The River Burns

What is this book about?

The River Burns tells the story of a small town in crisis, the mistakes people make, and the courage it takes to heal a community after a horrific act of destruction.

Wakefield is a small town where a unique collection of longstanding citizens has lived mostly in harmony, accepting of each other’s foibles. But underneath the picture perfect exterior a battle rages between those who wish to preserve the historic single-lane covered bridge across the river, and the loggers who want it replaced with a modern alternative. As the days pass with no change in the dispute, tensions begin to boil over, friends turn against one another, and the town seethes with potential violence.

Family man and second-generation logger Denny O’Farrell has been leading the charge to modernize the bridge. When the bureaucratic route fails to produce results, Denny and his friends need a new plan of action. But local police officer Ryan O’Farrell, Denny’s brother, is very worried about exactly how much Denny and friends are willing to risk in order to win the war. Swept up into the dispute, lawyer Raine Tara-Anne Cogshill, a newcomer hiding from her big-city past, hasn’t bargained on getting caught up in a summer of violence.

My thoughts....

*I won a copy of this book on Goodreads First Reads and I was provided a copy in exchange for an honest review.* 

★★★★ 

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. The author writes in a very descriptive, poetic manner. The town and the people he creates and describes could be any small town in Canada. In this book the issue at hand was between the loggers and the environmentalists, historians and tourism industry. But the loggers could be replaced by coal miners, steel workers, fishermen, oil workers- issues that just about anyone in Canada can relate to. Added into all this was the complications of family relationships, love, friendships and small town politics.

I really enjoyed how the author wove baseball into the story. Baseball is a popular game for hardworking, small town folks. It is their recreation, socialization time after a hard days works. The author captured that sentiment perfectly.

The book is quite long and I found it started to drag a bit as I neared the end. There were also a few issues that I thought were not wrapped up or explained. Also, I realize this was an ARC copy but, the binding on my book let go almost immediately. I hope the finished product has a stronger binding.

Overall, this was a great read that I thoroughly enjoyed.