In These Lost and Broken Things, Helen Fields takes us inside a woman who is a killer in the early 1900s. The historical background is handled well. Formative pieces of the main character are given bit by bit. I didn't like her throughout, even at the end, but came to understand her enough to want to know what was going to happen.
Good plot construction; good getting inside an anti-hero. Nice linking the character's situation to overall women's issues and presenting those in the historical context.
A good novel for aspiring historical fiction writers to read.