Reviewed by Emma Megan for Readers' Favorite

Lady of the Plantation by Adrian Heflin is an extraordinary story of love, slavery, survival, and a craving for freedom. It showcases the pain and harsh realities of living a life of oppression on a tobacco plantation. Sylvia's story starts near Charlottesville, Virginia, on the Owensby Plantation. She is a beautiful and intelligent mulatto child born into slavery. Despite the differences in age and race, Sylvia and Ethel, her owner's daughter, are incredibly close. Due to an unfortunate event, Sylvia loses her mother but gains a new friend. Things become more complicated when the Owensby family decides to move to Georgia in the early 1800s. The story follows Sylvia and Ethel into adulthood and motherhood. Through trial and tribulation, they both fight for their families and dreams.

It was impossible not to admire Sylvia's intelligence, inner strength, and ambition to pursue a life that was denied to her. Her story is heartbreaking and inspiring. From start to finish, Lady of the Plantation by Adrian Heflin is powerful, intimate, and emotionally wrenching. It is an extraordinary must-read historical romance novel about slavery. This impressive tale told with empathy and heart, lets us experience the unfairness of slavery on an intimate, personal level. It perfectly captures the irony of underestimating an entire race. It is also an unforgettable tale of motherhood, ambition, sacrifice, hope, and the heartache of forbidden love. I recommend it to anyone looking for a beautifully written and essential novel on slavery.

Reviewed by Alma Boucher for Readers' Favorite

Tapestry: A Lowcountry Rapunzel by Sophia Alexander takes place in Greeleyville, SC in 1918. Gaynelle was always the first to rise and it was her favorite time of day when the world belonged to her alone. She enjoyed reading and her Aunt Anna sent her books, which she had to hide. Gaynelle’s sister Vivian was sick most of the time and could not go to school. She fell unconscious one night because of her illness and her father, Clayton, took her to the doctor. Gaynelle and Vivian’s stepmother Jessie always wanted a child of her own but suffered a few miscarriages. Vivian was her favorite and Gaynelle had to do all the chores in and around the house after school. She even had to help her father in the field and could not attend school for a few days. Jessie suggested that Clayton hire a boy to help in the field, which would allow Gaynelle to return to school.

Tapestry by Sophia Alexander has an uncomplicated plot that is easy to follow. The story was well written and the chapters just flow into one other. There was little action, but I enjoyed reading it. The characters were brilliantly developed and had personalities. They were introduced one at a time and I felt that I knew them before I was introduced to the next character. I could feel their love, happiness, and pain. The Southern dialect was very interesting and I was introduced to something new and fascinating. I just loved Gaynelle, her fondness for reading, the way she fell in love, and her innocence. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy love stories, with a stepmother to make events more interesting.

Reviewed by Natalie Soine for Readers' Favorite

Justice: The McCoys Before the Feud by Thomas Allan McCoy is an adventurous, suspenseful story set in the 1860s. The McCoys, Willy, Bill, Billy, George (G), and George (GH), wait until interest in their raid on the Northern Army gold has faded. Recruited by General Thomas Ewing, investigations lead the Pinkerton detective Agent Tucker and his eight deputies to Kansas. The McCoys enlist the help of Dusty Trails to guide them on the best route out of the area and away from the investigation. Through a tragic twist of fate, the Pinkerton detectives follow a new lead on the gold. Sheriff Dodd together with Willy, Billy, James, Festus, Junior, and Jonesy pursue Big John and his bandits, Hank and Slim, to Glasgow and St. Louis. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Willy and Festus befriend Clara and Sarah Bell Braxton. Is it possible that the McCoys will finally find peace?

Thomas Allan McCoy is a fantastic author who keeps the reader enthralled in this story from beginning to end. The wide variety of characters include bandits, investigators, and townsfolk who are all interesting yet easy to relate to. The scenes, locations, and events are all vividly described and create a feeling of living in the time of the great Westerns. The story is well-written, fast-paced, and comfortable to read. McCoy has a delightful writing style, exciting and succinct. I recommend Justice: The McCoys Before the Feud to all adults, young and old. An absolute treasure that belongs on every bookshelf.

Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite

Westland is the second novel in the Essie's Roses series by Michelle Muriel. Set in the years after the Civil War, the novel continues the story of Evie and Essie Mae. The two girls, now women, come back to their plantation, to Miss Katie and to the place they call home. While the plantation is now unproductive, it is still a place where they feel the safest. However, that safety is threatened once again when James receives threatening letters targeting Essie and Westland. Although James is ready to do whatever it takes to keep everyone safe, fate has other plans. Before they know it, someone very dangerous from the past is back, knocking on their door, and it looks like their peaceful family will be tested. With the rebels destroying everything and everyone in sight, Essie, Evie, and everyone at the plantation will have to stick together to survive.

Author Michelle Muriel has done a fantastic job of describing the fear and uncertainty Essie, Evie, and the rest of the people at Westland felt when their security was threatened. Emotions are running high from the very beginning and you can feel the tension between Evie and Essie. Even though Essie is a freed slave, the shadowy past of being a slave still has an impact on her. She is independent, smart, and can definitely make decisions for herself, but she still doubts herself from time to time. Evie, on the other hand, is just unsure of her abilities. While she does grow a lot and becomes a well-rounded character toward the end, she has a learning curve that feels very human and relatable. The actual plot of the story is fantastic. It has just the right amount of twists, action, and suspense to keep the story flowing seamlessly. What more can a reader ask for?

Reviewed by Trudi LoPreto for Readers' Favorite

When I Last Saw You by Bette Lee Crosby is the life story of Margaret Rose living in Georgia in 1968 and her mother Eliza Hobbs who lived in West Virginia in the 1900s. Margaret’s husband, whom she has been married to for many, many years, has just died and without ever having any children, she is feeling very alone. As time passes and events occur, she decides it is time to look for the siblings she has not seen in over 50 years. She hires Tom, a retired private investigator, and together the two travel the South looking for her brothers and sisters. At the same time, we are introduced to Margaret’s mother, Eliza. Eliza tells of the husband who was rarely home and when he was, he was not the nicest of men, hurting her both emotionally and physically. Eliza tells of the hard times they had and how she kept her family together with only a little money but a lot of love. In the end, Eliza had to send each of the children to a different place and the older ones off to survive on their own. Margaret and Tom’s journey finds them in different towns, searching, and also sharing some good times along the way.

It was very easy to be pulled into the lives of Margaret and Eliza and feel their pain, joy, love, and sorrow. When I Last Saw You is a story starting with a woman and going back to her childhood. This book gives readers an epic tale of heartbreak, hope, disappointment, and love, brilliantly told by Bette Lee Crosby with feeling, understanding, and a beautiful touch of reality. When I Last Saw You combines history, family relationships, love, romance and so much more and is based on a true story. This is a must-read book.

Reviewed by Grant Leishman for Readers' Favorite

Mingo by W. Jeff Barnes takes us to the rugged mountains of West Virginia and coal country not long after the beginning of the twentieth century. Two young boys, Durwood and Bascom Matney, have just buried their mother, alongside their sister. Durwood’s father decides that he would be a lot better, for the time being, being raised in Richmond by his mother’s distant cousin and so ships the young boy off. Bascom, at fourteen, has already joined his father down the mines but Durwood must come to terms with not only living with the rich and privileged in Richmond but that he will also face peer discrimination because of his “hillbilly” background. When Bascom turns eighteen, a seminal event down the mine, when one of his friends is killed in an accident, convinces him it is time to leave mining behind and head to Richmond to catch up with his younger brother and seek his future. Whilst making a future for himself in Richmond, Bascom discovers his cousin’s family back in Mingo County are suffering greatly through a miners' strike and violent reprisals by the mine owners. He determines to head back to Mingo County to help his cousin and his family out, while Durwood, feeling abandoned again by his brother, decides to sever all ties with his family and embrace his comfortable life in Richmond. The next time the two brothers meet they will be on opposite sides of a violent event that later became known as the Matewan Massacre, where both brothers will have to decide truly where their loyalties lie; to family or to personal convictions.

