Whiskey When We're Dry

A western with a twist. This novel follows the story of Jess(e), a girl left to fend for herself in the Wild West of the 1880s. She decides that she's had enough of being just a girl and sets out to find her brother, a most wanted outlaw, as she has learned from the local sheriff. 

I really enjoyed reading the story from Jess's perspective, it is written in the way she'd have spoken so it felt authentic, Larison is a great storyteller in this regard. Throughout the novel you are really able to develop a close connection with Jess and experience some of the hardship (and excitement) of that period. 

Not much to fault in this book for me, even from an English point of view the novel felt real and was able to bridge the gap between 1880s Wild West and Modern day living in Britain. No mean feat.

Overall it's a really enjoyable novel, it felt fresh, new and exciting. If you want to experience life in the Wild West through a different pair of eyes then this might be the book for you.

#NetGalley # ARC

Whiskey When We're Dry is a Western that touches on topics of gender and family, whilst also following a classic narrative of finding your way in the world and of what it means to be good or bad. The setting is the 1880s, and Jess Harney grows up learning from her father and brother, stealing the chance to practice shooting and not be restricted to more stereotypical roles. With her brother gone and a known fugitive and her father dead, Jess cuts her hair, binds her chest, and sets off on her mare to find her brother Noah and bring him home. As Jesse, a talented sharpshooter, she ends up employed by the governor whose militia is hunting for Noah, and a sequence of violence shows the reality of the life both Harneys now have.

Drawn by the treatment of gender and sexuality rather than the Western genre, the novel felt like a good way in, setting the scene but also full of questions of identity and family as well as action and adventure. The cost of violence was always close to the surface, rather than something that was just accepted, and the narration has a clear, memorable voice. The depiction of gender as being something acted and the way that Jess finds this often hard to articulate is very good. At times the narrative drifted a bit, possibly due to the length, but it was overall a good read that was thoughtful but also brought sharp Western action.

I enjoyed this somewhat tongue in cheek Western with a cross-dressing wild Gal at it's heart. I liked the character Jess who becomes Jesse in order to track down her missing brother who has left home and become an outlaw. I liked her and wanted her to find happiness. I found the ending rather disjointed and confusing and too much fighting but overall it was an enjoyable read.

Synopsis 
'In the spring of 1885, seventeen-year-old Jessilyn Harney finds herself orphaned and alone on her family's homestead. Desperate to fend off starvation and predatory neighbours, she cuts off her hair, binds her chest, saddles her beloved mare, and sets off across the mountains to find her outlaw brother Noah and bring him home'
This is an extremely well written epic tale of the Wild West. I couldn’t put this down and was up way into the night reading it. This is an adventure with many dead bodies and violent gunslingers. 
It felt very gritty and very graphic. Those who were involved in the opening of the West really had hard challenging lives. The characters were true to life and well rounded. I loved my time with Jess who was one strong cowperson, whose voice carried the story. 
Really would recommend this one.