Thank you Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the gifted book!
by: James Wade
narrated by: Roger Clark
rating: liked
Two things about this book drew me in. This GORGEOUS cover and the fact that it's set in East Texas. As an East Texas girl, I could not resist. However, I should have paid more attention because this book is set in Deep East Texas not the Northeast Texas that I call home. Now, it will transport you to those forested river bottoms. It has a very strong sense of place. Also this book is described in one blurb as Southern noir, which is not my personal cup of tea. And describing this book and the structure is very hard to do, but here is the good and bad of it from my perspective. The good: the prose is gorgeous. Set apart from the rough content (which I will get to momentarily) this book is incredibly beautifully written. Some sentences I would hear and just repeat to myself because they were really that special. Now the bad: the content. This book is ROUGH. Yes, it revolves around the meth trade and poverty and abuse that affect the setting, but it does not pull any punches describing the tortures people can inflict on one another. I was not infrequently grimacing while listening. And the book is pretty slow and meandering to get from major plot point to major plot point.
Overall I think the book is well written and my friends who love lyrical prose and a slower character driven novel will probably enjoy this one. But it just was not for me.
Content Warning: Drug use, Abuse, Murder, Violence (this book has some very dark content, contact me if you want more information)
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