Desperation Road

"An elegantly written, perfectly paced novel about a man and woman indelibly marked by violence. . . . outstanding"—now a movie starring Mel Gibson (Ron Rash, New York Times–bestselling author of Serena).

For eleven years the clock has been ticking for Russell Gaines as he sits in the state penitentiary in the Mississippi Delta. His sentence is now up, and he believes his debt has been paid. But when he returns home, he soon discovers that revenge lives and breathes all around him.


On the same day, a woman named Maben and her young daughter trudge along the side of the interstate under the punishing summer sun. Desperate and exhausted, the pair spend their last dollar on a room for the night, a night that ends with Maben running through the darkness holding a pistol, and a dead deputy sprawled in the middle of the road.


With the dawn, destinies collide, and Russell is forced to decide whose life he will save—his own or those of the woman and child. Delivered in powerful and lyrical prose, Desperation Road is a story of troubled souls twisted with regret and bound by secrets.


"Smith writes shapely prose and sharp dialogue and everywhere displays an acute sense of the moments and pain that can define lives in a small town." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review


"Elegant prose and masterful storytelling transform this tale into a work of literary art." —Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"A brilliantly compelling novel." —Robert Olen Butler, Pulitzer prize-winning author of A Small Hotel