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A review by carolpk
A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash
4.0
quoted from the publisher...
"A stunning debut reminiscent of the beloved novels of John Hart and Tom Franklin, A Land More Kind Than Home is a mesmerizing literary thriller about the bond between two brothers and the evil they face in a small western North Carolina town."
I'm not certain I'd use the word stunning but Wiley Cash's debut is good. I am in agreement that there's a moodiness to the story reminiscent of Tom Franklin and John Hart. Fans of these authors might give this a try. I don't think I can do much better describing the book than the above blurb but here's my thoughts.
Serpents, preachers, forked tongues, tent revivals, and hallelujah was my first impression. I don't like snakes and when they're used for healing I like them even less. This made me wonder if I could make it through the story. The opening scene of a copperhead coming fang to hand with an elderly parishioner was almost enough to make me drop the book. It also did nothing to encourage me to be part of this church and immediately made me dislike the snake handling minister. I'm glad I put my phobia aside and read on.
I liked the use of character point of view (3) that Cash used in narration. It allowed the happenings to unfold slowly and then with a edgy tension that I loved. Of course there were more people involved but we learn about them from a midwife, the sheriff, and the younger of the two brothers mentioned above. There's an underlying steaminess evocative of heat to the story which is strange because there's also a whole lot of snow and cold in the story's location of Marshall, North Carolina.
My favorite character was Jess, the younger brother. His relationship with his older brother nicknamed Stump but called by his christian name, Christopher by his mother, is poignant yet rings true with the normal rivalry of brothers in any family Stump, who never speaks, and Jess have a way of communicating without words and their strong bound is apparent and an important aspect of the story. My least favorite character, Chambliss, is the manipulating, evil preacher. Jess's parents and paternal grandfather who shows up half way through the story are solid and interesting.
Jess questions where his grandfather's been all this time and why so long. The answer in part...
"I just have, he said. "I just went away."
"Why?"
He sat there quiet like he was thinking hard about what he wanted to say next, and then I saw his head turn like he was looking over his shoulder. "Because sometimes we do things we can't take back, and we need to go away and leave folks alone and let them forget us for a while."
"What did you do?"
"Lots of things, he said."
The last character I'll mention is Sheriff Barefield who has a job to do and despite his painful past manages to do it well.
Small towns have lots of secrets and Marshall is no exception. These secrets and those that hold them are revealed as the book picks up momentum to a satisfying conclusion.
"A stunning debut reminiscent of the beloved novels of John Hart and Tom Franklin, A Land More Kind Than Home is a mesmerizing literary thriller about the bond between two brothers and the evil they face in a small western North Carolina town."
I'm not certain I'd use the word stunning but Wiley Cash's debut is good. I am in agreement that there's a moodiness to the story reminiscent of Tom Franklin and John Hart. Fans of these authors might give this a try. I don't think I can do much better describing the book than the above blurb but here's my thoughts.
Serpents, preachers, forked tongues, tent revivals, and hallelujah was my first impression. I don't like snakes and when they're used for healing I like them even less. This made me wonder if I could make it through the story. The opening scene of a copperhead coming fang to hand with an elderly parishioner was almost enough to make me drop the book. It also did nothing to encourage me to be part of this church and immediately made me dislike the snake handling minister. I'm glad I put my phobia aside and read on.
I liked the use of character point of view (3) that Cash used in narration. It allowed the happenings to unfold slowly and then with a edgy tension that I loved. Of course there were more people involved but we learn about them from a midwife, the sheriff, and the younger of the two brothers mentioned above. There's an underlying steaminess evocative of heat to the story which is strange because there's also a whole lot of snow and cold in the story's location of Marshall, North Carolina.
My favorite character was Jess, the younger brother. His relationship with his older brother nicknamed Stump but called by his christian name, Christopher by his mother, is poignant yet rings true with the normal rivalry of brothers in any family Stump, who never speaks, and Jess have a way of communicating without words and their strong bound is apparent and an important aspect of the story. My least favorite character, Chambliss, is the manipulating, evil preacher. Jess's parents and paternal grandfather who shows up half way through the story are solid and interesting.
Jess questions where his grandfather's been all this time and why so long. The answer in part...
"I just have, he said. "I just went away."
"Why?"
He sat there quiet like he was thinking hard about what he wanted to say next, and then I saw his head turn like he was looking over his shoulder. "Because sometimes we do things we can't take back, and we need to go away and leave folks alone and let them forget us for a while."
"What did you do?"
"Lots of things, he said."
The last character I'll mention is Sheriff Barefield who has a job to do and despite his painful past manages to do it well.
Small towns have lots of secrets and Marshall is no exception. These secrets and those that hold them are revealed as the book picks up momentum to a satisfying conclusion.