The Whip: A Novel Inspired by the Story of Charley Parkhurst

First of all, before I get into the review, I have to point out that The Whip is an honest to gosh, cross my fingers, true story. It’s based on the life of Charley Parkhurst, a young woman who, following the death of her husband and child, spent much of the 19th century tracking down their murder . . . as a man.

This is an authentic old west tale, complete with a lynching, stagecoach chases, gun fights, and more. It’s the story of a woman who is so successful at being a man, not only is she allowed to vote (oh, the horror – LOL!), but she successfully takes her secret to the grave – or so close that it doesn’t really matter. There are, admittedly, some liberties taken with her story, but more to flesh out the grey areas than to show more significantly alter or misrepresent anything about her. That’s an important distinction to make, because she is most definitely not your typical heroine. In fact, at times, she is downright nasty.

Reading Charley’s story, you really get a sense of what life was like for a young, widowed woman in 19th century America. In hindsight, it’s all too easy to see her as a kind of social rebel, a precursor to the feminist movement of the mid 20th century, but the truth is she was guided by two things – the need to survive, and the desire to avenge her family – and advancing women’s rights wasn’t one of them. Charley’s life was a difficult one, both before and after losing her family, with one obstacle after another forced into her path. I daresay most men wouldn’t have been able to continue under such conditions!

The early scenes at the orphanage, with the cruel headmistress and boy-cum-monster are a bit over-the-top, but not so much as to detract from the overall story. They really help to set up Charley as a young (wo)man with potential, while her budding romance with an African American blacksmith is a nice touch, further establishing her as an early outsider.

I must say, Charley’s transformation certainly doesn’t paint the men of the time in a very flattering light, but it’s honest and down-to-earth. It’s about more than just dressing the part – it’s about walking the walk, talking the talk, and acting the role 24X7. She learns to smoke, chew tobacco, cuss, and fight with the best of them, but to Kondazian’s credit, she never comes across as some ‘butch’ character – we know there’s a woman at the heart of Charley, but the necessities of life dictate a different path.

Very well-written, this has the feel of something like Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven – a raw, realistic, powerful western that stays well away from the spaghetti roots. show less

A real and interesting historical person gets a cheesy Hallmark movie treatment from a first-time author, an actress, adapting her own unproduced screenplay, Every time I found myself getting drawn into the book, the author would do something to throw me out again. The prose gets pretty purple throughout, especially during the sex scenes. And the whole conclusion relies upon several stupid coincidences, a predictable revelation, and the inevitable death of a side character that are just way too much to accept.

This book, inspired by the real life story of Charlie Parkhurst, reads like a novel, yet you can’t stop thinking that it could actually be Charlie’s story. Kondazian’s descriptive style makes the reader feel they are right in the center of the action. After finishing The Whip, I was left with a sense of loss that we will never really know the truth of Charlie’s story. But her story in The Whip is so real that I let myself be almost-convinced. I loved this book and read it in record time. Kondazian knows how to weave a great story and I do hope she finds another intriguing person to write about soon. I’ll definitely be recommending this one to all my reader friends.

What am I? Am I a book about the old west and the life of a Whip? (A Whip is a stagecoach diver.) Am I a book about a woman who lived her life as a man and occasionally struggles with feminine desires long repressed? I don't know. Maybe I'll be both!

This book would have been much better if the author would have decided which aspect of Charlie Parkhurst's life to focus upon, but alas that was not to be so.

If you are looking for historical fiction which imagines what life for a woman might have been like in the mid-1800's, you sort of get that here, although much could have been covered about women's struggles, expectations on women, women who overcame those odds, and more. It's just not there.

If you are looking for historical fiction show more which delves into the life of a whip, helping you understand the wagon-driver life, the challenges of driving a team of horses, life on the run (literally), the life of a pulling horse, and other such questions, you get a taste, not much more.

Clearly I am in the minority with my disappointment over this book. There are so many glowing reviews, it's won awards, the author is a talented and gifted actress. Still, I came away wanting more. Much more. show less

After everything that happened to her in her lifetime, I am not sure how Charley made herself get out of bed in the morning, let alone all she did with her life. Amazing read about a little known character in history, as well as interesting character studies of those who made up the old West. Kondazian does a fantastic job relating all the incidents in Charlie's life, without excess words to wring emotions from the reader, quite frankly what happened to her in her life is enough to make the reader sympathetic without those. She is great at dialogue and her research was impeccable. Th book includes actual obituaries and newspaper articles from that time. Anyone who wants to read about the history of stagecoach drivers and a strong woman show more with great amounts of spirit and fortitude will love this book. show less

A really wonderfully written book that is usually not within the genre of my preference. However I very much enjoyed the character and the way the author portrayed her life and transformation into a man but yet still at her core a woman. A great lesson in life, love, racism, hardships of the old West, and the unforeseen consequences of life choices.

A remarkable story about an orphan that has everything taken from her and sets out to make her own destiny. After Charley's family is murdered, she reinvents herself as a man and follows the killer to old West California to extract her revenge. She creates a new life and confronts still more tragedy. The courage and strength of the protagonist left me awestruck and cheering. Wonderful work of historical fiction.