Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Set in a rural South Carolina town in the 1930s, Hite's deft debut, told through the perspectives of five women, offers vivid settings and characters. Seduced into marriage by the charismatic Hobbs Pritchard, 17-year-old Nellie Pritchard moves with him to Black Mountain, where she discovers her handsome, amiable husband is really a vicious, murderous bootlegger feared by the entire community. Worse still, Hobbs is haunted by the spirits of his victims, who soon begin to haunt Nellie, too. After Hobbs nearly beats her to death, she kills him and flees the mountain, journeying to Darien, Ga., to make a new life for herself. However, Hobbs isn't done with her, or with Rose Gardner, who was pregnant with Hobbs's baby before he disappeared. The novel's other narrators include Nellie's mother Josie Clay; Shelly Parker, who communicates with ghosts ; and Iona Harbor, who hears about Nellie and Hobbes as characters in her nightly bedtime story. While Hite misses the mark with some plot elements, the novel will intrigue readers eager for a Southern Gothic tale, and suggests a promising future for the Black Mountain novels to come. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Review by Library Journal Review
Hobbs Pritchard can turn a girl's head, as he sweeps 17-year-old Nellie Clay of Asheville, NC, into a hasty marriage, despite warnings from her mother who sees death in Nellie's tea leaves. But Nellie soon learns that Hobbs-a moonshiner, thief, and worse-is nearly universally hated by the residents of his Black Mountain community, for good reason. When ghosts-appearing particularly to Shelly Parker, the psychically gifted daughter of a black conjure woman-begin to urge Nellie to leave Black Mountain and Hobbs's behavior turns violent, Nellie takes irrevocable action that has ripple effects for generations. Verdict Multiple female narrators add dimension and perspective to Hite's first novel, and the sightings and visits from the spirits are often appropriately eerie. But this artfully woven tale suffers because key character Hobbs is portrayed as more mean than evil, especially in his actions toward Nellie, yet his evil nature is critical to subsequent events. A readable ghost story that could use a stronger core.-Michele Leber, Arlington, VA (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
