First queenpin?
As a former Hell's Kitchen resident, I loved this. I felt like I was in New York in the 1880s, and learned a lot about the business of the day: railroads. You've got a based on true stories, gangster with a heart of gold, and a fight to escape execution for a crime she didn’t commit... All told with precision and panache.

A very interesting book about the history of the R AI l road. Strikes In new york city in eighteen eighties. This woman named Annie was part of the gang called GO.P h c. I also had a helper named C o r a. These women are very tough because they Throw BRI CK. At the strikers. Very interesting past Cor a was running in the streets. And wanted to find her younger sister who was taken away Ami c was accused of murder. So she had to leave new york city and went to baltimore to start over.. C o r a went with her. They started a hat address making business. It was interesting at first. C o r a route to the place to find her sister. This was very interesting.She did find the sister eventually but it did not work out. She went back to new york city to the gang life. Ani c was arrested, but her life turned out really well. At the end. A very interesting book and I liked how went back and forth and explain how these women had to survive on their own

Loved this unique novel showcasing Battle Annie (Annie Walsh), who became queen of the Battle Row Ladies (Lady Gophers) Social and Athletic Club of Hell’s Kitchen in New York during the 1890s.

She organized hundreds of women in the job of brawling—throwing bricks and creating general mayhem selling her business to the highest bidder in the railroad strikes.

Life takes a risky turn when she meets Eugene Debs, honorary member of the union. He talks her into brawling for the Union side against Webb and the railroad, but Webb proves to be a powerful enemy. Discovery of his body leads the police back to Annie. With the help of Debs, she manages to escape, taking with her one of her guttersnipes, Cora, desperate for Annie’s food, protection, and street knowledge.

Relocated to Baltimore, she has a new name and assumes the role of a respectable society lady. But can the Pinkertons be far behind?

No sag in this narrative. I loved the support characters in Baltimore, and both Annie and Cora are well-developed. Very well-researched.

If you enjoy historical fiction, you can’t help but love this one and if you don’t, it’s an absorbing and entertaining story. You’ll enjoy it either way.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a preview. In these present times, it's good to be reminded of where we women stand today. Battle Annie, who I pleasantly discovered as having been a real brick hurler, is brought to life in this historical novel. From the start, I felt the life in Hell's Kitchen, and love for Annie. When a young girl, Cora, latches onto her skirt to escape the Pinkerton detectives, another life is presented to them, away from the hard life they were both born into. Easy read, excellent driving scenes and scrumptious details. Loved it.

This book was fierce. Battle Annie is a dedicated protector of railroad workers during strikes and unionization in NYC and she's feared by everyone who knows her name. When a person looking to upend her reign commits murder and frames her for it, she disappears with one of her biggest street urchin supports. The legend of Battle Annie, the actual Battle Annie and how their lives unfold over about a decade makes for an interesting tale. It was a really interesting way to look at a silenced time and a woman who is referenced in history but otherwise an unknown figure and one that hasn't been researched so though it's fictionalized, it's a cool way to look at the backstory of history.

#battleannie
#netgalley
#arc

A decent enough read if you enjoy a throwback to days gone by. To be honest, I found it a little tough going at times, but perhaps having read something similar prior to this didn’t help.

I thoroughly enjoyed this unusual novel about a gang of women in the poverty-ridden streets of New York. Battle Annie, a woman of strong will and intelligence, is falsely accused of murder and must go on the lam. She was previously in trouble with the unions, but finds a protector amongst them who helps her escape and set up shop as a milliner. With Annie on her adventures is Cora, a waif and stray, who grows into a beautiful young woman. Annie and Cora's friendship is one of the beauties of the novel, with Annie determined that Cora should be educated and have the best possible start in adult life. But it is not so easy to remove the gutter from the girl.

There are many memorable scenes, particularly when Cora (now a young lady) is forced to defend herself against two of her friend's brothers, and gives them a taste of what she learned on the streets. The character of Cora is well drawn in all its complexity - she wants the luxury of her new life at the same time as longing for the old. The search for her sister, who was taken to an asylum, adds poignancy to Cora's strand of the story.

Annie has built a new life for herself, like Eliza Dolittle, but when the old life catches up with her, her guilt will be assumed because of who she is, or rather who she was. Will Annie be executed in the electric chair? A strong narrative force propels this story forward.

Readers will enjoy the street slang used by the characters and the routs on the streets of New York, as well as the refined aura of Annie's Hat Shop. Well researched historical fiction with two strong female characters. Recommended.

Really enjoyed learning about an almost unknown historical figure and the fierce Lady Gophers. The tale's time period is fascinating, giving a glimpse inside a turbulent, dangerous, and foundational time in US history.

Read 33% of this and gave up. Im an avid fan of historical novels but this was not for me. I think it was the writing style i just didnt gel with it i love the cover though it spoke to me when i seen it.

Battle Annie isn't my usual choice of reading material but it was actually really interesting and enjoyable. It shows the hard side of Hell's Kitchen in New York in the 1880s and how Annie Walsh, a Queen Bee and outlaw had to fight for everything she had. I would recommend.

When we first meet Battle Annie, aka Annie Walsh, Queen of the gang known as the Lady Gophers Social and Athletic Club, she is going about the business of her rough and tumble life in 1890s New York: taking jobs from the highest bidder in the contentious battle between the railroad barons and the unions; rubbing elbows with the likes of Stumpy Malarkey, Gallus Mag, and other friends and foes; stashing balsam from her jobs in the secret hiding place for her boodle; and generally struggling to feed herself and the street urchins she protects. Soon enough she is caught up in the struggle between the sundry powers facing off during this tumultuous time, including corrupt officials and police, the Knights of Labor, and even Eugene Debs. When she is falsely accused of murder she goes into hiding—in plain sight as a Baltimore milliner under an assumed name, playing up her disguise as a respectable society lady. But her nemesis Webb is intent on flushing her out and putting her in the hoosegow—or the frying chair—and sets the Pinkertons on her trail. With the war of wiles on, Annie faces the biggest threat yet to her freedom and fighting spirit. Trish MacEnulty’s lively retelling of Battle Annie’s story brims with street lingo and snappy dialogue, all while bringing the reader along on a wild ride through Hell’s Kitchen and environs. A romping good read!