First published 2011
Tom Dula returns from the Civil War to the North Carolina mountains, where his romance with married Ann Melton continues despite the years apart. Their servant Pauline Foster watches and schemes, manipulating events that will lead to tragedy. When Laura Foster, a local country girl, turns up murdered, Tom faces charges for the crime. The case draws national attention as North Carolina's former governor takes up Tom's defense. The evidence points toward Tom and Ann as lovers who killed their rival, but the truth runs deeper than the sensational headlines suggest. As Tom awaits execution, he must decide whether to save the woman he loves or reveal what really happened. McCrumb uncovers new evidence about this famous mountain ballad, showing how a servant's jealousy destroyed two lives and sent an innocent man to the gallows.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery, thriller, 19th-century
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: North Carolina
Period: Civil War
311 pages · Hardcover · Thomas Dunne Books
Content warnings: murder, violence