Strange Folk
A Novel
-
- $13.99
Publisher Description
A woman returns to her estranged, magical family in Appalachia, where a conjuring meant to protect the community may have summoned something sinister in this lush and “bewitching debut” (Andrea Bartz, New York Times bestselling author) that is perfect for fans of Alice Hoffman, Deborah Harkness, and Sarah Addison Allen.
Lee left Craw Valley at eighteen without a backward glance. She wanted no part of the generations of her family who tapped into the power of the land to heal and help their community. But when she abandons her life in California and has nowhere else to go, Lee returns to Craw Valley with her children in tow to live with her grandmother, Belva.
Lee vows to stay far away from Belva’s world of magic, but when the target of one of her grandmother’s spells is discovered dead, Lee fears that Belva’s magic may have conjured something far more sinister. As she searches for answers to protect her family, Lee travels down a rabbit hole of strange phenomena and family secrets that force her to reckon with herself and rediscover her power.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Dyer's rich debut, a woman reckons with her family's legacy of Appalachian mountain magic. After Lee Carnell splits from her husband, Cooper, she and her adolescent children, Meredith and Cliff, return from California to Craw Valley, the homestead she left 20 years earlier. Under the guidance of her grandmother Belva, who is respected by many of the locals as a witch woman, Lee reacquaints herself with "the power of the land," which her family and others have channeled for healing purposes. The magic has a vengeful side, too, as Lee learns after Belva casts a spell meant to thwart the lust of a man named Joseph Hall who was caught ogling Meredith's friend. After Joseph is found dead under mysterious circumstances, Lee confronts her estranged mother Redbud for answers about the scope of the magic's power. Dyer raises the stakes further when Cooper shows up to try to lure the kids away and Lee rekindles a high school romance. The ease with which Lee and others master the magic feels contrived, but Dyer fortifies the tale with a well-timed surprise and gratifying reconciliations between her characters. It's catnip for fans of homespun tales of rural America.
