A breezy read that brings turn of the 20th century New York to colourful life, this debut is a potent charmer. Based on the true life legal battle between 6ft tall Constance Kopp, who later went on to become the USA's first female deputy sheriff, and irascible Henry Kauffman, a mill owner with dangerous mafia connections, this is a pleasing tale of female empowerment with a light, humorous touch. When Constance and her two sisters riding in a buggy are hit by Kaufman's transport, she naturally seeks compensation and when it is not forthcoming wages a war of attrition and words on the culprit which is soon complicated by his criminal acquaintances, ensuing in threats, harassment, possible kidnapping and, in due course, the triumph of virtue. Feminist history with a light gossamer touch and a heroine who, one hopes, will make many future successful appearances on the page. Downright elegant and charming.
From the New York Times best-selling author of The Drunken Botanist comes an enthralling novel based on the forgotten, true story of one of the US's first female deputy sheriffs.Constance Kopp doesn't quite i t the mould. She towers over most men, has no interest in marriage or domestic affairs, and has been isolated from the world since a family secret sent her and her sisters from the city to the country fifteen years before. When a powerful, ruthless factory owner runs down their buggy, a dispute over damages turns into a war of bricks, bullets, and threats as he unleashes his gang on their farm. The sheriff enlists her help, and it turns out that Constance has a knack for outwitting (and disarming) the criminal element, which might just take her back out into the world and onto a new path in life.Through Amy Stewart's exuberant storytelling, Constance Kopp catapults from a forgotten historical anecdote to an unforgettable historical-fiction heroine - an outsized woman not only ahead of her time, but sometimes even ahead of ours. PRAISE FOR AMY STEWART'A tongue-in-cheek fable of feminist empowerment Often funny, and always likeable, Girl Waits With Gun is as offbeat and original as its heroine.' The Sunday Times'[Constance Kopp] is a likeable heroine in a breezy romp, which is thrilling and amusing in equal measure.' The Sunday Herald Sun
