A somber but absorbing Civil War tale about overcoming guilt.
In this debut novel, a Confederate soldier’s ghost laments his horrific war experiences and a secret that’s tormented him for years.
Tom Smiley has spent more than a century in his childhood Virginia home, long after his family members’ deaths and his own. He’s devastated when Phoebe and her husband inherit and invade the long-empty house. The couple’s presence stirs up Tom’s memories, starting with his 18-year-old self in the 1860s. As American states secede, a passionate speaker ropes him and others into enlisting in a “volunteer militia.” The young men hardly consider the militia’s anti-government stance or “the reasons behind the conflict.” Tom and his fellow soldiers soon feel trapped, as deserters are executed. They endure the grueling Civil War, from watching friends die in battle to appalling treatment at a Union prison camp. Despite Tom’s loving spouse and the children they have later, a horrible secret mercilessly burdens him. Unexpectedly, Phoebe, who has “second sight,” offers to help the ghost whose presence she senses. If Tom confesses to her and to himself, he may come to terms with what he did so long ago. Cutter paints a vivid portrait of the 19th century—a time of slavery and civil unrest. Her grim story reveals the suffering on all fronts. Union soldiers prove menacing at the prison camp as well as in their assaults in Virginia that Tom’s parents and sisters witness. The author’s striking prose invigorates such scenes as a close-quarters battle with bayonets while cannons roar and bombs continually explode. Tom, who narrates, is naïve but sympathetic; he worries about his friends’ well-being, whether under enemy fire or as prisoners. The engrossing story understandably centers on these young soldiers, with a nominal focus on the female characters, including Tom’s wife and even Phoebe. Tom’s sister Mary is a notable exception, with her letters and writings providing intriguing insights into the family in Virginia.
A somber but absorbing Civil War tale about overcoming guilt.Pub Date: July 12, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-64742-387-2
Page Count: 344
Publisher: She Writes Press
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
A delightfully nostalgic novel about how the things we loved in the past have the power to shape our future.
A boy band cruise is the site of one woman’s post-divorce healing.
Annie never meant to end up alone on a Boy Talk cruise, but that’s exactly what happens when her sister breaks a leg and has to bow out of their vacation. Now Annie is sharing a cabin with a stranger, stuck on the cruise ship American Fantasy with the 1990s band—and thousands of their biggest fans, known as Talkers. Annie doesn’t consider herself a Talker, even if she was a fan back in the day. But reeling from a recent divorce and dealing with complex feelings about turning 50, Annie throws herself into the distraction of the trip. What she doesn’t expect is to truly connect with the music, the band, the other fans, and herself. As Annie observes, “This was why people turned to religion or watched the Super Bowl at a sports bar instead of alone in their living room. It felt good to be a part of something where your passion was celebrated instead of mocked.” All the Talkers dream of having a special bond with “the guys,” but when Annie actually does meet Keith, a Boy Talk member who’s clearly going through a hard time, she wonders if their connection is real or if she’s just as delusional as the other (mostly) women on the ship. Straub depicts a wonderfully immersive world aboard the American Fantasy, one where each woman assigns herself a favorite guy and everyone is bedecked in Boy Talk merch. For five days, the Talkers live in a fantasy world where the only thing that matters is their connection with a band that meant everything to them so many years ago. As Annie puts it, “Inside her head, which is where she heard the music, it had touched some lever so deep that it couldn’t be reversed…the music was a direct vein to her own childhood, the least complicated part of her life.”
A delightfully nostalgic novel about how the things we loved in the past have the power to shape our future.Pub Date: April 7, 2026
ISBN: 9798217046850
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Riverhead
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2026
PERSPECTIVES
PERSPECTIVES
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
