The Widow Nash
A Novel
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3.9 • 44 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Winner of the 2017 Reading the West Award
A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice
"This gorgeously written historical novel follows Dulcy, a young woman in 1904 who attempts to flee her late father's business problems―and her violent ex–fiance's grasp―by traveling west and posing as a wealthy widow." ―Entertainment Weekly
Dulcy Remfrey has traveled the globe with her eccentric father, Walton, a wealthy entrepreneur obsessed with earthquakes and catastrophe, searching to cure his long battle with syphilis through any crackpot means necessary. Their deep connection is tested, however, when Walton returns from an African expedition without any of the proceeds from the sale of his gold mine. It seems he's lost his mind along with the great sum of money, his health declining rapidly. Her father's business partner (and her ex–fiancé) insists Dulcy come to Seattle to decipher her father's cryptic notebooks—a dozen in all, wrapped in brightly colored silk—which may hold clues to the missing funds. Yet when her father dies before they can locate the money, Dulcy falls under suspicion. Petrified of being forced to spend the rest of her life with her ex–love, Dulcy decides to disappear from the train bringing her father's body home.
Is it possible to disappear from your old life and create another? Dulcy travels the West reading stories about her presumed death and settles into a small Montana town where she is reborn as Mrs. Nash, a wealthy young widow with no burden of family. But her old life won't let go so easily, and soon her ex–fiancé is on her trail, threatening the new life she is so eager to create.
The Widow Nash is a riveting narrative, filled with a colorful cast of characters, rich historical details, and epic set pieces. Europe in summer. New York in fall. Africa in winter. The lively, unforgettable town of Livingston, Montana. And in Dulcy, Jamie Harrison has created an indelible heroine sure to capture the hearts of readers everywhere.
"Sweeping and richly hued . . . features a character set loose to wander the American West at the turn of the 20th century, a woman whose early experiences seem drawn from the worldly peregrinations of the era of Henry James . . . Harrison has rendered her imagined world anachronistically, but Henry James might still have approved." ―The New York Times Book Review
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Debut novelist Harrison paints a lovely and memorable portrait of a desperate woman's flight to a new life. In late 1904, Leda Cordelia Dulcinea Remfrey has been summoned to Seattle to attend to her dying syphilitic father, Walton. Dulcy must go, even though the summons comes from her father's business partner and her ex-fianc , Victor Maslingen, a man of violent rages who raped her. She is Victor's only hope to find out what the increasingly deranged Walton has done with the profits of the sale of some African mines, money that Victor needs. After Walton's death, as Dulcy and her sister, Carrie, travel back East to bury their father, Dulcy makes her way from the train to begin a new life in Livingston, Mont., as the Widow Maria Nash. Livingston is not without its own violence and drama, but it promises the safety of anonymity and possibly even real love. Harrison's lead is a strong and clever woman who is easy to admire, while the rest of the heroes, villains, and ambiguous sorts are as vividly drawn as the raw and terrible scenery of Montana. Readers will treasure Harrison's rich characterization and sharp turns of phrase.
Customer Reviews
Very Good
Evocative and meandering; a book for a cloudy, rainy day. I enjoyed the story very much, but struggled a bit to keep characters straight.
This book was a drag
I can normally find something good to say about every book I read, but I hated this book. It was boring, it wasted a lot of prose on things I couldn’t connect to anything in the plot. Oh, and it took me a very long time to even realize what the plot was trying to be! I didn’t like the way it was written. A lot of the dialog from the main character was so obscure and could have been said a lot plainer. It was a waste of my time and I only made it 3/4 of the way before I gave up!
The Widow Nash
Interesting story. Not the run of the mill love story.Well told.