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A review by nzlisam
The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Mesmerising and Eloquent!
The year is 1958, and it’s Memorial Day in Jewel, Black Earth County when the body of wealthy landowner and farmer, Jimmy Quinn, is found floating in the Alabaster River. His death is the catalyst for a chain of events that the people of Jewel will never forget.
The River We Remember was a character-driven, atmospheric, slow-burn contemporary drama. There were so many powerful, sentimental moments that resonated and evoked an emotional response within me. These compassionate, flawed, wounded characters occupied space in my head and refused to budge. The POV’s featured in this novel were good people who were torn apart inside by adversity, abuse, judgment, and racism all the while hiding crippling emotional pain, traumatic backstories, devastating secrets, and stories of injustice. Each narrator – the sheriff, the retired sheriff and current part-time deputy, the town newsman, a female lawyer, a single mother who runs the local diner, and her fourteen-year-old son – offered varied and distinctive perspectives. The six POV characters were all scarred and impacted by war – some were veteran soldiers and others had lost loved ones.
The mystery sub-plot was very satisfying, and the last 20% was exciting and tense. It also served the purpose of laying bare this town’s extreme inequality and permeating darkness. The man killed was widely loathed in Jewel, but because he was white a lot of the townsfolk still considered him superior to a Dakota Sioux Native American, even though the latter was a peaceful, helpful, contributing, kind-hearted member of the community.
William Kent Krueger is a gifted writer and as always delivered beautiful, tender, and moving prose. I was completely able to visualise Jewel and Black Earth County, and the Alabaster River was a character in itself and enhanced the mood and tone of the novel. The author included very serious subject matter but handled it with grace and sensitivity and used graphic description sparingly. The River We Remember is a haunting yet hopeful story that I have no hesitation in recommending.
The year is 1958, and it’s Memorial Day in Jewel, Black Earth County when the body of wealthy landowner and farmer, Jimmy Quinn, is found floating in the Alabaster River. His death is the catalyst for a chain of events that the people of Jewel will never forget.
The River We Remember was a character-driven, atmospheric, slow-burn contemporary drama. There were so many powerful, sentimental moments that resonated and evoked an emotional response within me. These compassionate, flawed, wounded characters occupied space in my head and refused to budge. The POV’s featured in this novel were good people who were torn apart inside by adversity, abuse, judgment, and racism all the while hiding crippling emotional pain, traumatic backstories, devastating secrets, and stories of injustice. Each narrator – the sheriff, the retired sheriff and current part-time deputy, the town newsman, a female lawyer, a single mother who runs the local diner, and her fourteen-year-old son – offered varied and distinctive perspectives. The six POV characters were all scarred and impacted by war – some were veteran soldiers and others had lost loved ones.
The mystery sub-plot was very satisfying, and the last 20% was exciting and tense. It also served the purpose of laying bare this town’s extreme inequality and permeating darkness. The man killed was widely loathed in Jewel, but because he was white a lot of the townsfolk still considered him superior to a Dakota Sioux Native American, even though the latter was a peaceful, helpful, contributing, kind-hearted member of the community.
William Kent Krueger is a gifted writer and as always delivered beautiful, tender, and moving prose. I was completely able to visualise Jewel and Black Earth County, and the Alabaster River was a character in itself and enhanced the mood and tone of the novel. The author included very serious subject matter but handled it with grace and sensitivity and used graphic description sparingly. The River We Remember is a haunting yet hopeful story that I have no hesitation in recommending.