Description
“Southard offers a historical novel about the real-life Beecher-Tilton sex scandal, told from the perspective of the woman at its center . . . Southard’s prose is gripping . . . The characters are well-defined and memorable, and include such prominent historical figures as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. Readers will find themselves engrossed in the drama while also learning about a . . . compelling piece of American history. A superbly written story of love, betrayal, and resistance in the face of crisis.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“The strength of Elizabeth’s character is at the novel’s core. There are moments of eroticism in which she exercises power and agency, refuting her husband’s claims that she was stupid and naive to fall for Henry’s seduction. Elizabeth is also the only one of the three to take responsibility for her actions . . . She also reminds herself of the good within Henry and Theo, who are both willing to sacrifice Elizabeth to save their own reputations. Her penchant for forgiveness and understanding is conveyed as not a weakness but a strength . . . The riveting novel Unruly Human Hearts is sensitive in following a strong woman as she overcomes adversity.”
—Foreword Review
“Imposition of impossible goals, insensitive statements, lies, taking your children away, shame, physical threats, gaslighting—women undergo similar incidents of violence no matter the times and circumstances. Elizabeth Tilton is a mirror to our own experiences. Unruly Human Hearts speaks to our world with loudspeakers, leaving us with a sense of impotence, rage, and hope. It sheds light on suffragist women in the US and women who fight for their rights everywhere.”
—Yolanda Rivera Castillo, author of Emergencia de la luz and Baladas de tentación y destierro
“In Unruly Human Hearts, Barbara Southard has created a delightful and poignant novel about the Beecher-Tilton scandal in the Reconstruction Era. Focusing on Elizabeth’s internal struggle to cope with her husband’s public support for women’s rights while maintaining the double standard in private, this story will inspire readers to ask themselves how women should confront similar challenges today. Perfect for fans of well-researched and engaging historical fiction!”
—Jacqueline Friedland, author of The Stockwell Letters and Trouble the Water
“This is not just a story of a woman who tried to be a good Christian wife while passionately in love with her pastor, it’s a revelation of her anguish as she struggled to protect herself, her children, and the two men she loved from the toll of escalating public scandal.”
—Linda Ulleseit, author of The River Remembers and Innocents at Home
