First published 2010
In the sweltering summer of 1953, the Loftis family gathers at their ancestral home in Virginia. But beneath the placid surface, tensions simmer. Patriarch Warren Loftis rules his clan with an iron fist, and his adult children - Cassy, Jeb, and Horace - chafe against his domineering ways. As the family's dark secrets slowly unravel, the Loftises must confront the corrosive legacy of their past and the uncertain future that awaits them. Styron's lyrical prose cuts to the heart of the human condition, exposing the fragility of family ties and the redemptive power of self-discovery.
Genres: literary-fiction, american-fiction, 20th-century, family-drama
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, lyrical
Tropes: family-drama, generational-conflict
Setting: Virginia
Period: 1953
370 pages · Kindle Edition · Open Road Media