Friday, December 13, 2013

The Outcasts

The Outcasts
By Kathleen Kent
Little, Brown and Company, 2013. 326 pgs. Historical Fiction.

This book has the unique narration of two main characters that switch in each chapter. It was a really fast read because you knew at some point these two characters must meet up and I wanted to find out why and when. The book focuses on Lucinda, who has escaped her life in a brothel to meet with a man who swears he loves her. He is of course, not all he seems and they are planning to steal gold that they've heard stories of. Lucinda is a strong, if not always likeable character, that has plans and secrets and only towards the end shows signs of weakness.

The other character is Nate, a Texas State Policeman, on the search for a murderer that has terrorized the state. In his story, there is a sense of innocence to the lawlessness of Texas and his desire to follow procedure even when his partners won't. The struggles of all the characters made this book intriguing as each plot line unfolded to make the connections. Between the hunt for gold, the hunt for a crazy man and the lives they lead in between, I think it was a great read. The end falls a little short for the build up but it still was a clever conclusion.

EW

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