âThis is Raymond Chandler for feminists.â âSharma Shields, author of The Cassandra
"An engrossing work of fiction. An expressive and striking story that examines what one does for family and for oneself." --Kirkus Reviews
âUnderneath a neatly crafted thriller is a deeper story about social mobility, gender inequality, and the higher hurdles women â particularly those of a lower class â are sometimes forced to jump over in order to make a name for themselves.â âPaperback Paris
Janeâs a very brave boy. And a very difficult girl. Sheâll become a remarkable woman, an icon of her century, but thatâs a long way off.
Not my fault, she thinks, dropping a bloody crowbar in the irrigation ditch after Daddy. She steals Mommaâs Ford and escapes to Depression-era San Francisco, where she fakes her way into work as a newspaper copy boy.
Everythingâs looking up. Sheâs climbing the ladder at the paper, winning validation, skill, and connections with the artists and thinkers of her day. But then Daddy reappears on the paperâs front page, his arm around a girl whoâs just been beaten into a coma one block from Janeâs newspaperâhit in the head with a crowbar.
Janeâs got to find Daddy before he finds her, and before everyone else finds her out. Sheâs got to protect her invented identity. This is what she thinks she wants. Itâs definitely what her dead brother wants.