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Ballad #5
The Ballad of Frankie Silver
The New York Times BestsellerSet in the Appalachian wilderness and blending legends and folklore with high suspense, this stellar novel, The Ballad of Frankie Silver, is considered one of McCrumb's crowning achievements.In 1833 Frankie Silver was an eighteen-year-old girl convicted of murder in Burke County, North Carolina. Through a detailed investigation, the local sheriff, and soon all the townsfolk, discover reason to question her guilt---but the wheels of justice were mercilessly unstoppable, and she was hanged. Now, more than a century later, another woman is convicted of murder in the lush hills of Tennessee. Her life is in the hands of Spencer Arrowood, a man who begins to discover that the convictions of these two women have deep and haunting parallels. Although Frankie's fate cannot be changed, there is still time to alter the fate of another innocent woman.In a voice that could only be Sharyn McCrumb's, the worlds of these two murders, these two women, intersect in this densely plotted and lyrical novel—and characters, generations, and history are breathlessly painted against an Appalachian canvas.
418 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 1998
111 people are currently reading
1512 people want to read
About the author
Sharyn McCrumb
116 books1,127 followers
Sharyn McCrumb, an award-winning Southern writer, is best known for her Appalachian “Ballad” novels, including the New York Times best sellers The Ballad of Tom Dooley, The Ballad of Frankie Silver, and The Songcatcher. Ghost Riders, which won the Wilma Dykeman Award for Literature from the East Tennessee Historical Society and the national Audie Award for Best Recorded Books. The Unquiet Grave, a well-researched novel about West Virginia's Greenbrier Ghost, will be published in September by Atria, a division of Simon &Schuster.
Sharyn McCrumb, named a Virginia Woman of History by the Library of Virginia and a Woman of the Arts by the national Daughters of the American Revolution, was awarded the Mary Hobson Prize for Arts & Letters in 2014. Her books have been named New York Times and Los Angeles Times Notable Books. In addition to presenting programs at universities, libraries, and other organizations throughout the US, Sharyn McCrumb has taught a writers workshop in Paris, and served as writer-in-residence at King University in Tennessee, and at the Chautauqua Institute in western New York.
Sharyn McCrumb, an award-winning Southern writer, is best known for her Appalachian “Ballad” novels, including the New York Times best sellers The Ballad of Tom Dooley, The Ballad of Frankie Silver, and The Songcatcher. Ghost Riders, which won the Wilma Dykeman Award for Literature from the East Tennessee Historical Society and the national Audie Award for Best Recorded Books. The Unquiet Grave, a well-researched novel about West Virginia's Greenbrier Ghost, will be published in September by Atria, a division of Simon &Schuster.
Sharyn McCrumb, named a Virginia Woman of History by the Library of Virginia and a Woman of the Arts by the national Daughters of the American Revolution, was awarded the Mary Hobson Prize for Arts & Letters in 2014. Her books have been named New York Times and Los Angeles Times Notable Books. In addition to presenting programs at universities, libraries, and other organizations throughout the US, Sharyn McCrumb has taught a writers workshop in Paris, and served as writer-in-residence at King University in Tennessee, and at the Chautauqua Institute in western New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 307 reviews
October 20, 2015
Description: A career lawman will bear witness to the final judgement, as a man he put away twenty years ago is about to be executed for the brutal slaying of two hikers. However, his conscience is no longer clear to the point of absolute certainty about the man's guilt. Also of intense interest to the lawman is the parallel between the current events and a legendary murder and execution over 100 years old -- the story of a great injustice, and a woman condemned to die for a crime she didn't commit. Suddenly, the sheriff finds himself in a race against and across time to see that history doesn't repeat itself!
Old Sparky, Tennessee
3* She Walks These Hills (Ballad, #3)
TR The Rosewood Casket (Ballad, #4)
CR The Ballad of Frankie Silver (Ballad, #5)
September 25, 2010
Frankie Silver was a real person,the first woman hanged in the state of North Carolina, on July 12, 1833. Hers was a tragic story - 18 years old when brought to trial for the murder of her husband, mother of an infant daughter.Convicted in a two-day trial, she was not allowed by law to testify in her own behalf. Her appeals denied by the state supreme court, a grass-roots effort in the community arose to secure a pardon ,but it was not to be. As she stood on the gallows, about to speak, her own father shut her down with the cry, "Die with it in you, Frankie!"
