Somehow over time, I seem to have lost the ARC on my kindle. On the download date, there is nothing on it. I was unable to read a copy of this book and therefore could not provide a more in-depth review. The blurb sounded interesting though

Now let me go, my honey oh
Back to Tennessee
It's beef steak when I'm working
Whiskey when I'm dry
Sweet heaven when I die
Gillian Welch, “Tennessee”

Whiskey When We’re Dry is the fourth novel from author John Larison. I was drawn to the story by the voice in the centre – Jessilyn Harney, a sharp shooting young woman trapped in the wide open space of the Wild West. Alone and searching for home in a world not meant for solo women.

In the acknowledgements Larison mentions lyrics by Gillian Welch which inspired the story – I did spend about five minutes googling for Florence Welch’s lyrics, puzzled by the lack of hits my searches brought back. Luckily I realised I’d read it wrong and put in the right details, the lyrics of which are at the beginning of this review.

I don’t know what it is about the Wild West that remains compelling. It was a horrible, violent and uncertain time where it seems like everyone was killing everyone, native Americans were being forced off land, black Americans promised a life free of slavery that never materialised. In amongst all of that, I guess there remains a glimmer of hope – hope that you’ll find old round the next corner, your wagon can pitch up at a homestead where you can live out your days with your family around you.
It’s a land of opportunity tied up in racism, sexism and bloodshed which is so far removed from today’s world (on the surface, at least) it seems like a fantasy. Like watching Game of Thrones and believing there were dragons. “Westworld” showed an actual fantasy world of saloons and whores, where rich people could buy their place in as lawmaker or sharp-shooting thief. Reading this made me think of other Wild West type examples of media – ‘The Ballad of Buster Scruggs”, the film from the imitable Coen Brothers. “The Revenant” with Leonard DiCaprio and Tom Hardy. “Little House on the Prairie” by Laura Ingalls Wilder and “The Son” by Philip Roth. All show characters enduring bone scrapingly, exceedingly difficult tasks in order to get to the next stage – survival from a bear attack, a new home, a husband.

The fact that really makes my mind boggle is that the dates for the Wild West overlap with the reign of Queen Victoria. While Great Britain was getting on with being Victorian and listening to some bloke called Charles Darwin talking about evolution, our American cousins were busy camping out amongst cacti and rocks. This is a glib summary, of course, but still something I find fascinating to think about.

There are some spoilers ahead as I will talk about areas in the book, themes covered throughout, so skip ahead to the last paragraph if you want to see my verdict.

Jessilyn grows up with her father and older brother as her mum died in childbirth. Her father and brother fight, becoming more and more physical as her brother grows up and matures into a man. Eventually, the fight turns into something that can’t be tuned away from and her brother leaves her with her old, ailing pa. When she is left alone in the world, she packs up her things, dresses as a man and sets out to find her brother, to bring him home to work the cattle farm with her.

The journey takes her through, and to, some interesting characters and set ups. A Mormon family along the road refuse to take her in, and she moves elsewhere. At one point she gets robbed, and a testament to a well written character is that you feel for them – I was outraged for her and wanted her to exact her revenge.

She discovers that her brother is a wanted man, accused of stealing money and gold and raising an army of bandits and thieves who terrorise the fledgling communities. She resolves to find him, to join him in whatever he’s doing.

About halfway through she does find him, and the book changes then from a journey of discovery externally, to one internally and an examination of family, who we are, what makes us ‘us’ and our own choices, which aren’t necessarily the right ones.

Jess is a sharp shooter in her own right now and can match her brother shot for shot. The fact that she’s been making a living on wagers based on her talent with guns is unusual, of course. She lives in close quarters with another man for a large part of the book, who doesn’t suspect that she is not who she says she is – not as far as her sex goes, anyway. Those challenges are described well, and not laboured over. She’s skinny so she doesn’t really have breasts and hips to hide, plus, everyone sleeps in their clothes anyway. People have their own issues and Jess finds that they’ll believe what they want to believe.

Sexuality and gender is explored as women dress as men in both clothes and character, men love men in forbidden midnight trysts and marriage comes to you whether you’re looking for it or not. I get the impression that Larison’s point here wasn’t really that all lesbians dress like men, but more that home is where you find it, and you can’t help what you want. I could understand this part of the troy being frustrating as it wasn’t half as deep as it could have been – her relationship is well told and alluded to, in terms that are fitting for a young woman in the Wild West who doesn’t really know what to with the feelings she’s having.

Race is also touched on, framing the conversation a black father and son who ae servants at the house she stays at, but also members of her brother’s gang who are black, native American, Chinese and others. This too, I felt didn’t go deep enough, perhaps as if the author wasn’t sure what he wanted to say conclusively but more that he wanted to point it out and let you make your own decisions. Perhaps it’s that the world isn’t too much different now, or that we are all the same underneath – just humans trying their best. Jess and her brother are described as being Mexican-Caucasian, with their mother being Mexican. There are some instances of language being used in this which are racial slurs – none of it is condoned but it is worth pointing out, just in case that’s a sensitive area for you.

SUMMARY
As is often the case with books like this, I felt that the last third was a bit rushed – lots of action happened in the end chapters and then suddenly, it was over and we were getting given a summary of what happened next, after the fact. It felt like the author had run out of room and had to hastily tie the ends together. That may be a consequence of me reading the last 40% of the book in one sitting, that it felt a bit rushed as a result, but I’m not sure. It did take me longer than I thought it would to read, to be honest – I really enjoyed it while I was reading it. But I didn’t really think about it when I wasn’t and so I ended up just carrying it about for a few weeks and reading the odd page here and there before falling asleep.

It is of no surprise to me that there will be a film made of this story – it’s a really cinematic plot and on more than one occasion I wished I was watching it instead of reading it, especially the scenery and the shooting competitions. If you like westerns, and are interested in books with female protagonists, this is a book you’d enjoy. I am looking forward to the film, I’m sure I’ll go and see it.

This book is about the exploits of Jesse / Jessie in the American MidWest, a girl who has to take the guise of a boy to survive.
At first I thought I might struggle with the MC's narrative voice as there were some obsolete / unknown words and slang but I soon grew to really enjoy the style.
There are 3 distinct parts to this book, firstly Jessie is at home with her brother and father and then the second, which I enjoyed the most, is when she finds herself at the home of the Governor. In the third part she is back with her brother but this, for me, was a little repetitive with too many similar sounding fights.
I liked the twist at the end and my only reservation about the book overall is whether it rings true, could a girl have really survived in this manner, but then it's a novel not non-fiction!

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.

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.

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.