This book succeeds handily at the task."
— Publisher's Weekly Starred Review
An IndieNext (American Booksellers Association) "notable book" selection.
A well-told tale, packed with historic details.
—Boston Globe
[Pick of the Week]
This well-researched and lively novel captures the mood of those turbulent
[pre-revolutionary] times.
— Library Journal
[A] masterpiece of historical fiction.
— Patriot Ledger
Gunning paints period atmosphere in multiple
shades of gray and exposes the realities behind the popular mythology of the
American Revolution . . . A
historical novel of integrity and substance, The Rebellion of Jane Clarke
is a fitting showcase for a heroine of similar mettle.
—Reading the Past
Gunning fills her novel with believable and
complex characters . . . best of all she's created an intriguing and admirable
witness to history in Jane Clarke.
— Bookpage.com
As always Gunning offers just the proper amount of detail to make her
fiction feel like fact . . . There are no false notes.
— Barnstable
Patriot
A wonderful writer . . . Gunning's attention to historical detail and
riveting storytelling make for a compelling and intelligent read.
— Cape
Cod Times
Nobody brings the Cape's history alive like Sally Gunning.
—Cape
Codder
An engaging narrative that showcases what life was like for a young woman [in pre-revolutionary America] caught in the crossfires of social and political change.
— Living Read Girl
A super historical thriller . . .Sally Gunning's terrific tale brings to life the prime time players, their impact on others, and life in Boston as rebellion is on the minds of every citizen; with families divided between for, against, and neutral.
— Wordpress.com
Reviews for Bound
"Historical fiction at its very best . . . Impeccably researched, this story is spellbinding, giving a realistic view of life in 18th-century coastal New England."
"Pick of the Week" — The Boston Globe
"[Gunning]
painstakingly re-creates colonial Cape Cod, from its clapboard houses, busy wharves, and fresh salty air to the
growing political stirrings among its residents. As a standalone novel, Bound
will transport you 250 years into the past and immerse you in a dramatic
storyline that exposes the injustice of indentured servitude. As a sequel to The
Widow's War, it not only continues but enhances the experience of the
original. Beautifully done, and strongly recommended."
— Historical Novels Review - Editor's Choice
"Bound, Gunning's latest brilliant
recreation of Revolutionary-era Cape Cod can be enjoyed without seeking out the
Widow's War first, but it's hard to imagine any who won't do exactly that
when they finish this wonderful new work."
— The Barnstable Patriot
"Gunning's
exquisite use of language and imaginative scene-setting in times past will keep
readers riveted . . . Anyone who loves history, storytelling, and Cape Cod will want to settle in for a long
weekend of pleasurable escape."
—Cape Cod Life
"Sally Gunning
demonstrates an ability to research events, customs and situations in an
earlier time and meld them into a dandy work of historical fiction . . . A
very satisfying read."
— TCM Reviews
"Gunning
has a sure and steady hand with her prose, keeping things simple but not plain.
Her down to earth style suits the salt of the earth people on the pages to
perfection. If you are looking for a smartly written historical novel that
feels as real as today's headlines, your quest is done."
— Living Read Girl
"[A] page-turner . . . Gunning weaves a horrifying, spellbinding story of colonial indenture's cruelties and a meditation on the meaning of freedom."
— Publisher's Weekly
"[A] suspenseful and engaging look at the New England colonies in the decades immediately preceding the American Revolution. Richly detailed and impeccably researched, the novel . . . grapple[s] with what it means to pursue personal freedom, [and] the era's sexual politics and religious and political fervor come alive. The result is moving, compelling, and beautifully wrought; highly recommended for historical fiction collections."
— Library Journal
"If The Widow's War identified Sally Gunning as a masterful new voice in historical fiction, Bound confirms her place as one of the very best in the field. Beautifully researched and ardently imagined, Gunning's writing is so vivid you can taste the salt in the Cape Cod air. She has a special gift for rendering the spare, constrained dialogue of the colonial Puritans and at the same time giving her characters emotional lives that are rich, moving and utterly convincing. Her Satucket novels are destined to become classics."
— Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize winning author of Year of Wonders and March
"Two hundred years ago, Cape Cod was not a haven for visitors in sun hats with boxes of fudge. It was an unforgiving spit of sand, where women's lives were as harsh as those of the men who went down to the sea in ships and came back in shrouds. In her novel of pitiless beauty, Bound, author Sally Gunning demonstrates again what she did in The Widow's War. Unlike many historical novelists, Gunning makes the long-ago feel like this very day. Elegantly, she tells bitter truths —that dignity and grace and even abiding love can flourish where it seems nothing can grow."
—Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of The Deep End of the Ocean and Still Summer
"BOUND is an insightful look back at the horrors of the late colonial period's indentured servant system . . . Sally Gunning provides a well written thought provoking mid-eighteenth century thriller."
—Midwest Book Review
"A captivating read, written by an author well-trained in taut storytelling and well-versed in the pre-Revolutionary War period of Britain's Massachusetts Bay colony, including Cape Cod. The book's gemstone, however, is Ms. Gunning's wonderfully intense description of Alice's struggle of spirit, without benefit of Prozac and group therapy, to risk being trustful, to choose good, to remain based in reality and to find happiness in a war of literal personal survival."