Modern-day Sheriff Spencer Arrowood receives notice that, as sheriff of the home county, he is to witness the execution of a man he himself had put on death row some twenty years ago. Sure of himself as a young deputy, he is much less so as a mature sheriff, and his uncertainties lead him to the case of the lamented Mrs. Silver. What is the connection between two cases 160 years apart? Ms. McCrumb deftly weaves both stories together so that the great disparities between truth and justice stand in stark contrast. Read this book.
Modern-day Sheriff Spencer Arrowood receives notice that, as sheriff of the home county, he is to witness the execution of a man he himself had put on death row some twenty years ago. Sure of himself as a young deputy, he is much less so as a mature sheriff, and his uncertainties lead him to the case of the lamented Mrs. Silver. What is the connection between two cases 160 years apart? Ms. McCrumb deftly weaves both stories together so that the great disparities between truth and justice stand in stark contrast. Read this book.
September 12, 2020
This passage makes me swoon: "The blonde man was a Mr. Silver, the keeper of the family history. He could have been any age, and he had been born here in the county, but his accent had been worn away like a river rock, softened by years spent in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles. Now he had come home to stay and attend the legends."
One of my favorite characters from this wonderful series is Nora Bonesteel. She has the Sight which unnerves some people. Indeed, "Nobody wanted to have much to do with Nora Bonesteel. She knew things. People said that when you came to tell her the news of a death in the valley the cake for the family was already in the oven"
One of my favorite characters from this wonderful series is Nora Bonesteel. She has the Sight which unnerves some people. Indeed, "Nobody wanted to have much to do with Nora Bonesteel. She knew things. People said that when you came to tell her the news of a death in the valley the cake for the family was already in the oven"
November 24, 2015
Cowboy stories are definitely not my thing. I should know better than to read books nominated by people who consider Ernest Hemingway the greatest writer ever even if it was for my in person book club.
October 24, 2015
This book has two threads:one is about a trial and execution of Frankie Silver in 1830 North Carolina. The second is about a modern day murder in Tennessee. The author goes back and forth between the two and connects the two at the end. Sheriff Spencer Arrowood is the modern day central character in the book. He is a central character in other ballad books. I give it four stars out of five.
December 22, 2009
Didn't really hold my attention. Weird subplot that I'm guessing was meant to parallel the main story, but didn't really. Odd details and foreshadowing that didn't lead anywhere and/or their resolutions were anti-climatic (for example, Burgess mentioned the death of his brother a few times and within the context, made it sound like the death would be an integral part of the story later on. . . of which it was certainly not. And such a big deal was made about keeping the newest murder news away from a sheriff who was recovering from and injury -- so when he finally finds out about the case, he was like "You shouldn't have kept this from me," then he overtook the investigation and that was that!)
Overall, the flow of novel was disjointed, and the switching between time periods was confusing and imo added nothing to the story. I felt like I was reading something written by a student who was assigned to write a 50 page story and only had significant material for 30 so to stretch it out, he threw in a subplot but missed connecting the dots.
Overall, the flow of novel was disjointed, and the switching between time periods was confusing and imo added nothing to the story. I felt like I was reading something written by a student who was assigned to write a 50 page story and only had significant material for 30 so to stretch it out, he threw in a subplot but missed connecting the dots.
August 27, 2017
A good mystery with some NC history; to my mind a great combination.
May 1, 2013
I never imagined that the story of two double murders and a woman who hacked her husband to death with an axe could be mind-numbingly boring, but Sharyn McCrumb was able to do it. I can't tell you how many pages of intertwining family trees I read through, willing my poor brain to keep them all in order, until I finally realized that they were going to have nothing, NOTHING to do with ANYTHING.
How many times could we be reminded about how small and young Frankie was? How many letters sent to the governor did we have to hear explained, and then forced to read? How many completely uninteresting and pointless characters did we have to be forced to meet? By the end of the book I couldn't have cared less about a single one of them.
