Carys Ryan

This pager-turner broke my heart. The story is told from the perspectives of two characters: Ola, a courageous young tobacco farming wife and mother, and Pat, a spunky and good-natured school boy on the poor side of town. From their two sometimes overlapping worlds, we learn about life in 1920's Kentucky. As the story unfolds, the community of eccentric characters, the believable love between them, their struggles and hard work, compromises and triumphs, all weave together to create a world that I was happy to feel a part of when I read this book. The horrifying murder had me bawling and shaking. Reading this book is a powerful experience, and one which I highly recommend.