—The Vineyard Gazette
"Sally Gunning tells an extraordinary story that explodes with a young girl facing harsh conditions and gathering enough strength to find something better in life. Alice never gives up, and I commend her determination in this noteworthy read that comes highly recommended &mdash 5 [stars]. "
—Coffee Time Romance
"Author Sally Gunning is like
a dog with a bone, and lately she's been chewing on the subject of young people
sold into indentured servitude during the early years of our nation. The
resulting novel [is] Bound. When Gunning finds a fascinating story idea,
she grabs hold and won't let go until she's spun it into a compelling yarn
filled with drama, passion and always a heaping helping of history. Her stories
are so memorable that if she had been your history teacher, you would have made
an A."
—Provincetown Banner
"A page-turner of a great
novel."
—Cape Cod Times
"This book, eloquently written and exhaustively researched, is a warning along the lines of The Handmaid's Tale, and just as necessary a read."
— Feminist Review
"Richly evocative . . . a page-turner that will especially please readers of good historical fiction."
— Jo Manning for Writers Are Readers
"Bound
is a fascinating book, relating as it does not only the winds of change blowing
through the colonies but also the day-to-day lives of the residents of
Satucket. This is a tale well-told with credible characters for that time in
the past - well-rounded, hardworking folk who believed in themselves. An
interesting note is that the author considers the indentured to be the first
slaves brought to America, saying also: 'There are more people living today
in indentured servitude, or debt bondage, than in any time in history, it being
the most common form of slavery worldwide, including the United States.
Currently, there are an estimated twenty-seven million people living in
slavery."
—Book Loons
"Sally Gunning weaves a
powerful, brooding story. Based on life in 1775, the historical flavor and
research done by Ms. Gunning brings forth the feeling of being there and witnessing
Alice's harsh and bitter life. Alice is a simple girl, yet her struggles and strength
will win the reader's heart. . . . Mesmerizing."
—Romance Reviews Today
"The gritty sometimes ugly
truth of early American life is told through the eyes of a young indentured
girl whose courage and determination are her only liberation. Excellent
character development makes these characters real enough to step out of the pages,
and their emotional ups and downs are impossible not to share. The author has
created more than just a wonderful historically based account of indenture.
She's fashioned a heartfelt story of love and hope that will captivate readers
from beginning to end."
—Affaire de Coeur
"[Indentured servant Alice Cole], fleeing abuse, runs away to
Boston where she meets a widow and a lawyer— from the absolutely stellar The
Widow's War. Gunning wrote good mysteries, but she's really found her
voice in this colonial New England series."
—The Poisoned Pen
Reviews for The Widow's War
"Skillfully
employing the language, imagination and character that literary fiction
demands, [Gunning] illuminates a fascinating moment in our past: the years just
prior to the War of Independence, when ideas of rebellion — for men and women
— were fomenting . . . Gunning chooses her facts and details with care,
allowing the strong-willed Lyddie to command our attention . . . [T]he grief,
struggle and courage of this ordinary woman are what finally resonate. Many
historical novels die on the page, the characters never having drawn breath. In
Gunning's capable hands, a novel of history is allowed to be as vivid as the
smell of a man: "Tobacco and sweat, but a different sweat, and something like
sassafras but not sassafras.""
— Washington Book World
"Heartrending . . . Gunning's storytelling captures the paradox at the heart of
colonial women's lives: managing a household, indeed survival itself, required
ability and toughness, yet women were denied the basic rights befitting adulthood
. . . For all her steeliness, Lyddie is not a one-dimensional heroine; in
private, she wrestles with loneliness, anxiety, sexual desire, the fatigue of
struggling by herself . . . Gunning's vibrant portrayal of Lyddie's journey
shows that the pursuit of happiness is not for the faint of heart." — Boston
Globe
"By merging historical fact with riveting fiction, [Gunning] offers readers an
intimate peek into the daily life of pre-Revolutionary War Satucket, MA. Along
the way, they'll get a vivid sense of the race, gender, and class dynamics of America's foreparents
while enjoying a wonderful story. This is historical fiction at its best;
highly recommended." — Library Journal (starred
review)
"Readers
will be swiftly turning the pages, eagerly cheering for the strong-willed
widow. The crisp prose is flavored with the stinging salty atmosphere of a New England
community witnessing one individual's war for independence. A good choice for
book groups." — Booklist
"Provocative . . . Gunning infuses the story with suspense and intrigue [and]
resists easy generalizations and stereotypes . . . She makes Lyddie's struggle
to remake her life credible and the world she inhabits
complex." — Publishers Weekly
"[B]eautifully written . . . Gripping, romantic, historically sound, and
completely satisfying, THE WIDOW'S WAR is a standout. I'll be surprised if I
read a better historical novel this year."