All in all, a waste of time and money.
How many times could we be reminded about how small and young Frankie was? How many letters sent to the governor did we have to hear explained, and then forced to read? How many completely uninteresting and pointless characters did we have to be forced to meet? By the end of the book I couldn't have cared less about a single one of them.
All in all, a waste of time and money.
May 20, 2022
What a somber tale, but I expect that from half the Ballad retellings I suppose. Sharyn got my hopes up there'd be a righteous ending, but alas.
The original case is absolutely fascinating. I'd read something that Sharyn solved the original mystery in her research of this one, but IDK what part of it that was. There's so little information in the wikipedia entry that I am hungry for more.
The author's note was fascinating as usual. Sharyn's research is unmatched and her examination of Appalachian-specific class struggle and prejudice through the lens of Mountain People versus affluent city folk was well done, if saddening.
The original case is absolutely fascinating. I'd read something that Sharyn solved the original mystery in her research of this one, but IDK what part of it that was. There's so little information in the wikipedia entry that I am hungry for more.
The author's note was fascinating as usual. Sharyn's research is unmatched and her examination of Appalachian-specific class struggle and prejudice through the lens of Mountain People versus affluent city folk was well done, if saddening.
July 27, 2021
Based on the historical story of Charlie and Frankie Silver’s complicated case.
I loved this novel. Nuanced and layered with many facets of the complications of law, justice and humanity. Powerful and highly recommended for anyone who is interested in going into police work, social services and/or counseling.
Would recommend for 18+ because of details of the case.
I loved this novel. Nuanced and layered with many facets of the complications of law, justice and humanity. Powerful and highly recommended for anyone who is interested in going into police work, social services and/or counseling.
Would recommend for 18+ because of details of the case.
October 7, 2014
The Ballad of Frankie Silver is the only Sharyn McCrumb novel I've read. And that's to my loss.
I read the paperback version of The Ballad of Frankie Silver about five years ago and I've kept it on my shelf ever since, knowing I'll reread it at least a couple more times over the next few years. Yeah, it's that good.
The story alternates between two murder cases, one from 1833, the other from the 1990s. Sheriff Spencer Arrowood is working on the latter while researching the former. What he finds influences his view of his current case. Watching Sheriff Arrowood think his way through the case, challenge public opinion of everyone in town, and stand on principle rather than the public outrage of the case is one of the most pleasurable reading experiences I've had in the past ten years.
As for the murder case from 1833, Frankie Silver is the main character from that storyline, and what a character. She's on trial for murder. Should be a clear-cut case. But, of course, it isn't. Frankie Silver is one of my all-time favorite characters in fiction. She's strong, sympathetic, resourceful, and courageous. Yet, she's no super woman. She hurts, suffers, is lonely, and has to persevere through an extremely difficult time, even when all others around her may desert her.
As for the writing, wow. McCrumb knows how to turn a phrase without making it seem like she's turning a phrase. Know what I mean? Sometimes authors write descriptive narrative with flourishes and metaphors and similes, and sometimes it works, but may times it doesn't. It just seems like the author is writing that way because she can and she wants us to know she can. That is not the case with McCrumb's writing. Yes, it's descriptive, it's beautiful, it's powerful, but it never gets in the way of the story she's telling.
And I guess that's the best thing I could say about McCrumb--she's a fantastic storyteller. After that, what else is there?
If you're looking for two murder mysteries rolled into one, a story that stretches across time to touch your heart and challenge your mind, and some characters you'll grow to love, then check out The Ballad of Frankie Silver.
In tomorrow's review, I'll discuss a book that was the author's first attempt at writing without an outline, this after having published at least four novels with some success. Turned out, this novel would become his first hardcover bestseller and he would never again use an outline for any of his novels after that.
I read the paperback version of The Ballad of Frankie Silver about five years ago and I've kept it on my shelf ever since, knowing I'll reread it at least a couple more times over the next few years. Yeah, it's that good.
