Reviewed: “The Divorcées” by Rowan Beaird

Being a lover of historical fiction novels has its pros and cons. A pro is that there are countless different types of historical fiction, though admittedly a lot of them are war-focused, and you’re never at a loss for options. A con is that it’s awfully easy to get stuck in a rut reading, i.e. reading war novels for example.

Rowan Beaird’s The Divorcées balanced those two things very nicely for me, personally. It’s not about a war and it’s in a period of history, focused on a very specific aspect of American womens’ history, that I’ve never really explored before. And best of all, it is a fantastic story.

The Divorcées is set in Reno, Nevada in the 1950s. From the earliest years of the 20th century to well past the 1950s, Reno was known as the destination for quick and easy divorces as much as Las Vegas was known for quick and easy weddings. The rules in Reno, those that are relevant to Beaird’s story, were that as long as you lived in Nevada for six weeks, you could get a no-fault, no-contest divorce. And as much as Las Vegas built its identity and industry around hotels and casinos and living your best, most carefree life, Reno did much the same in the other direction. There were boardinghouses and ranches that catered solely to the needs of those wanting to end a marriage in a time when that was not an acceptable thing in many parts of society.

Beaird’s novel is centered on a ranch that catered to a little more upper class clientele than some other places might. The story focuses primarily on Lois, who is portrayed as someone who has not been physically abused by her husband at least in comparison to the other women staying at Rita and Bailey’s ranch. Lois mostly simply did not want and does not want to be married. This sets her apart from most of the other women and she ends up keeping more to herself, with help from afar via her controlling and yet dismissive father, than she really wants to be.

It is a story of Lois’ journey of self-discovery and understanding. And it is a very good story of that.

There’s a character meant to be an antagonist that leans more toward outright villain, which is a little more than necessary for the purposes of what Beaird seems to be trying to say, but it does make the story interesting. No doubt about that.

cw: physical abuse, mental abuse, alcoholism, drug abuse, self-harm

(I received a copy of The Divorcées through NetGalley and Flatiron Books in exchange for an honest and original review. All thoughts are my own.)