— Historical Novels Review (The Historical Novel
Society); "Editor's Choice"
"A vivid, artful portrait of pre-Revolutionary America. . . . A triumph of a
novel." — Jeffrey Lent, author of In the Fall and
Lost Nation
"Sally Gunning is a gifted story-teller adept at layering time, place and
character and revealing conflicts of the heart. With prose that sings in
perfect pitch, she has given us a deeply affecting tale of a woman caught
between the irresistible currents of her inner truth and the equally powerful
strictures of her times."
— Anne LeClaire, author of The Law of Bound Hearts
and Entering Normal
"Quietly compelling . . . . Gunning paints the ethical, emotional, and
financial dilemmas of her refreshingly adult characters in surprisingly lively
shades of gray." — Kirkus Reviews
I thoroughly enjoyed The Widow's War. Lyddie Berry is a splendidly
sympathetic heroine. Her fight to keep her home resonates beautifully
with the first rumbles of the American Revolution, and the ending is perfect,
deeply satisfying and utterly unexpected. With The Widow's War, Sally
Gunning has outdone herself.
— Sarah
Smith, author of The Vanished Child and Knowledge of Water
First Look Reviews for The Widow's War
"This was a great read and obviously
well researched. Gunning really bought to life colonial Cape Cod. An
excellent read for history buffs and soft hearts alike." — Jessica (Peoria, AZ)
"Although I do not typically seek
out books within this genre, I was drawn into The Widow's War from the
very beginning. The temporal and societal setting in which the story takes
place is both fascinating and believable. Seen through modern eyes, the beliefs
and habits of the people are close-minded, stiltifying and unfair. However, the
author cleverly avoids value judgments and condemnation. At the same time, the
protagonist, Lyddie Berry manages to subtlely challenge these beliefs, both
within the society and, more importantly, within her own mind. Change occurs
for Lyddie not as a political statement or a cry to societal reform but rather
as a means of finding a place of her own choosing in a society where a woman's
place is chosen by the men in her life." — Tracee (Turtle Creek, PA)
"History buffs will delight in the
vivid descriptions of the hardships and challenges of everyday life on
pre-Revolutionary War Cape Cod. Readers quickly develop a warm compassion for
widowed Lyddie as she defies her cruel son-in-law and struggles to make her own
life in a rigid, rule-driven society where women could not own property. We
find ourselves wishing for more pages at the story's end to learn more about Lyddie's
fate." — June (Lansdale, PA)
"The Widow's War is an
empowering and daring tale, and a true delight to read. Lyddie Berry is a
strong and realistic character, pushing the limits to maintain what she
believes in. Her journey to self discovery will touch female readers of any
age, transcending time to be just as poignant now as two hundred years
ago." — Brianna (Naperville, IL)
"An excellent historical novel set
in the early Massachusetts colony. The widowed heroine's fight for independence
and survival mirrors the unrest of the time. Lyddie is spunky and brave, a
woman who knows her own mind and soul, and fights for survival against society,
the elements, and even her own family, seeking out an existence that is true to
herself." — Pamela (Virginia Beach, VA)
"The Widow's War is one of
those rare and beautiful books that leave you unsettled — haunted by a story
and characters, a time and a place so far removed from present-day reality, and
yet so compelling... You find yourself at the last page long before you are
ready to return to the 21st century. With the subtle skill and stark (almost
Puritan) writing style of Anita Shreve (Fortune's Rocks) and Sena Jeter Naslund
(Ahab's Wife), Sally Gunning, heretofore a mystery writer, could emerge
as a masterful voice in historical fiction. It is a rare triumph to allow
readers to so strongly identify with a character so far removed by time and
circumstance. The Widow's War is the story of this 39-year-old widow, a
woman at war with her own independent spirit, at complete odds with the
confining social expectations and customs of her time. The result is a
breathtaking story of love, relationships, community, and independence; most of
all independence." — Sherri (Atlanta, GA)
"The Widow's War is a
powerful novel about a strong woman's fight to retain her independence. I loved
every page of the book." — Robin (Manassas, VA)
"This book is a keeper. I want my daughters to read it when they are old
enough. If I were a teacher I'd have my class read it. I will definitely
recommend this book to my friends."
—
Joanne (San
Francisco, CA)
"This book is exciting, extremely
well-written, and very thoroughly researched. I look forward to reading more
books by Sally Gunning." — Tanya
(Los Angeles, CA)
"Dare we hope for a sequel?" — Lyndal (Kankakee, IL)
"The Widow's War is an
incredibly uplifting, fortifying read which I devoured in one sitting. A truly
inspirational and empowering book." —
Carolyn (Montgomery, AL)
"The Widow's War — so
appropriately titled — is a delectable piece of literary dessert, meant to be
savored and cherished from page to page. It is sure to become a classic and is
one that I will highly recommend to family, friends and book groups. This story
is a definite not to be missed read!" —
April (Brighton, IA)
"What a powerful novel about a
wonderfully resilient woman! The story is full of details that bring her to
life. I was enchanted by this book. I literally couldn't put it down — the
pull of Lyddie was just too powerful. I enthusiastically give this five
stars!" — Sue (Saint Charles, MO)
