All We Were Promised (Ballentine Books 2024) by Ashton Lattimore is a literary historical novel set in 1837 in which the author accomplishes exactly what an excellent historical novel should—that is, she blends well-researched, accurate historical facts into a fictional plot to create a fascinating, eminently readable, and suspenseful story. Readers will learn true history […]
“To the Manor Born” by Matthew Speiser
June 4, 2024 by Leave a Comment
Like the TV series, The Man From High Castle, Matthew Speiser’s To the Manor Born (Black Rose Publishing 2023) is an alternate history. Instead of asking what the world would have looked like if Germany had won WWII, Speiser’s book asks what if the American Civil War had ended differently. The result is an imaginative, […]
“Clete” by James Lee Burke
June 3, 2024 by Leave a Comment
As the legions of fans of James Lee Burke’s Dave Robicheaux series will no doubt readily attest, JLB knows how to write a good story. In that regard, Clete (Atlantic Monthly Press 2024) is no different as it’s a darn fine tale of friendship, danger, and despair. It has flashes of noir thriller and exposes […]
“Foraging Kentucky : An Introduction to the Edible Plants, Fungi, and Three Crops of the Southeast” by George Barnett
June 1, 2024 by Leave a Comment
What does an ideal field guide look like? It has enough information to be useful in a variety of wild places, but not so much that the reader gets lost in thickets of unnecessary text. Forager George Barnett’s first book , Foraging Kentucky (University Press of Kentucky 2024), masterfully shepherds plant enthusiasts through the terrain […]
“Dirt Songs” by Kari Gunter-Seymour
May 15, 2024 by 1 Comment
In Dirt Songs (Eastover Press 2024), Kari Gunter-Seymour proves she is at the top of her game by evoking both the wild energy and lustful passion of youth and the regrets such indulgences oft engender later in life. Other poems in the collection beautifully capture the natural world of Appalachia through precise language and fresh […]
“Hell Put to Shame, the 1921 Murder Farm Massacre and the Horror of America’s Second Slavery” by Earl Swift
May 15, 2024 by Leave a Comment
If you’re noticing the 1921 date in the subtitle of Hell Put to Shame (Mariner Books 2024) and thinking debt “peonage” is a past atrocity, forget it. Also known as debt slavery, the practice lives on, often targeting poor, unemployed, and homeless people. Today, it’s often immigrants. In 2010, a federal grand jury, author Earl […]