Guilty Until Proven Innocent
In a sleepy town in reconstruction era Virginia a widow is accused of murdering her husband, children, and her aunt. With racial and economic tensions still running high after the Civil War, this does not bode well for Mrs. Emily Lloyd. As a widow living closer to the “wrong side of town” she is seen as a drag on the economy, and someone better left in the shadows or exiled all together. And with politics also coming into play the entire thing does not sit well with local attorney Powell Harrison who reluctantly takes up Mrs. Lloyd’s case. Together with his brother and a longtime friend the team initially set out for an insanity defense, but when their discovery leads more toward mishandling by the prosecution they take a different tack. With the odds and public sentiment against them, the team changes gears, but will it be enough to save a possibly innocent woman from the gallows?
Veil of Doubt is the second novel by author Sharon Virts and explores the real-life exploits and trial of Emily Lloyd. Accused of murdering her husband, aunt and four children, Lloyd could arguably be one of the United States’ first serial killers. But was she? In a time in our history where little was known about mental health was this the work of a cold-hearted killer or a mentally ill woman unaware of her actions? Virts does a fabulous job of portraying Emily as the doting, chaste widow who adored her children and grieved deeply for them. A victim of circumstance, she was only following doctor’s orders, but as the evidence continues to point back to her, the attorneys have a momentous task ahead of them to sway the all-male jury. In a time when women were viewed as nothing more than chattel or window dressing, it seems that the widow’s fate is sealed before the trial even starts.
What began for me as a borderline slow to get moving tale ended up morphing into a page turner that I found myself waking up in the wee hours to continue reading. Virts has taken a historical event and filled in blanks with much artistic license to weave a perfect tale of “what if”. Was Emily Lloyd crazy, calculating and shrewd, or was she just a helpless victim of happenstance? The world may never know, but Virts’ version of things is not only plausible but also makes for great reading. I lived for the courtroom scenes where I could picture all involved parties attempting to prove their arguments, the gallery of bystanders awaiting the outcome, the defendant with her sometimes erratic and bizarre behavior and the ever-beleaguered judge. The peek into what forensics and investigative methods must have looked like back in the 1800s was also very interesting for me as well, being a fan of police procedurals.
If you like books that are based on real life events that will pull you into the narrative itself, Veil of Doubt is an excellent read that may have you wanting to delve more into the person of Elizabeth Lloyd for your own research.
I was provided a copy of this title by Stephanie Barko, Literary Publicist. I have voluntarily chosen to write a review. All opinions are my own.
Jennly Reads 