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trish204 's review for:
Blackwater: The Complete Saga
by Michael McDowell
This was ... epic. There are a few family sagas out there in book format and I'm usually not all too interested in them. This one, however, promised to be a horror story besides and it was about a little town in Alabama surrounded by swamp and mystery (perfect theme to read about in summer). Let me say it right at the beginning: this is NOT a horror story. Not really. Did that mar my enjoyment? Not one bit!
We start in 1919 when a flood has destroyed much in the little town of Perdido, Alabama. A hotel has been evacuated but when the son of a wealthy matron and a black servant drive by the halfway submerged hotel in their little boat, they discover a young woman in one of the rooms. After "rescuing" her, she (Elinor) is introduced to the family and town and decides to stay.
At this point, the family consists chiefly of Marie-Love (the afore-mentioned matron), as well as James (Marie-Love's brother-in-law), Grace (James' daughter), Oscar (Marie-Love's son), and "Sister" (just her call-name but still weird, Marie-Love's daughter). Marie-Love is a widow, James is married but his wife is usually drunk out of her mind and living in Nashville.
Two of the three lumber mills in Perdido belong to Marie-Love and James so you can imagine the family's status in the small town.
For some in the family, Elinor's arrival is a blessing. Others regard her as a threat.
We thus follow the family as they grow both in family members as well as wealth and see the history of this exemplary little town in the American South throughout many years. The story, therefore, is as much about the life in such a small town, the different characters populating the country throughout the decades, the individual family members, and the business itself. We see evolution and change, happy and sad moments. The author didn't shy away from showing the ugliness of racial clashes (though only tangentially, the family itself is nice to their servants at least), rape and even addressed different kinds of sexuality (considering the time this was written in and the family he apparently grew up with himself, that is remarkable).
Overall, there is a slight supernatural twist to this that the author isn't really making a mystery about. The reader is shown early on who the supernatural element is and even what (at least to a degree). This supernatural seed is growing in the Perdido river, triggering a number of events, some of which I did see coming and some of which I didn't expect.
Sometimes it was a bit weird what these people considered normal and how nobody investigated but simply accepted as given. This, as far as the author showed, was not due to a supernatural influence so it says a lot about people's mentality.
The only thing really "horror" about this story was how these people swapped babies around because they couldn't live in a house without one. Sheesh! However, that was a nice bridge to telling of family expectations and the pressure put onto the respective next generation. Nevertheless, it was crazy!
Sadly, due to certain real-life relatives (mine), I can attest to some people actually being like Marie-Love. Pretending they do what they do because they want best and know best and they'll crush you if you oppose them because it's really only about what they want, no matter who they hurt.
So yeah, there was certainly quite a lot of drama, at least until, but it was still not marring my enjoyment of the book for some reason. Regardless of all the schemes and machinations, I usually couldn't wait to see new family members and find out how they would get along, what they would end up doing, what was to become of the Caskeys.
The writing style was fluent, usually placid and not very sensationalist. Some might even say it's too mild or "boring", but I'd have to disagree. Even the most shocking events were told in a way that made me feel as if the southern heat had gotten to me. And yes, I do think that was done on purpose and I think it worked rather well.
We start in 1919 when a flood has destroyed much in the little town of Perdido, Alabama. A hotel has been evacuated but when the son of a wealthy matron and a black servant drive by the halfway submerged hotel in their little boat, they discover a young woman in one of the rooms. After "rescuing" her, she (Elinor) is introduced to the family and town and decides to stay.
At this point, the family consists chiefly of Marie-Love (the afore-mentioned matron), as well as James (Marie-Love's brother-in-law), Grace (James' daughter), Oscar (Marie-Love's son), and "Sister" (just her call-name but still weird, Marie-Love's daughter). Marie-Love is a widow, James is married but his wife is usually drunk out of her mind and living in Nashville.
Two of the three lumber mills in Perdido belong to Marie-Love and James so you can imagine the family's status in the small town.
For some in the family, Elinor's arrival is a blessing. Others regard her as a threat.
We thus follow the family as they grow both in family members as well as wealth and see the history of this exemplary little town in the American South throughout many years. The story, therefore, is as much about the life in such a small town, the different characters populating the country throughout the decades, the individual family members, and the business itself. We see evolution and change, happy and sad moments. The author didn't shy away from showing the ugliness of racial clashes (though only tangentially, the family itself is nice to their servants at least), rape and even addressed different kinds of sexuality (considering the time this was written in and the family he apparently grew up with himself, that is remarkable).
Overall, there is a slight supernatural twist to this that the author isn't really making a mystery about. The reader is shown early on who the supernatural element is and even what (at least to a degree). This supernatural seed is growing in the Perdido river, triggering a number of events, some of which I did see coming and some of which I didn't expect.
Sometimes it was a bit weird what these people considered normal and how nobody investigated but simply accepted as given. This, as far as the author showed, was not due to a supernatural influence so it says a lot about people's mentality.
The only thing really "horror" about this story was how these people swapped babies around because they couldn't live in a house without one. Sheesh! However, that was a nice bridge to telling of family expectations and the pressure put onto the respective next generation. Nevertheless, it was crazy!
Sadly, due to certain real-life relatives (mine), I can attest to some people actually being like Marie-Love. Pretending they do what they do because they want best and know best and they'll crush you if you oppose them because it's really only about what they want, no matter who they hurt.
So yeah, there was certainly quite a lot of drama, at least until
Spoiler
Marie-Love was finally killedThe writing style was fluent, usually placid and not very sensationalist. Some might even say it's too mild or "boring", but I'd have to disagree. Even the most shocking events were told in a way that made me feel as if the southern heat had gotten to me. And yes, I do think that was done on purpose and I think it worked rather well.