SUGARHOUSE TRIALS

In Dexter’s debut novel set in the early 19th century, a teenager’s marriage to a handsome gentleman takes a dark turn toward abuse.

Anna Roberts is only 14 when a tall, olderstranger comes to town and changes her life. Joe Fletcher, who hails from the South, plans to settle in Anna’s town of West Langford, Vermont. At the girl’s suggestion, Joe buys property less than a mile away from the Roberts’ farm. This seemingly warmhearted man frequently visits the family’s home, and Anna’s mother and envious older sister can see he’s fond of Anna. Before long, she and Joe are married and welcome a daughter. But their initially pleasant life on Joe’s farm suddenly and drastically changes after he suffers a debilitating hand injury; he’s drunk more often than not and his temper worsens. He also accuses Anna of cheating on him, based merely on her brief interactions with other men. Joe’s behavior soon includes habitual physical abuse, and as Anna’s circumstances turn increasingly dire, it seems that no one can help her and her daughter escape. Things culminate in a shocking small-town murder. Much of Dexter’s deliberately paced story is a coming-of-age tale; Anna is only 16 when she marries Joe but soon takes on adult responsibilities, such as caring for her baby. The narrative shifts to domestic abuse and, much later, a murder mystery happen gradually and organically. The violence against Anna, even when it’s only implied, is harrowing; Dexter aptly shows her protagonist’s hopelessness, as many people around Anna, including her parents, know what’s happening but say and do nothing. The author also convincingly relays Anna’s first-person narration in simple, unadorned prose, as when describing Joe’s childhood home: “We were in a very comfortable four-poster bed that was made from a dark reddish-looking wood. It was nothing like our lighter maple furniture in Vermont.”

A believable story of a young mother experiencing domestic cruelty.