Maud's Line by Margaret Verble

 

Maud's days were made of wishing and hoping, hard work, and disappointment.

Living with her father and brother in the early 1900's and being the only woman in the house left her little time for herself.  Mustard, her father, was not a hard worker and was a trouble maker.  Lovely, her brother, thankfully helped Maud, and they helped each other calm down their father.  Maud did a lot of day dreaming but also a lot of men's work.

MAUD'S LINE is set in the Cherokee Lands of Oklahoma where each family had property lines and many relatives.

I liked how relatives lived very close ​to each other and looked out for each other, but the violence between some families was difficult to fathom.

MAUD’S LINE took us through her days as her thoughts wandered and as she had to make a decision that would change her life.  Most were days of non-stop working, but Maud did manage to find time to read books thanks to her mother, a wealthy neighbor, and a traveling peddler's influence.  

The characters all had their own problems and ideas about things.  Maud was the main character, and at times, she was "out of line" in terms of her relationships.  Maud knew what she wanted and did whatever she could to get what she wanted. Maud did everything for her family even though her father was not the most loving and caring.

You couldn't help but love Maud, but you will also question some of her decisions.  Maud always seemed to be the first one on the scene of something gruesome and kept secrets that were to her detriment.

Ms. Verble's descriptive, lush writing will simply pull you in along with the cover. 

I enjoyed MAUD’S LINE, and I hope you decide to read it. 4/5

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.