ellenigraves's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
tabithar's review
5.0
One of the first Sharyn McCrumb books I read. Moving, heartwrenching, and a very good read.
nursenell's review
5.0
This story is set in the Appalachia of eastern Tennessee. There are several stories within the story but they come together as one. There's a lot of sadness between a murder-suicide of 4 family members, the madness of the 2 children not killed, the death by fire of a young mom, the cancer death of a man fighting a giant paper company that's polluting the river, the minister's wife giving birth to a stillborn while her husband is in Desert Storm, and a sheriff fighting his own PTSD from Viet Nam yet what comes through is the strong resiliency of the survivors. And seeing all of it from her home atop the mountain is Nora Bonesteel, an elderly woman with the gift of seeing things before they happen.
judyward's review
4.0
In Dark Hollow, Tennessee, it was accepted within the community that Nora Bonesteel had "the Sight". And so she understood before anyone else that a tragedy had occured in the Underhill family. Sharyn McCrumb uses the mountain setting of eastern Tennessee to tell a story that seamlessly mixes Appalachian legends with the reality of modern America.
arthur_pendrgn's review
2.0
Not my favorite by any means. The stories don't tie together well, but I enjoy Nora Bonesteel. In other books she is more central.
susanatwestofmars's review
5.0
This has been my favorite, by far, of McCrumb's Appalachan series. And I've liked them all; this is truly one of my favorite series.
chelsea_not_chels's review
2.0
This one just didn't hit home for me. It seemed to lack a lot of depth and tried to tackle too many storylines and topics at once, considering it's part of a larger series that could have dealt with some of these things better in individual books.
attytheresa's review
4.0
In the prologue we find ourselves with the aging Nora Bonesteel, up on Ashe Mountain with her needlework, pet whistle pig (hedgehog to most of us), and her Scottish 'sight'. Nora is unsettled, ultimately starting a new quilt, one of a graveyard scene. Death is coming soon to the Underhill family in Dark Hollow. This quilt image [bc:The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter|28443121|The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter (Ballad #2)|Sharyn McCrumb|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1451861537l/28443121._SX50_.jpg|1175186] on the front of the Kindle Edition I read is exactly as described in the book, even to the fabric textures. I wish there was attribution for the cover quilt in the ebook. Once again someone's beautiful handiwork is deemed unworthy of identifying.
That is just an aside to my review. After Nora has warned us of what is coming, we meet Laura, a local minister's wife, a newlywed who is new to the community and left alone to manage while her husband is off serving his reserve tour in the Middle East. The sheriff calls her out to the murder scene to help with the 2 still living children. From here the plot stops being any real mystery, or any kind of murder investigation. Instead, the reader follows several characters through the next several months of their lives as they cope with various deaths, terminal illness, grief, and learning to embrace life again. There is also a very strong environmental theme about pollution and its effects on Appalachia. The efforts, humorous and ultimately uplifting, of 2 elderly men to make the up stream paper plant in the neighboring state clean up the river it has been dumping in for decades has me looking askance at the reams of paper under my desk, wondering at how environmentally compliant is the source.
This is a beautifully sad work of literary fiction masquerading as a murder mystery. But then it is part of the author's Ballad series, each of which takes you on a different ride through Appalachia.
That is just an aside to my review. After Nora has warned us of what is coming, we meet Laura, a local minister's wife, a newlywed who is new to the community and left alone to manage while her husband is off serving his reserve tour in the Middle East. The sheriff calls her out to the murder scene to help with the 2 still living children. From here the plot stops being any real mystery, or any kind of murder investigation. Instead, the reader follows several characters through the next several months of their lives as they cope with various deaths, terminal illness, grief, and learning to embrace life again. There is also a very strong environmental theme about pollution and its effects on Appalachia. The efforts, humorous and ultimately uplifting, of 2 elderly men to make the up stream paper plant in the neighboring state clean up the river it has been dumping in for decades has me looking askance at the reams of paper under my desk, wondering at how environmentally compliant is the source.
This is a beautifully sad work of literary fiction masquerading as a murder mystery. But then it is part of the author's Ballad series, each of which takes you on a different ride through Appalachia.
nmcspadd's review
2.0
Eh. I understand that the author was trying to paint a portrait of a community in crisis, and I suppose there was some thematic resonance between the various plots. But for me, the plots and characters were clumsily woven together (if at all) and really didn't make for a cohesive whole. Overall, I didn't find it to be a very insightful work. (Very creepy at times, though!)