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West Virginia, 1897. When young Zona Heaster Shue dies only a few months after her impromptu wedding, her mother Mary Jane becomes convinced that Zona was murdered – and by none other than her husband, Trout, the handsome blacksmith beloved in their small Southern town.
Known for casting off her corsets and following famous spiritualists, Mary Jane is disbelieved by all but the eccentric Lucy Frye: an aspiring reporter and unmarried woman who always suspected Trout’s power over her friend. As the trial raises to fever pitch and the men of Greenbrier County stand aligned against them, Mary Jane and Lucy experience first-hand how far the legitimacy of female testimony depends on perceived morality. With this knowledge weighing heavy, Mary Jane and Lucy must decide whether to reveal Zona’s greatest secret in the service of justice. But it’s Zona herself, from beyond the grave, who still has one last revelation to make – and can no longer be silenced.
Based upon the real life trial of Trout Shue; intricately researched and masterfully playing with the tropes of the Southern Gothic, Aoife Fitzpatrick delivers a searing feminist history that confronts urgent issues of the present day, including the true meaning of justice.
Aoife Fitzpatrick is a native of Dublin, Ireland. Her debut novel, The Red Bird Sings, won the Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize in 2020. The winner of the inaugural Books Ireland short-story competition, her work has also been recognised by the Séan O’Faoláin Prize, the Elizabeth Jolley Prize and by the Writing.ie Short Story of the Year award. Aoife received an MFA in Creative Writing at University College Dublin in 2019 and in 2020, she was the recipient of a literature bursary from the Arts Council of Ireland.