zoom_in Click to enlarge

Enemy Women

▲ ▼

description Enemy Women Overview

Enemy Women is a historical fiction novel written by Paulette Jiles and published in 2002. The story is set in the Ozark region of Missouri during the American Civil War, focusing on the chaotic guerrilla warfare between Union militia and Confederate bushwhackers. The protagonist is Adair Colley, an eighteen-year-old woman who is falsely accused of Confederate collaboration and imprisoned by the Union. Following her escape from the harsh conditions of the prison, she navigates the war-torn landscape to reunite with her scattered family.

help Enemy Women FAQ

Why is Adair Colley arrested in Enemy Women?

Union militia arrest Adair after destroying her family's Missouri farm and suspecting her of aiding Confederate guerrillas. Her imprisonment separates her from her family and drives the novel's survival story.

Who is Major William Neumann in Enemy Women?

Neumann is the Union officer who interrogates Adair and becomes emotionally attached to her. Their relationship complicates the novel's division between enemy forces and civilians.

Where in Missouri does Enemy Women take place?

The story unfolds in the Ozarks during the American Civil War, where formal armies, local militias, and bushwhackers overlap. Paulette Jiles emphasizes the lawlessness of divided rural communities rather than a conventional Western frontier.

Is Enemy Women based on a real woman's diary?

Adair Colley is fictional, but the novel incorporates period documents and draws on documented wartime conditions in Missouri. Its historical background includes arrests of civilian women and destructive guerrilla warfare.

swap_horiz

Looking for Enemy Women alternatives? Compare top competitors ranked & scored

arrow_forward