Westward Women by Alice Martin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


It’s the 1970s. An itch is the first sign of a mysterious affliction affecting young women, drawing them to voyage to the West Coast of the US. It seems random. They’re in the prime of their lives. They become like walking zombies, wandering, blank. Some are never heard from again. Others are found dead.

We follow three young women amid this turbulent time—three of them in search of something. Aimee, a recent college graduate, decides to go looking for her missing best friend who appears to have been infected. Teenie, a young victim who is drawn into this westward voyage by a man, Pied Piper of sorts (they call him Piper). He lures young women onto his bus, creating a cult-ish community of young women, all kept under his insidious control masked by his unremarkable exterior. And finally, Eve, a journalist chasing this story, is seeking redemption after an embarrassing fall from grace.

I enjoyed this story and in particular, found it very interesting the way it was told from different points of view and voices. Aimee and Eve were both told in the third person; Teenie was written in the first person, as the one woman who was infected, and we saw everything through her eyes.
There was an unwavering creepiness throughout the book. I just knew there would be a breaking point, a culmination of events. And it did not disappoint. The story was cleverly woven.

Four stars for me, this was a great debut novel from Alice Martin. Thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press and the author for an advanced copy for review. Planned publication date is March 2026 – look for this one!



View all my reviews