The Glassmaker's Wife

October 31, 2022
Martin (Yours, Jean) draws on a sensationalized 1844 murder trial for this clever yarn. Leonard Reed, the glassmaker of Heathsville, Ill., dies suddenly after a brief illness. Later, Eveline Deal, the Reeds’ hired girl, claims she’d seen Leonard’s wife, Betsy, pour white powder into Leonard’s coffee before he fell ill. Betsy claims the powder was just the salt that Leonard liked, but the resulting symptoms, coupled with a statement from the apothecary, James Logan, that the paper Eveline witnessed in Betsy’s possession matched the kind he wrapped arsenic in, lead the coroner to rule that Leonard was murdered. Logan adds that he believes he may have sold the poison to Betsy while she was in disguise. Once a test confirms the presence of arsenic in Leonard’s stomach, his widow, who some locals already believe is a witch, is charged with murder, leading to a dramatic trial in which she’s defended by the governor-elect and the former attorney general. As Martin shifts between Eveline’s and to Betsy’s perspectives, a fuller sense of the truth emerges, and he captures the closed-mindedness of a small community willing to believe the worst of one of its own. Historical fiction fans will have a ball.

December 1, 2022

It's 1844 in Heathsville, IL, and 15-year-old Eveline Deal is a model house-girl. She loyally serves her mistress, Betsey Reed, and desperately wants her approval. But her real love is for Betsey's kind husband, Leonard, a skilled craftsman in the art of glass blowing. He even plans to teach her how to blow glass. Eveline's world implodes when Leonard takes ill and dies. She can't lie about what she'd seen her mistress do. Leonard had angered Betsey--he'd sold land that she inherited from her father, without asking her. Eveline had also seen Betsey with another man. After Eveline hesitantly reports what she's seen to the authorities, they arrest Betsey for murder. Then a neighbor accuses the mistress of casting spells. How can Betsey prove that she's not a witch and has hurt no one? Eveline's guilt at being the prosecution's star witness tarnishes her love for her mistress; she knows her testimony might result in Betsey swinging from a noose. VERDICT The latest novel by Martin (a Pulitzer Prize finalist for 2006's The Bright Forever) is inspired by the true story of Betsey Reed's 1845 trial. Fans of Chris Bohjalian's Hour of the Witch will love this tale of loyalty, honor, and matters of the heart that leads to a traumatic conclusion.--K.L. Romo

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2022
A historical whodunit based on a true story from the mid-19th century. In Heathsville, Illinois, both Leonard and Betsey Reed take a shine to their hired girl, Eveline Deal. Leonard teaches her the secrets of his trade, glassmaking; Betsey reads to her from Godey's Lady's Book, one of the most popular women's magazines of the time. Eveline likes them in turn, but when "the Mister" dies under questionable circumstances, Eveline points the finger at "Miss Betsey." Eveline is an observant girl. She knows Leonard to be plain-faced and Miss Betsey to be beautiful. She knows that Miss Betsey resents the Mister for selling 20 acres of land from her dowry without discussing it with her. And Eveline knows that Miss Betsey creates reasons to be alone with Ethan Delz, the handsome owner of the local dry goods store, and that the pair of them talk in a way that might make one pause. The main plot points are settled quickly, and Betsey finds herself imprisoned for the crime, but questions linger as to whom the guilty party actually is. It feels like most of the narrative action is completed in the story's opening act, which makes the bulk of the book lag. Plot developments don't hinge on ongoing drama; instead, we get carefully timed revelations from various characters. While the book is set in the past, only cursory allusions to the lifestyles of the times and dialectal inflections keep one aware of the setting. If you're looking for history or mystery, or maybe a bit of both, there are better options available.

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