Review: Unspoken (The Dust Series #1) by Jann Alexander
- Merissa
- 60 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Book details:
Book Title: Unspoken
Series: The Dust Series
Author: Jann Alexander
Publication Date: July 3, 2025
Publisher: Black Rose Writing
Pages: 368
Any Triggers: Two deaths from dust pneumonia in first chapter, 1935; inhumane treatments in an asylum setting, pre-1950; maltreatment in a state home for children, pre-1945; a botched abortion where a woman nearly dies, 1940s
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A Farm Devastated. A Dream Destroyed. A Family Scattered. And One Texas Girl Determined to Salvage the Wreckage.
Ruby Lee Becker can't breathe. It's 1935 in the heart of the Dust Bowl, and the Becker family has clung to its Texas Panhandle farm through six years of drought, dying crops, and dust storms. On Black Sunday, the biggest blackest storm of them all threatens ten-year-old Ruby with deadly dust pneumonia and requires a drastic choice —one her mother, Willa Mae, will forever regret.
To survive, Ruby is forced to leave the only place she's ever known. Far from home in Waco, and worried her mother has abandoned her, she's determined to get back.
Even after twelve years, Willa Mae still clings to memories of her daughter. Unable to reunite with Ruby, she's broken by their separation.
Through rollicking adventures and harrowing setbacks, the tenacious Ruby Lee embarks on her perilous quest for home —and faces her one unspoken fear.
Heart-wrenching and inspiring, the tale of Ruby Lee's dogged perseverance and Willa Mae's endless love for her daughter shines a light on women driven apart by disaster who bravely lean on one another, find comfort in remade families, and redefine what home means.
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3 out of 5 (good)
UNSPOKEN is the first book in the Dust series, and we meet Ruby Lee, Will, Earl, Beck, and Willa Mae for the first time. They live in the Dustbowl and are struggling, not only to succeed with their crops, but to just survive. The story starts with a funeral, to give you some idea of how well they're doing.
The story follows Ruby Lee as she is separated from her family for health reasons, and what happens next in her life. It is told mostly from her perspective, but you also get parts from her mother.
This isn't an easy story to read. It deals with triggering topics, so be careful if you have any. You get inside information (so to speak) on what State Homes for Children were like, as well as asylums. The Second World War is also a part of this story, as it goes from the late 1930s to the early 1950s.
Now, here comes the part that you may not agree with, and is wholly my own opinion. While I enjoyed (if that's the right word) the events of this story, and learning about life in the Dustbowl, even the State Home and the asylum, I didn't particularly enjoy Ruby Lee's character. I know she was a child when it started, but I couldn't understand her mindset or the decisions she made, even when she was older. The same could be said of other characters, too.
The ending came abruptly, with Ruby Lee about to marry someone who is all kinds of wrong, possibly pregnant, and her brother coming home from the war. However, this IS the first book, so I'm sure it will follow on from where this one finishes.
This is a long and slow-paced story that is richly detailed, even if those details aren't 'pretty'. There are an abundance of supporting characters, some of whom you will follow along with, and some who stay at the wayside. I would recommend this story to anyone who likes family sagas, women's fiction, and books full of history.
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jann Alexander writes characters who face down their fears. Her novels are as close-to-true as fiction can get.
Jann is the author of the historical novel, UNSPOKEN, set in the Texas Panhandle during the Dust Bowl and Great Depression eras, and her first book in The Dust Series.
Jann writes on all things creative in her weekly blog, Pairings. She's a 20-year resident of central Texas and creator of the Vanishing Austin photography series. As a former art director for ad agencies and magazines in the D.C. area, and a painter, photographer, and art gallery owner, creativity is her practice and passion.
Jann's lifelong storytelling habit and her more recent zeal for Texas history merged to become the historical Dust Series. When she is not reading, writing, or creating, she bikes, hikes, skis, and kayaks. She lives in central Texas with her own personal Texan (and biggest fan), Karl, and their Texas mutt, Ruby.
Jann always brakes for historical markers.
Author Links:
Website: https://www.jannalexander.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jannalextx/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/jannalextx/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/jannalexander
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/jann_alexander
Tour hosted by: The Coffee Pot Book Club
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