Karen Kondazian

The Whip Karen Kondazian First edition

Best Western, 2013 International Book Awards
2013 National Indie Excellence Awards winner, Western fiction category
Award-Winner in the 'Fiction: Historical' category of The 2012 USA Best Book Awards
Gold Prize in Historical Fiction & Best Western Fiction - 2013 Global Ebook Awards.

The Whip is inspired by the true story of a woman, Charlotte "Charley" Parkhurst (1812-1879) who lived most of her extraordinary life as a man in the old west. As a young woman in Rhode Island, she fell in love with a runaway slave and had his child. The destruction of her family drove her west to California, dressed as a man, to track the killer.

Charley became a renowned stagecoach driver for Wells Fargo. She killed a famous outlaw, had a secret love affair, and lived with a housekeeper who, unaware of her true sex, fell in love with her. Charley was the first known woman to vote in America in 1868 (as a man). Her grave lies in Watsonville, California.