First published 2017
Bridget Sullivan scrubs blood from an axe in the Borden household, her hands shaking as she realizes what she has seen. The Irish maid serves Lizzie Borden's family in Fall River, trapped by her need for work and terrified of what might happen if she speaks. She watches the volatile tensions build between family members, knowing that her immigrant status makes her vulnerable and expendable. In 2016, Brooke works as a barista while men hunt her through the streets. She carries the blood of an immigrant maid and a connection to the legendary nineteenth century crime that she does not yet understand. Brooke runs from killers who want her dead, hiding her true identity as she struggles to survive. The two women live a century apart, but both face the same brutal choice between silence and survival. Mailman weaves their stories together, showing how powerless women navigate violence and fear across generations.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery, crime, 21st-century, 19th-century
Vibes: dark, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: dual-timeline, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Fall River, United States
Period: 1890s, 2016
205 pages · Hardcover · TMA Press
Content warnings: violence