Mingo is a particularly compelling familial drama that places two brothers on either side of an ideological battle. W. Jeff Barnes does a truly fantastic job of developing both these lead characters to the point where the reader struggles to choose between them and their respective viewpoints. I particularly enjoyed the depth of character the author was able to develop in these two young men and the explosive tension that was carried right through to the last page of the novel. Based on true historical events that lend this story credence and a true sense of injustice, I was totally immersed in this tale from the very opening paragraph. The author’s descriptive prose took me deep into the mountains, to a place I’d never been before, and showed me not only the beauty and the starkness of the area but also the depths of poverty and helplessness that the working man faced in early twentieth-century America, especially in the mining industry. The right to organize labor that many enjoy today partly came from the rugged fortitude and courage of these early labor pioneers such as the coal miners of West Virginia and the author is to be congratulated for highlighting their heroic struggle in this story. Stories such as this, with a basis in historical events, give the author license to examine the relationship between familial love and duty with philosophical ideals. Barnes does this superbly, presenting both entrenched sides of the debate clearly and sensibly through his characters. I thoroughly enjoyed this read and can highly recommend it.

Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

Runaway Haley: An Imagined Family Saga is a work of fiction in the historical drama genre. It is suitable for the general reading audience and was penned by author William A. Thomas Jr. Inspired by the historical census reports recording the journey of the Haley family in the 1800s, this book fills in the blanks between the census data with a fictionalized account of what two generations of the family experienced. From Michael Haley’s arrival and life of adventure to the stories of his orphaned children picking up the pieces after his death, the book tells the story of the Haley family through strife and heartbreak.

This book is a fascinating exercise in storytelling via filling in the blanks of existing historical information, and I’m excited to see this method used so skilfully by William A. Thomas Jr. The names and dates and spartan pieces of information that can be found in census data, marriage certificates and various local records never truly bring into focus the vivid lives that the people being recorded once lived. But that is precisely a gap in our understanding of the past that Runaway Haley seeks to fill. Using very robust and professionally researched historical knowledge of the times in which the Haley family lived, and through connecting the dots left by the available records, this novel brings the whole family to life and tells a gripping and inspiring story about a family of immigrants living through a turbulent time of much change in American history. I happily recommend this book to all readers.

Reviewed by Trix Lee for Readers' Favorite

Mt. Moriah’s Wake by Melissa Norton Carro is a gripping tale about JoAnna Wilson, an aspiring writer from the countryside, and her inner struggles to reconcile her unspeakable past with the possibilities of the future. Jo, as her family and close friends lovingly call her, was orphaned at a young age and it was her Aunt Doro who raised her. Following the murder of her best friend, Grace, Jo moved to the big city. Carrying the weight of her mysterious past, Jo tried her best to start a new life. Now in her mid-twenties, with her dreams of being a writer seemingly permanently stalled, with her marriage teetering in the balance, with her self-identity in question, and with her ever-present guilt, Jo had to return to Mt. Moriah. This time, it would be for her Aunt Doro’s funeral. This time, Jo would have to face everything that she had been running away from — the guilt, the sorrow, the mourning, the memories. This time, Jo would have to make peace with the past, find out who she truly is, and decide the path for her future.

