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Samantha Wilcoxson’s novel Luminous is more than just an emotional rollercoaster ride. It is a tearjerker, that tells a tale of a fate so devastating that simply turning the pages will hurt. And it is based on a true story.

A history, that should not be forgotten. A history, that may repeat itself if we’re not careful.


Luminous retells the story of the Radium Girls. Wilcoxson researched her story with tremendous attention to detail and painted the heartbreaking story of a woman that was so very delicate and frail but at the same time tremendously strong.

Whereas the first half of the book proves to be a fairly easy read, I can only recommend having an endless supply of tissues at hand for what is to come. The cruelty of mankind is endless. Capitalism is a man-made monster.

Catherine Donohue, who is the main protagonist, along with her friends Charlotte and Pearl and other former factory workers fight a David vs Goliath-like fight that at times reminds of Don Quichotte’s war against windmills. Doctors are afraid to give the correct diagnosis, pieces of evidence disappear, worker rights do not exist, treated as outcasts in their hometown. How does one win a war like that when one is simultaneously fighting against time?

This is a gripping read, a story that needs to be known. That deserves to be heard.