Idgie Says:This novel was selected as "A Book All Georgians Should Read" by Georgia Center for the Book. I have to agree - once I started reading I was floored by how good this book is.
I am most annoyed at myself for not hunting it down when it was first released in 2015, but I have been booked swamped to the point of panic for about 2 years now, leaving me to miss gems that don't automatically land on my doorstep. I'll make up for that now by absolutely singing it's praises to anyone that will listen... and perhaps even people I randomly accost in public with book recommendations.
I read the first chapter and right out of the gate....WOW.... Did not see that coming. By Chapter 3 I had snickered, winced, laughed out loud and had my jaw drop by the unexpected. Mind you, this is not a happy book and the snickering and laughing was short and random. Don't expect that to continue through the story.
This is the damn twistiest book I have read in a while. Just when you think you have it all under control in your mind, another dark and unexpected turn appears in the story, making you jolt upright and tense those reading muscles once again.
Chapters alternate between all the various characters in the story and every single one of them is alive and interesting. There is no cardboard characterization here. The dialogue and mannerisms of the local Georgia mountain people is spot on, you can tell Brian lives and breathes the air there.
I HIGHLY recommend this book and my list of MUST READS of 2016 has grown by one.
Click on link to read an excerpt.
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Bull Mountain
Brian Panowich
G.P. Putnam's Sons; Reprint edition (June 21, 2016)
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Book Description:
From a remarkable new voice in Southern fiction, a multigenerational saga of crime, family, and vengeance.
Clayton Burroughs comes from a long line of outlaws. For generations, the Burroughs clan has made its home on Bull Mountain in North Georgia, running shine, pot, and meth over six state lines, virtually untouched by the rule of law. To distance himself from his family’s criminal empire, Clayton took the job of sheriff in a neighboring community to keep what peace he can. But when a federal agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms shows up at Clayton’s office with a plan to shut down the mountain, his hidden agenda will pit brother against brother, test loyalties, and could lead Clayton down a path to self-destruction.
In a sweeping narrative spanning decades and told from alternating points of view, the novel brilliantly evokes the atmosphere of the mountain and its inhabitants: forbidding, loyal, gritty, and ruthless. A story of family—the lengths men will go to protect it, honor it, or in some cases destroy it—Bull Mountain is an incredibly assured debut that heralds a major new talent in fiction.