Ariel Lawton

Fiction 2025/ 427 pages

For as excited as my book club members have seemed to be about our July book, I was somewhat disappointed.  The hype, the description, the marketing on this book all begins with words like:

"Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice."

The man in the ice has been murdered.  I expected more of a detective story.  But our main character is Martha Ballard, a healer.  She is also our chief investigator in the 1790's in Hallowell Maine, a small town on the Kennebec.  Martha's character is inspired by a real midwife who keeps a daily journal of her experiences, in historical fact.

Martha testifies a lot in this book, to men I mostly can't remember from scene to scene.  She also midwife's baby after baby and after baby.  We also get to explore the sexual and emotional relationships of her teenage and older children. And Martha and her husband Ephraim's continual touching and affection is at first pleasing, then distracting, and finally insipid.

i found the book a little boring and a bit overwritten.  But then again, it was an enjoyable read.  It is a lot about character development, both within and amongst characters.  I don't "not recommend it", but don't get your hopes up too high.  It is also, relaxing, fun, and a very interesting and revealing story of the times.

July 2025