The Chili Queen: A Novel (Paperback)

~ (Author) "As the train pulled into the shabby station at Palestine, Kansas, the pinch-faced farmers and their wives in their rusty black-wool best lined up along..." (more)
Key Phrases: chili queen, chill queen, Cora Nellie, Black Jesse, New Mexico (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A whorehouse madam, a bank robber, a mail-order bride and a former slave romp around 1860s New Mexico in this fifth novel from the author of The Persian Pickle Club. As she has before, Dallas weaves a beguiling plot and creates engaging characters and dialogue. The first part of the book is narrated by Addie French, a madam at the Chili Queen whorehouse, whose language is salted with colorful metaphors. "Some men liked scrawny women," she explains, "just as some men picked chicken wings over drumsticks." In the second section, the central figure is Ned Partner, a hunky bank robber and would-be rancher whose emotional innocence contrasts with his smooth ways in the bedroom and behind a gun. Next, there is Emma Roby, a mail-order bride with a secret past who is temporarily boarding at the Chili Queen, and finally Welcome, a former slave turned whorehouse cook. Because Emma and Welcome are not as well drawn, the closing chapters lose momentum; they are also glutted with backstory. When Dallas tries to cover subjects like sexual abuse and other types of violence, her light tone can't support the heavier themes. Still, the zesty, offbeat charm of life among these undesirables in the seedy West keeps this tale moving smartly. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book club alternate; 5-city author tour. (Sept.)
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

The author tweaks the Western genre with her newest historical novel. Retired shortchange-artist-turned-madam Addie French meets Emma Roby, a meek and ladylike mail-order bride on the train to Nalgitas, New Mexico. Deserted at the train station by her groom, Emma makes her way to the Chili Queen, Addie's "boarding house." There Emma meets Welcome, the mysterious cook, and Ned Partner, an amiable and talented bank robber. At Addie's suggestion, Ned agrees to rob a local bank to avenge an insult made to Addie and takes Emma for his partner. The robbery ends with unexpected results, and the trio hatches another scheme to fleece Emma's brother out of his inheritance. The payoff from this last swindle will allow Addie to open a restaurant, Ned to buy a ranch, and Emma to live independently. Dallas fleshes out the kind of background characters found in a L'Amour or Grey novel with affection and zest. Sure to garner new fans and satisfy existing ones, this novel is recommended for all public library collections. Kaite Mediatore
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Thus edition (September 10, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312320264
• ISBN-13: 978-0312320263
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #88,914 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Just when you think you have it figured out.., September 21, 2004

By	Tonya Speelman "Hoarder of books" (Goldendale WA) - See all my reviews

THINK AGAIN! The plot twists and turns at the end of the book so many times!I love reading about books from my home state and this
one was such a gripping tale of who is really the "bad guy". Make sure you leave lots of time because once you get into it, you won't want to put it down!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Surprising!!!, March 10, 2004

By	Mercedes L. Johnmeyer "The Most Happy" (Kingsland, GA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

Well! What a book! I am a huge fan of Sandra Dallas, but I will say, after getting about half-way through this book, I really wasn't impressed. The stories of Addie and Ned just kind of mosied along, nothing overly exciting, but once the book turned to Emma's tale...wow!!

I truly didn't realize just how much everyone was out to screw each other over, and the way everything went down was completly surprising! This really is a great book, I only gave it 4 stars because as I said, the first half was a little slow...but stick with it! The last half will make the pages fly by!

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good read about life in the southwest in 1880's, September 2, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Chili Queen: A Novel (Hardcover)

This book starts slow. I really didn't want to finish it at first. But kept reading as I liked Sandra Dallas' other books. This book tells about the lives of people in the southwest in the 1880's. First, Addie, who has had a rough life. She ran away from home after her dad died and her mother remarried a man who made advances towards her when her mother would lock the bedroom door and not let him in. She went to San Antonio, Texas and ran a chili stand...there she became the Chile Queen. Later she ended up in Nalgitas, New Mexico in a brothel, where the madam left and sold the business to Addie. The book starts with Addie getting on a train, from Kansas City to Nalgitas. She had been there to meet a "john". There, she meets Emma. Emma, who has had a rough life herself, is desposited on the train by her "brother", who yells at her and belittles her while telling her not to sit with any men. Then he proceeds to sit her next to Addie. Addie befriends this young woman, who on her way to Nalgitas as a mail order bride. Things don't turn out for Emma as planned and she ends up in Addie's "boarding house". There the plot thickens.....and as I said earlier, it was slow at first. But as you get into the book, with it's twists and turns you will be more entertained. The books also tells of the other character's lives. One is of the life of Ned Partner, who is a lover of Addie and a bank robber;another is of John, who is Emma's brother and comes to Nalgitas to finalize a land deal with Emma, Ned and Addie. It also tells of Welcome, who is Addie's black housekeeper. But nothing is as it seems. The story takes you on horseback through the plains of New Mexico and Colorado as the con men run from the person they swindled. Who is that? Read and find out. And who is the conmen.....only to the last chapter will you find out. And believe me......nothing is as it seems. You will not be disappointed. I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because it seems to drag on at first. But this "dragging on" had to set the scene for what happens later. Read it, I don't think you'll be disappointed.