This is the third in the Constance Kopp series, based on the life of one of the first female deputies in the nation. She is trying to help girls who have been labeled as "wayward" under the norms of the time, and keep them out of the reformatory. In one case, an 18-year-old was arrested simply because she left home, moved into a respectable boarding house, and got a job in the "powder plant" making munitions for WWI. Constance argued that the girl had done absolutely nothing wrong. Another girl, age 16, lands in jail under trickier circumstances. Meanwhile, the youngest of the Kopps turns eighteen and wants to follow her own dreams. Also, there is an election race for sheriff coming up, and Constance's primary nemesis is running.

It was frustrating to think that females were treated the way they were in the mid-1910's. I consider myself fairly knowledgeable about the history of women's rights, but didn't realize quite how bad things were in the early 20th century for young women who wanted to move out and make lives for themselves. Of course, at that time, women couldn't even vote and elect officials who might improve their lot.

This book was obtained through my public library. ( )

Oh, I love this series. Constance Kopp and her sisters continue their wayward, stubborn adventures, flying in the teeth of local convention. Hopeful, thoughtful -- I love that Constance sort of falls into becoming a probation officer and finds ways to set her prisoners on better, less incarcerated tracks. Compellingly illustrates the lack of choices for so many at the time -- factory work and marriage or "falling into sin" -- lives that are high on drudgery or danger, with a narrow path in between. ( )

Constance Kopp, Hackensack N.J.'s first female deputy, has completely settled into her new job at the prison. She takes a personal interest in the female inmates and believes her positive influence can change their lives. She also has her hands full keeping up with her two head strong sisters and their hilarious escapades. Like the two prior "Kopp Sisters" novels, the adventures of Constance Kopp is historical fiction based on a true story, complete with bibliographic references. A fun, entertaining and historically accurate read. ( )

This was my favorite of the three thus far, and oddly, it's because there really wasn't any single plot that stretched from beginning to end. In fact, it's a stretch to call it a mystery.

Some background for those unfamiliar with the books: This series is based on the life of Constance Kopp, one of the first female deputy sheriffs in the United States, and the first to be granted a shield, gun, authority to apprehend, and be paid the same wage as her male counterparts (likely the last one too, on that score). Amy Stewart uses historically accurate events and characters, with as many details as she can find, then fictionalises the spaces in between. At the end of each book, she includes a detailed accounting of what is factual and what is fictional, along with a detailed list of notes and sources.

While the first two books had, more or less, a single story line as the focus, ...Midnight Confessions is more a collection of smaller stories, each centered on a real person and event, that Stewart has woven together into a cohesive narrative.

All of these smaller stories have a single theme: the very real vulnerabilities women had, and the rights they didn't. We're all vaguely aware that society really frowned upon "loose morals" – a state unique to women, as men weren't expected to have any morals – and we've all made jokes about the "morality police", but when you read about a woman over 18 who is arrested because she left home to move into a strict, all-female boarding house to work in a powder factory so she could contribute to the war effort...well we've certainly come a long way in 100 years. Waywardness this was called - and guess who brought the charges against her? Her mother.

Anyway, there are a few characters in this book that all have to face this lack of agency, whether they deserve the charges against them or not. (Deserve, as in guilty or innocent of the charges, not morally deserving.) All of their stories play out over the course of the book, but there's no sense of tension or climax. Some might find that disappointing, but it worked really well for me; it kept the pace snappy, and I didn't feel like Stewart was manufacturing drama for the sake of drama. I was able to enjoy and appreciate these women's stories on their own merit; if she'd tried to twist them and manipulate them to create some fictional plot, I doubt I'd have liked the book half as much.

She ends the book with an election year just beginning and an inevitable shake-up in the local politics. I'm looking forward to the next book, scheduled for September, to see what happens to Constance and Sheriff Heath. ( )