First published 1977
Bourbonville, Tennessee bears the scars of war when violence strikes again. Someone has committed murder in this small community where residents struggle to rebuild their lives after the Confederate defeat. The killing sends ripples through a town already fractured by loss, poverty, and the bitter aftermath of conflict. Old loyalties clash with new realities as neighbors eye each other with suspicion. The investigation forces residents to confront not only the crime in their midst but also the deeper wounds left by years of bloodshed. In this place where the past refuses to stay buried, solving one death means reckoning with many others. The search for truth becomes a journey through the wreckage of war and the fragile hope of peace.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, crime, 19th-century, american-history
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: past-haunts-present, secrets-and-lies
Setting: Bourbonville, Tennessee
Period: Post-Civil-War
Mass Market Paperback · Signet
Content warnings: violence