NashvilleHype!

Kip Gayden is a local author that has written a great court room drama based around true events that happened here in Nashville.

Miscarriage of Justice is a book about love, lust, and murder.  Based on the true story of Anna Dotson, a young mother of two, who falls for the wrong man when her Doctor husband is too busy to satisfy her needs.

When her husband finds out about the affair, there’s only one thing that can happen - her lover has to be taken care of - one way or another.

Kip writes this novel beautifully.  In fact, his writing is far and away some of the best writing I’ve read.  He easily describes people, places, and events in the tone of the times - never forgetting the era when this story took place (1913).

He really excels at his own creative license (though based on a true story, obviously he wasn’t there and certain accounts had to be embellished for the good of the story), writing in a way that completely sucks you into the story.

If I had a complaint about this book it would be two fold:

1. I couldn’t wait to get near the end to see what was gong to happen (that’s not so much a complaint as much as it’s telling how good this book is)

and

2. After I got there, I was disappointed as the style of writing changed from excellent prose, to merely reporting.

As I said, Kip really excels at making up the story in his own mind and placing it on paper.   But after the murder takes place, it’s almost as if having to rely on the actual events that took place at the trial sucked some of the life out of the story.  I would’ve much preferred this story been completely made up by Kip rather than having to slide into the “this happened, that happened” style of writing reality - which can sometimes lead to leaving out important parts of the overall story (why were the kids at the trial after going to considerable lengths to protect them?).

What made this book at least partially appealing for me to read was the fact it’s based here in Nashville.  This was an extraordinary story at the time and Kip was kind enough to include actual news clippings from the “Tennessean” (though sadly missing were actual photographs of Anna and the other players).  (As an aside, the writing in the Tennessean is some of the best writing you will ever read - back then they believed in ‘reporting’ a story, not placing their personal commentary after every sentence.)

Much is made about the book centering around the women’s suffrage movement that had gripped the country, but that part of the story only seemed a sub-plot and easy to look over because of the nature of the characters and the life they were living.  Until the surprise ending that is, when in great fashion, Kip ties it all together.

Overall, this is a great book and I certainly enjoyed reading it.  You will too.  Kip Gayden is a heck of a storyteller - fact, fiction, or otherwise.