The story alternates between two murder cases, one from 1833, the other from the 1990s. Sheriff Spencer Arrowood is working on the latter while researching the former. What he finds influences his view of his current case. Watching Sheriff Arrowood think his way through the case, challenge public opinion of everyone in town, and stand on principle rather than the public outrage of the case is one of the most pleasurable reading experiences I've had in the past ten years.
As for the murder case from 1833, Frankie Silver is the main character from that storyline, and what a character. She's on trial for murder. Should be a clear-cut case. But, of course, it isn't. Frankie Silver is one of my all-time favorite characters in fiction. She's strong, sympathetic, resourceful, and courageous. Yet, she's no super woman. She hurts, suffers, is lonely, and has to persevere through an extremely difficult time, even when all others around her may desert her.
As for the writing, wow. McCrumb knows how to turn a phrase without making it seem like she's turning a phrase. Know what I mean? Sometimes authors write descriptive narrative with flourishes and metaphors and similes, and sometimes it works, but may times it doesn't. It just seems like the author is writing that way because she can and she wants us to know she can. That is not the case with McCrumb's writing. Yes, it's descriptive, it's beautiful, it's powerful, but it never gets in the way of the story she's telling.
And I guess that's the best thing I could say about McCrumb--she's a fantastic storyteller. After that, what else is there?
If you're looking for two murder mysteries rolled into one, a story that stretches across time to touch your heart and challenge your mind, and some characters you'll grow to love, then check out The Ballad of Frankie Silver.
In tomorrow's review, I'll discuss a book that was the author's first attempt at writing without an outline, this after having published at least four novels with some success. Turned out, this novel would become his first hardcover bestseller and he would never again use an outline for any of his novels after that.
July 11, 2014
**edited 12/04/13
Frankie Silver was not quite what I expected from the description. It does indeed interweave the present-day with the past, but it is the past where McCrumb focuses her energy and narrative. The two present-day cases only add a frame of reference and a sense of immediacy and connection to that long-ago crime. In the present day, Tennessee Sheriff Spencer Arrowood, laid up at home due to injuries during a shootout, is brooding on the upcoming execution of a man he helped to put behind bars. Mentally, he begins to link the case to that of Frankie Silver, an eighteen-year-old girl tried for the murder and savage decapitation of her husband in the early 1800s. Frankie was subsequently found guilty hung by the neck until dead, but her death only added to the case's sense of incompleteness-- how could she have had the sheer strength to chop up her husband so brutally? What were her last words to be when they were silenced by her father? The book quickly delves into the past, and Frankie's story is told alternately from her own point of view and that of the clerk of the court.
Due to my disapproval of GR's new and rather subjective review deletion policy, The rest of my (rather verbose and quote-filled) review is posted over here at Booklikes.
Frankie Silver was not quite what I expected from the description. It does indeed interweave the present-day with the past, but it is the past where McCrumb focuses her energy and narrative. The two present-day cases only add a frame of reference and a sense of immediacy and connection to that long-ago crime. In the present day, Tennessee Sheriff Spencer Arrowood, laid up at home due to injuries during a shootout, is brooding on the upcoming execution of a man he helped to put behind bars. Mentally, he begins to link the case to that of Frankie Silver, an eighteen-year-old girl tried for the murder and savage decapitation of her husband in the early 1800s. Frankie was subsequently found guilty hung by the neck until dead, but her death only added to the case's sense of incompleteness-- how could she have had the sheer strength to chop up her husband so brutally? What were her last words to be when they were silenced by her father? The book quickly delves into the past, and Frankie's story is told alternately from her own point of view and that of the clerk of the court.
Due to my disapproval of GR's new and rather subjective review deletion policy, The rest of my (rather verbose and quote-filled) review is posted over here at Booklikes.
October 6, 2012
مؤلمة, و مقززة.
تمر مئات السنين و يظن الإنسان أنه بلغ أوج التقدم و الحضارة, و لكن في الواقع لا يتغير الإنسان. يبقى هو ذلك الوحش الأهوج المتعطش للدماء.
رواية رائعة.
تمر مئات السنين و يظن الإنسان أنه بلغ أوج التقدم و الحضارة, و لكن في الواقع لا يتغير الإنسان. يبقى هو ذلك الوحش الأهوج المتعطش للدماء.
