Dark River Road

Dark River Road is a novel by Virginia Brown.  It was a Kindle Daily Deal and really caught my eye by being set in Mississippi.  I thought it was set in the Civil Rights Era (my favorite), but I misunderstood and it actually was in two parts; one in the 1980s and one in the present.  However, that didn't take away from my interest and liking of the book. 

It is the story of Chantry, a young teen at the beginning of the book, trying to navigate life as an adolescent with several strikes against him.  Chantry has a drunken step-father and lives in Mississippi, which even in 1980 was still very segregated by socio-economic class and race.  Chantry is white, but his neighbor and best friend is black.  The town Chantry lives in is dominated by a rich white man.  He pretty much controls everything in the town with his money and everyone is afraid of him, except Chantry.  There are many secrets revolving around Bert Quinton and Chantry is determined to learn the truth.  Unfortunately, sometimes the truth hurts.  Chantry is a troubled young man and has many run-ins with the law, but you can't help but root for him in this story. 

It is a long book with some language and teenage sexual promiscuity, but definitely worth the read.  It has two parts, one when Chantry is a teenager and one fourteen years later when he returns to his hometown as a grown man.  I couldn't put it down because I was never really sure what would happen next.  It also tugged at my heart strings that so much could happen to such a young kid.  It was a realistic story that I could lose myself in.  I highly recommend it!