Jul 31
Review of Grey Dog by Elliott Gish
Grey Dog begins as an immersive historical fiction story of a young teacher with a shocking past in 1900s rural England, but it becomes a...
Jan 30
Review of The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
I loved the 1700s wintry Maine setting and the convictions of the historical fiction novel's strong midwife character, based upon a...
Aug 10, 2023
Review of Those We Thought We Knew by David Joy
David Joy's mystery, Those We Thought We Knew, set in the North Carolina mountains, explores issues of racism, corruption, generational...
Jan 6, 2023
Review of Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
Kingsolver offers an epic story of a faulted, unlikely hero in danger of being crushed by exceptionally difficult circumstances. His...
Dec 13, 2022
Review of The Book Woman's Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson
Richardson focuses her historical fiction on Kentucky again, picking up the story of the rural book delivery, Blue People, friendship,...
Jul 21, 2022
Review of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson
Kim Michele Richardson's historical fiction offers a 1936 Appalachian setting, the magic and unassuming power of a rural librarian, and...
Apr 12, 2022
Review of The Gods of Howl Mountain by Taylor Brown
ICYMI: Taylor Brown's five-star, 1950s North Carolina-set novel offers mountain clans, whiskey runners, folk healers, family conflict,...
Jan 12, 2022
Review of Betty by Tiffany McDaniel
Betty is based on the author's family stories of difficulties, abuse, tragedies, and a hardscrabble life in the Appalachian foothills of...
Dec 2, 2021
Review of The Distance from Four Points by Margo Orlando Littell
In The Distance from Four Points, Littell explores deep human connections, grief, womanhood, what strength means, the power of origins,...
Jun 17, 2021
Review of Half Wild: Stories by Robin MacArthur
ICYMI: MacArthur's stories, set in rural Vermont, are tragic, beautiful, heartwarming, and heartbreaking. MacArthur, who is from Vermont...