رواية رائعة.
August 8, 2020
So many parts that didn't lead anywhere. Frankie's death was sad and so was Fate's. Ending conveyed poor are hanged and family values of mountain people. Cool fact: We don't wonder the reason why someone commits a crime because that would be questioning Gods will! That's why the system is set up this way; to put bandages instead of solving the problem. Religion is truly embedded in everything.
Good quotes:
-- I'm just not sure that you can take one day of a person's life, draw a line, and judge him on it. I'm getting old. I keep thinking the world would be a better place if there's less justice and more charity.
Good quotes:
-- I'm just not sure that you can take one day of a person's life, draw a line, and judge him on it. I'm getting old. I keep thinking the world would be a better place if there's less justice and more charity.
February 27, 2020
I live in the rural town of Morganton, where the first woman ever was sentenced to hang in the state of North Carolina. Ive always wanted to find out more about this tragic yet sad tale. It was interesting indeed to learn more about the legendary infamous Frankie Silver.
April 8, 2017
Mary Jane has suggested Sharyn McCrumb to me innumerable times over the years, and I finally picked up a library discard to read on the plane. I really enjoyed it, though I wouldn't binge-read McCrumb's books if this one is representative; the tone is dark enough to require some spacing out, and the historical figures are pretty accurate and detail-heavy, down to enumerating a complex web of relatives of the family into which Gaither married. That's why it deserves tagging as history. I would read more of this author, just not one after another.
This one takes place in Morganton, NC, about an hour east of here. Opened up the latest issue of Our State magazine to see a photo of the "new" courthouse mentioned by Burgess Gaither, and the article mentions Frankie Silver. Always enriches the reading experience if I can relate the book to a real place I have been or known, and we are learning this part of the southern Appalachians.
Deft weaving of the historical and contemporary story lines. As the author says in the afterword, not much has changed over a century and a half in the unequal way "justice" is administered to those with means and those without. Thoughtful as well as entertaining.
This one takes place in Morganton, NC, about an hour east of here. Opened up the latest issue of Our State magazine to see a photo of the "new" courthouse mentioned by Burgess Gaither, and the article mentions Frankie Silver. Always enriches the reading experience if I can relate the book to a real place I have been or known, and we are learning this part of the southern Appalachians.
Deft weaving of the historical and contemporary story lines. As the author says in the afterword, not much has changed over a century and a half in the unequal way "justice" is administered to those with means and those without. Thoughtful as well as entertaining.
January 4, 2016
Some verses from the Bible about equal justice under the law:
Leviticus 19:15 "Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly."
Proverbs 29:7 "The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern."
This book made me see that even among decent, respectable people, of good moral character, it is very difficult to be impartial, and one must really 'go against the flow' to show equal justice and mercy to rich and poor alike. Perhaps something that we human beings need divine help to be able to do. Reading this story leads me to admire those in law enforcement and judicial careers who truly strive to provide equal justice to people from all walks of life, and I now want to have my eyes open to any ways in which I can offer encouragement to those who are looking out for the legal rights of the poor.
In addition to stirring up my heart to care more about what happens in our nation's courts of law, 'The Ballad of Frankie Silver' is also a well-written novel which tells an interesting story.
Leviticus 19:15 "Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly."
Proverbs 29:7 "The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern."
This book made me see that even among decent, respectable people, of good moral character, it is very difficult to be impartial, and one must really 'go against the flow' to show equal justice and mercy to rich and poor alike. Perhaps something that we human beings need divine help to be able to do. Reading this story leads me to admire those in law enforcement and judicial careers who truly strive to provide equal justice to people from all walks of life, and I now want to have my eyes open to any ways in which I can offer encouragement to those who are looking out for the legal rights of the poor.
In addition to stirring up my heart to care more about what happens in our nation's courts of law, 'The Ballad of Frankie Silver' is also a well-written novel which tells an interesting story.
