Veil of Doubt by Sharon Virts

A story of a serial killing? Not my thing!  But I chose to give a new piece of historical fiction a try, and I discovered a fascinating courtroom drama in Sharon Virts' Veil of Doubt (Girl Friday Books, 2023), set in post-Civil War Virginia.  

Based on an actual court case, this new novel really centers on the main defense attorney, Powell Harrison of Leesburg, who is driven both by his innate sense of justice and the tragic suicide of his sister in a state insane asylum, to defend Emily Lloyd, whose fourth and final child dies in questionable circumstances in the spring of 1872.  

One of the most haunting images for me came early in the book when you see Emily Lloyd as a figure alone while the residents of Leesburg find her guilty in the court of public opinion and her attorneys decide immediately for an insanity defense. How harsh is that? How can she grieve in this time? What does she have to say for herself? Isn't she considered innocent until proven guilty?  And how typical it has been through the ages for powerless women to have no voice? 

Each chapter goes day by day in the account, as Powell builds his case in defense of Mrs. Lloyd.  The historical details of the law of the time and the few forensic options open to both attorneys and the police make you aware of how much has changed and how so many legal decisions affected people in unjust or in unusual ways.  In this particular case--and this actually happened--a lawyer that the Harrison law firm used for consultation in the early days of the defense planning switched sides and worked for the prosecutor during the trial.  In addition, the prosecution withheld evidence from the defense and was allowed to do so legally.

The story plays out both methodically and surprisingly, which I will not explain, as there are some major twists in this plot.  But I will say that the story is vastly compelling and has so many mysteries involved and little details about daily life that I couldn't put it down.  There are lovely descriptions about the countryside in late summer, and there are also horrifying scenes of the necessary post-mortem on the darling little Maud Lloyd, just three years old, and the exhumations of her older siblings to gather evidence.  Reading the author's note at the end gave substance to her portrayal of the people involved, and the inclusion of newspaper stories at the time brings immediacy.

We drive through the little town of Lucketts, VA that leads into the bustling outskirts of Leesburg fairly often on our way south to visit family, and I will never look at this place in the same way again.  The strength of historical fiction is that it brings to life days gone by in places that we might hardly know, helps us to realize how much has changed and makes us aware of how our understanding of institutions, other poeple, and science and medicine has evolved.  A meaningful title with a beautiful cover rounds out a substantial piece of historical fiction that I recommend!  It comes out October 10.

Many thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for an advance copy.

Now, on to another piece of historical fiction based around a trial--Zadie Smith's The Fraud.