Lilith Rising 1969

Lilith Rising 1969, Roberta Kagan, 2013, Kindle e-book

This novel is about one person's experiences in late 1960s America.

Lily is your average teenager living near Chicago. She ran away from home because life at home had fallen apart. At a party, she is noticed by Red, the leader of a local biker gang. Realizing that she is too far from home, Lily calls her mother, looking for a ride. To her shock, her mother says that coming home, at that time, was not a good idea. Lily has no choice but to hop on Red's motorcycle.

Lily soon learns that she is Red's prisoner. She has to ask his permission for everything, including getting money for food. She learns, the hard way, about Red's hair-trigger temper. He can go from decent and reasonable one second, to total, red-faced, rage the next second. Lily's feelings toward Red vacillate between hatred and fear for her safety.

One day, Cricket (his real name is Sam), Red's brother, shows up at their door. Having just returned from Vietnam, where he was an Army medic, Cricket needs a place to stay for a while. The attraction between Lily and Cricket is instant. Red expects Cricket to resume the biker lifestyle, but Cricket is very uninterested. While Red is off planning a war against another gang, the relationship between Lily and Cricket grows into real love. They make plans to run away together to San Francisco, but Lily is very scared of Red's expected reaction. Circumstances suddenly force them to move up their timetable, and head west, now. How does Red react? Do they make it to San Francisco? Do Lily and Cricket live "happily ever after"?

In a way, this is very unpleasant reading, but it's very good reading. The author does a fine job from start to finish. This story is not for the faint of heart, but it is well worth the reader's time.