March 20, 2018
قصة حقيقية عن فرانكى سيلفر أول امرأة تُشنق في كارولينا الشمالية لارتكابها جريمة قتل في عام 1833
نجحت الكاتبة بإعادة رسم القضية بكل ابعادها واحياء تفاصيلها لتعود بنا الى القرن الماضي بحرفية شديدة وإتقان مبدع يدل على كم الجهد المبذول في تقص الحقيقة عن جريمة مر على وقوعها ما يزيد عن قرن ونصف من الزمان ... ولكن تجلت براعة الكاتبة في ربط هذه الجريمة بأخرى وقعت منذ عشرون عاما فقط لتحلق بنا برشاقة منقطعة النظير بين شخصيات الرواية وبين أروقة الماضي والحاضر دون أن نفقد عنصري التركيز والتشويق معا فنستكمل المتعة بتفاصيل الحياة في القرن الماضي بين ارستقراطية القضاء وجهل العامة
عشقت تفاصيل الرواية وتعايشت مع شخوصها وخاصة:
العمدة سبنسر أروود : الباحث عن الحقيقة والمثقل بالذنب
كاتب المحكمة بيرجيس غيدز : راوي قصة فرانكى سيلفر المقيد بقوانين العصر
فرانكى سيلفر: المجني عليها في ثوب الجاني وضحية الجهل والفقر
إن تمكن الكاتبة من جمع كل الخيوط وتوضيح العلاقات المتشابكة بين الشخصيات لمنح القارئ فرصة كاملة لتصور العصر والرؤية القانونية والاجتماعية المصاحبة للقضية والمؤثرة فيها
أثرى الرواية وجعلها أرقى من مجرد رواية بوليسية ...إنها دراما تاريخية في إطار بوليسي وما جعلها أقوى تأثيرا هو كونها قصة حقيقية
نجحت الكاتبة بإعادة رسم القضية بكل ابعادها واحياء تفاصيلها لتعود بنا الى القرن الماضي بحرفية شديدة وإتقان مبدع يدل على كم الجهد المبذول في تقص الحقيقة عن جريمة مر على وقوعها ما يزيد عن قرن ونصف من الزمان ... ولكن تجلت براعة الكاتبة في ربط هذه الجريمة بأخرى وقعت منذ عشرون عاما فقط لتحلق بنا برشاقة منقطعة النظير بين شخصيات الرواية وبين أروقة الماضي والحاضر دون أن نفقد عنصري التركيز والتشويق معا فنستكمل المتعة بتفاصيل الحياة في القرن الماضي بين ارستقراطية القضاء وجهل العامة
عشقت تفاصيل الرواية وتعايشت مع شخوصها وخاصة:
العمدة سبنسر أروود : الباحث عن الحقيقة والمثقل بالذنب
كاتب المحكمة بيرجيس غيدز : راوي قصة فرانكى سيلفر المقيد بقوانين العصر
فرانكى سيلفر: المجني عليها في ثوب الجاني وضحية الجهل والفقر
إن تمكن الكاتبة من جمع كل الخيوط وتوضيح العلاقات المتشابكة بين الشخصيات لمنح القارئ فرصة كاملة لتصور العصر والرؤية القانونية والاجتماعية المصاحبة للقضية والمؤثرة فيها
أثرى الرواية وجعلها أرقى من مجرد رواية بوليسية ...إنها دراما تاريخية في إطار بوليسي وما جعلها أقوى تأثيرا هو كونها قصة حقيقية
July 2, 2022
Frankie Silver was a victim of her circumstances with plenty of unfortunate parallels to today's events.
June 19, 2022
Excellent historical fiction based on an event from North Carolina’s history, the 1830s trial of Frankie Silver, a young mother accused of murdering her husband.
When present day Sheriff Spencer Arrowood begins to have misgivings about an upcoming execution – one he must witness – it causes him to reflect back on the folklore surrounding the Frankie Silver case. The parallel he uncovers between the two cases leads to an unsettling revelation and provides insight into the cultural inequality of the justice system, both then and now.
September 3, 2023
Sad tale of a young woman, convicted of murder in the 1830’s and compared with a modern day convicted murderer. Both are sentenced to death and in trying to figure out the modern murder, Sheriff Spencer Arrowwood solves the mystery of Frankie SIlver. Lot of detail in this tale so it can be a bit slow in parts.
