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THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER by Leigh  Fleming

THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER

by Leigh Fleming

Pub Date: June 5th, 2021
Publisher: Envisage Press

In Fleming’s period romance, Laurel Whitman sets out to unearth the secret of her father’s rage.

What sets Laurel’s father off is her red hair and freckles, setting her apart from his other children. This genetic inheritance reminds Calvin Whitman of his mother, Margaret Hayward, whom he loathes with a vengeance. To make things worse, Laurel also shows artistic talent, inherited from her grandmother. Backstory: Margaret first marries Gray Whitman, son of rich Maryland landowners. Initially charming, he proves to be a drunken brute. They have three children. Calvin’s the oldest. Gray is murdered, and eventually Margaret falls in love with her hired man, John Hayward, and has more children (while Calvin’s rage builds). John is then framed as a horse thief and sent to prison, essentially a death sentence. Or was he in fact guilty and Calvin’s hateful rage partly justified? Fleming is an experienced writer of women’s historical fiction. An interesting note is that the character John Hayward is actually modeled on an English historian who died in prison. Fleming keeps the plot moving along. One involving theme is Laurel’s drive for independence, leading to several misunderstandings common to the genre until Gramma Margaret sets her straight. Laurel is certainly a likable lead. Arguably, things tie up too neatly. For example, Laurel’s artistic talent is amply acknowledged and rewarded, and we have a guaranteed vision of the O’Brien family living in a grand house in the new Philadelphia suburbs, which is all part of the formula, so no quibbles there. If you don’t know by Page 3 that a certain pairing is all but assured, you don’t know this genre.

Entertaining and well imagined.