Suspense

My first book by Mr. Frazier - will definitely be reading more. Loved the characters, setting, and story spun by Mr. Frazier- hard to put this one down. ( )

In the backwoods of North Carolina in the 1950s, Stubblefield inherits his grandfather’s estate. He encounters Luce, a woman he knew in high school, living on his property. She has taken custody of her traumatized niece and nephew after her sister’s violent death. The children witnessed their stepfather murder their mother. Stubblefield has a romantic interest in Luce, but she is a victim of rape with her own set of traumas.

So, this book takes disturbed children – they kill animals and light fires – and puts them in a situation where they are pursued by a crazed criminal. I should have known I would not care for this book. I was hoping the sister that takes in the children would be a be positive influence, but she has trouble figuring out how to reassure and protect them.

I do not need the story to be full of kittens and rainbows, but this is just too dark for my taste. It is gory and joyless. Trigger warnings abound. The author turns a nice phrase on occasion, so I am going with two stars. It was okay.
( )

Because I want every Frazier book to rise to the level of Cold Mountain, there is a temptation to be disappointed. But that is unfair. He propels the story forward very believably, and we want to go along for the ride. ( )

Luce lives alone as a caretaker in an old lodge in the NC mountains in the early 60s. She has custody of her murdered sister's 2 children, twins who have obviously been seriously affected by being abused by their stepfather and by seeing their mother's murder. Luce is a loner, coming from an unpromising background also, but she does her best to teach the mute children what she knows about the mountains and the natural world around them. The new owner through inheritance shows up, as does the stepfather who escaped murder charges. What I did enjoy about the book were the descriptions of the mountains and what Luce had to show the children. I felt as if I were there; I could almost smell the forest. What I didn't like was the confusing way it was written. I found it hard to follow at times because so much was implied instead of stated. This book is fairly short. I think it may have been better as a longer book. ( )