October 11, 2019
Four stars for historic research, three for writing. Feels a bit dated and slightly melodramatic.
July 30, 2017
I've been wanting to read one of McCrumb's Ballad Series for a few years, and man did I enjoy it. I love that she's bringing these ballads to life. I loved reading about life in Appalachia in both the 19th and 20th centuries. And I just love Southern Lit.
May 8, 2019
A little slow in places but I quite liked the fact that the novel is based on the true story behind a ballad. Tugged at my heartstrings in a few places too
January 23, 2018
A tedious, plodding family history. Absolutely no mystery to it. The resolution is apparent from the start.
February 27, 2017
Initially I thought this book wasn't going anywhere but it did and was well-worth the read. The part that was confusing was she jumped between different murder cases on the same page which I found confusing. However, having been raised in East Tennessee, I was familiar with the locations mentioned in the stories and was interested in the tales she was relating. I gave her a 5 because she kept to the actual facts of the different murders and added conversations that were very believable. Everyone should know the about the real Frankie Silver.
May 9, 2022
I've wanted to read Sharyn McCrumb's books for a long time. I was disappointed with this one. So much research became too much to put into a novel versus a non-fiction account of the real story of Frankie Silver's sad story. I get that families were interconnected in those days, but did we really have to be given every link to every member of every family, when 98% of them never had any relevance to Frankie Silver's case? It became so mind-numbing that I skimmed through or skipped over an increasing amount of backstories and sidebars that led nowhere. The cousins 30 times removed. The families with slim blood connections to the main characters. No wonder this book was so long.
The modern-day plot could have been completely cut out without losing anything. Anti-climactic, and all I really got out of it was that the sheriff felt guilty about the outcome of his first murder case as a hot-shot young deputy, and since he was at home recovering from being shot, he chose to review everything he could find from his own case and the one so long ago.
Toward the end of the book, yet another murder case is thrown into the mix, as though two weren't already enough. The sheriff is kept so much in the dark about it, when he finally hears (and so do readers) some actual details about it, there aren't enough pages left to explore any part of it except, oh, well, it's been solved. It wasn't needed, and should have been edited out.
I gave this 3 stars because of the extended research. The actual storylines deserved 2 stars.
Even the quote from one of the murderers of the Clutter family left me wondering why it was included. The husband, wife and children were slaughtered by two career criminals.
Frankie Silver either killed her drunk husband to defend herself and her child, if we are to believe Sharyn McCrumb's interpretation of the story, or she killed him in a fit of rage. We will never know, because she apparently decided not to speak on her own behalf at any time. I can't see how her case ties into the ruminations of Perry Smith, who knew the possible consequences of his actions before he and his co-conspirator broke into the Clutter home.
Thank goodness women speak up for themselves these days. Perhaps a better parallel fictitious story should have centered around a modern-day woman in similar circumstances who did choose to defend herself.
The modern-day plot could have been completely cut out without losing anything. Anti-climactic, and all I really got out of it was that the sheriff felt guilty about the outcome of his first murder case as a hot-shot young deputy, and since he was at home recovering from being shot, he chose to review everything he could find from his own case and the one so long ago.
Toward the end of the book, yet another murder case is thrown into the mix, as though two weren't already enough. The sheriff is kept so much in the dark about it, when he finally hears (and so do readers) some actual details about it, there aren't enough pages left to explore any part of it except, oh, well, it's been solved. It wasn't needed, and should have been edited out.
I gave this 3 stars because of the extended research. The actual storylines deserved 2 stars.
Even the quote from one of the murderers of the Clutter family left me wondering why it was included. The husband, wife and children were slaughtered by two career criminals.
Frankie Silver either killed her drunk husband to defend herself and her child, if we are to believe Sharyn McCrumb's interpretation of the story, or she killed him in a fit of rage. We will never know, because she apparently decided not to speak on her own behalf at any time. I can't see how her case ties into the ruminations of Perry Smith, who knew the possible consequences of his actions before he and his co-conspirator broke into the Clutter home.
Thank goodness women speak up for themselves these days. Perhaps a better parallel fictitious story should have centered around a modern-day woman in similar circumstances who did choose to defend herself.