Mt. Moriah’s Wake is phenomenal. There are no other words to describe such a rich and well-crafted story. I enjoyed the way the narration alternated with Jo’s childhood, her life in the big city, and the present, giving us the context and building up to that startling denouement. I especially love the glorious one-liners that made me think about how powerful words could be when used by a great wordsmith. And Melissa Norton Carro is a great wordsmith. Her characters were written wonderfully, with all of their flaws and questionable decisions and misguided actions so that I felt like I knew them personally. I felt like I knew Aunt Doro, with her larger-than-life existence and unconditional albeit sometimes misguided love. I felt like I knew Maddy and his steadfast nature and unwavering faith; Grace, with her compassion that extends to friends and strangers alike; and Tom, with his gentleness and optimism and his very human reaction when he gets hurt. I felt like I knew Jo, with her insecurities and self-doubts and her struggles with her self-identity, fear, and loss of faith. A lot of times, I wept with them and a lot of times, I wept for them.

Mt. Moriah’s Wake is a thought-provoking and emotional story about life and everything that comes with it, the good and the bad and the ugly. There may be numerous references to God but trust me when I say that this is not a religious story nor is this a story about religion. I highly recommend this book to everyone. Just make sure to keep a pack of tissues nearby for when the narrative goes from somber to heart-rending. I certainly needed them.

Reviewed by Pikasho Deka for Readers' Favorite

Whereabouts is a coming-of-age story set in the rural south during the 70s. Seventeen-year-old Missy Belue's life turns upside down when her father dies of a massive heart attack, leading to her mother marrying the town mortician. Feeling emancipated in her humdrum life, Missy sees the opportunity to leave Kingstree behind when her significantly older third cousin, Skyles Huffman, swaggers into town. The two set off on the road to explore the deep south. However, Missy soon gets tired of Skyles's continuous advances toward her and leaves him stranded by hitching a ride with two AWOL marines. She finds herself working at a roadway diner for an eccentric man named Hassan. But when the past comes back unexpectedly to haunt her, Missy must set off once again to find her rightful place in this world.

Whereabouts is a thoughtful tale about making mistakes and growing up to discover your true self. Author Scott Gould's bittersweet novel follows a teenager on the cusp of adulthood, realizing her age through trying circumstances and wondering how much world she has yet to discover. This is a slice-of-life story that keeps you glued to the pages from start to finish. The characters are realistic, with human flaws that make them all the more compelling to read. Missy is a riveting protagonist who is easy to root for. Asa and Hassan are colorful characters who entertain you in every scene that they are in. I thoroughly enjoyed Whereabouts. If you like coming-of-age stories with well-realized characters, I highly recommend it.

Reviewed by Asher Syed for Readers' Favorite

Baby Moses by John Cowlin is a historical fiction novel set in rural Claiborne County in the South. After seven years away, getting an education and serving in the military, Moses takes the Greyhound home to his adopted granny, Miss Clio, a woman who raised him after he'd been found abandoned as a baby. As her health deteriorates, Moses prepares for the worst, devoting his time, energy, and love to Miss Clio, even as a crime spree rages around them. Harve and Enos have found that robbing a black church is a simpler way to make money than they'd initially thought and they carry on, despite having taken what they needed on the first shot. But when the two fall out and a child taken hostage from the church is beaten, raped, and left for dead, Moses and Deputy Boone refocus their efforts to make the perps pay.

John Cowlin delivers an absolute treat of a novel with Baby Moses, pressing forward a character-driven plot with a cast that comes to life. Cowlin achieves this almost entirely through dialogue, foregoing the usual information dumps in favor of the authentic voices of his characters, their emotional and physical responses, and trusting them to carry his narrative as we get to know them ourselves. The effect is wholly engrossing and accounts for one of the very best books I've read this year—which means more in 2020 when we've all been locked up for months. There's an incredibly visual element that Cowlin is able to create as we navigate the segregated American South, one where casual racism is more persistent than its overt partner, commingling in the community. A black pastor sitting on an empty bench at a gas station is told to move. A librarian calls the police when Moses reads quietly. A white cafe owner speaks of death at the hands of the Klan but then asks for quiet acceptance without retaliation. These are as deafening as the shockingly brutal crimes that fuel Moses's actions. Well done, John Cowlin. Very, very well done.