November 5, 2022
Really enjoyed even though the solution to the mystery, such as it was, occurred fairly early on to me.
The culprit in this bk is society, the law, class systems ,sexism …. And the author manages to demonstrate that not much has changed in over a century. Lyrical and entertaining….un a melancholy way
The culprit in this bk is society, the law, class systems ,sexism …. And the author manages to demonstrate that not much has changed in over a century. Lyrical and entertaining….un a melancholy way
May 22, 2024
While it’s not essential that you read every book in the series before tackling this one, it helps. In the previous book, someone shoots Sheriff Spencer Arrowood. As this book opens, he’s recovering against his will at home. (He’d much rather be back at the office.) He gets word that Tennessee is about to execute a death row inmate he helped convict when he was an arrogant, young deputy. Now with years of experience behind him, he second guesses his original work on that case.
Additionally, the story of Frankie Silver, the first woman to die by legally sanctioned hanging in North Carolina, appeals to him. As he reads her history, the commonalities between her experiences in 1832 and the death row inmate he helped convict stand out. What if the guy on death row didn’t kill the hiking couple as everyone said and believes?
At about 70 percent through the book, you join Arrowood in learning of a new case of death near his community that looks eerily like the one 20 years earlier and not unlike Frankie Silver’s case in 1832. You get a fascinating look at that case as McCrumb takes you back in time to tell her story. It’s a hauntingly tragic story indeed whose memory will long stay with you. You yearn for the resources of the Innocence Project as you read about a quiet backwoods teenage girl, already married to a handsome, young drunk, who likely didn’t kill him at all. And if she did, did she have a good reason? Naturally, you’ll want to read this, especially if you enjoy historical fiction and a decent slow-burn mystery.
Mccrumb writes amazingly well, and I can’t recommend highly enough this Ballad series. The character of Nora Bonesteel alone will keep you reading the books. I promise.
Additionally, the story of Frankie Silver, the first woman to die by legally sanctioned hanging in North Carolina, appeals to him. As he reads her history, the commonalities between her experiences in 1832 and the death row inmate he helped convict stand out. What if the guy on death row didn’t kill the hiking couple as everyone said and believes?
At about 70 percent through the book, you join Arrowood in learning of a new case of death near his community that looks eerily like the one 20 years earlier and not unlike Frankie Silver’s case in 1832. You get a fascinating look at that case as McCrumb takes you back in time to tell her story. It’s a hauntingly tragic story indeed whose memory will long stay with you. You yearn for the resources of the Innocence Project as you read about a quiet backwoods teenage girl, already married to a handsome, young drunk, who likely didn’t kill him at all. And if she did, did she have a good reason? Naturally, you’ll want to read this, especially if you enjoy historical fiction and a decent slow-burn mystery.
Mccrumb writes amazingly well, and I can’t recommend highly enough this Ballad series. The character of Nora Bonesteel alone will keep you reading the books. I promise.
March 1, 2013
This is certainly not an uplifting book but an excellently written one. The book alternates between two time periods - the 1800s and the present. Both deal with people who have been convicted of murder and are awaiting execution. In the earlier time period, it is Frankie Silver, an 18 year old woman who is convicted of killing her young husband but to some, something is amiss. In the present, another young man (Fate Harkryder) was convicted of murdering two hikers and now it is 20 years later and his time on death row is coming to an end as his execution is set. The Sheriff that arrested him is invited to be a witness to the execution but he is suddenly unsure of the guilt of this man. He looks back to the case of Frankie Silver to try to come to some sort of acceptable understanding before it is too late.
Although the reader knows the outcome of the Frankie Silver case at the outset, what happens with Fate is now known until the end. What the Sheriff discovers from his research into Frankie's case will probably not come as a complete surprise to the reader but how that plays into Fate's case is not entirely expected.
A great, although sad, read that will keep you interested until the very end.
Although the reader knows the outcome of the Frankie Silver case at the outset, what happens with Fate is now known until the end. What the Sheriff discovers from his research into Frankie's case will probably not come as a complete surprise to the reader but how that plays into Fate's case is not entirely expected.
A great, although sad, read that will keep you interested until the very end.
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