What do you think?
Rate this book
A Long Time Gone
From the New York Times bestselling author of the Tradd Street novels comes an enthralling southern gothic saga about one woman's quest for the truth...
When Vivien Walker left her home in the Mississippi Delta, she swore never to go back. But in the spring, nine years to the day since she’d left, Vivien returns, fleeing from a broken marriage and her lost dreams for children.
What she hopes to find is solace with her dear grandmother who raised her, a Walker woman with a knack for making everything all right. Instead Vivien is forced into the unexpected role of caretaker, challenging her personal quest to find the girl she once was. But things will change again in ways Vivien cannot imagine. A violent storm has revealed the remains of a long-dead woman buried near the Walker home, not far from the cypress swamp that is soon to give up its ghosts.
Vivien knows there is now only one way to rediscover herself—by uncovering the secrets of her family and breaking the cycle of loss that has haunted them for generations.
READERS GUIDE INCLUDED
When Vivien Walker left her home in the Mississippi Delta, she swore never to go back. But in the spring, nine years to the day since she’d left, Vivien returns, fleeing from a broken marriage and her lost dreams for children.
What she hopes to find is solace with her dear grandmother who raised her, a Walker woman with a knack for making everything all right. Instead Vivien is forced into the unexpected role of caretaker, challenging her personal quest to find the girl she once was. But things will change again in ways Vivien cannot imagine. A violent storm has revealed the remains of a long-dead woman buried near the Walker home, not far from the cypress swamp that is soon to give up its ghosts.
Vivien knows there is now only one way to rediscover herself—by uncovering the secrets of her family and breaking the cycle of loss that has haunted them for generations.
READERS GUIDE INCLUDED
449 pages, Paperback
First published June 3, 2014
648 people are currently reading
9590 people want to read
About the author
Karen White
42 books7,549 followersWith more than 2 million books in print in fifteen different languages, Karen White is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of 34 novels, including the popular Charleston-set Tradd Street mystery series.
Raised in a house full of brothers, Karen’s love of books and strong female characters first began in the third grade when the local librarian issued her a library card and placed The Secret of the Old Clock, a Nancy Drew Mystery, in her hands.
Karen’s roots run deep in the South where many of her novels are set. Her intricate plot lines and compelling characters charm and captivate readers with just the right mix of family drama, mystery, intrigue and romance.
Not entirely convinced she wanted to be a writer, Karen first pursued a career in business and graduated cum laude with a BS in Management from Tulane University. Ten years later, in a weak moment, she wrote her first book. In the Shadow of the Moon was published in August, 2000. Her books—referred to as “grit lit” (Southern Women’s Fiction)—have since been nominated for numerous national contests including the SIBA (Southeastern Booksellers Alliance) Fiction Book of the Year.
Karen’s next book, THAT LAST CAROLINA SUMMER, will be published by Park Row Books in July, 2025.
When not writing, Karen spends her time reading, scrapbooking, playing piano, and avoiding cooking. Karen and her husband have two grown children and currently live near Atlanta, Georgia with two spoiled Havanese dogs.
- See more at: http://www.karen-white.com/bio.cfm#st...
Raised in a house full of brothers, Karen’s love of books and strong female characters first began in the third grade when the local librarian issued her a library card and placed The Secret of the Old Clock, a Nancy Drew Mystery, in her hands.
Karen’s roots run deep in the South where many of her novels are set. Her intricate plot lines and compelling characters charm and captivate readers with just the right mix of family drama, mystery, intrigue and romance.
Not entirely convinced she wanted to be a writer, Karen first pursued a career in business and graduated cum laude with a BS in Management from Tulane University. Ten years later, in a weak moment, she wrote her first book. In the Shadow of the Moon was published in August, 2000. Her books—referred to as “grit lit” (Southern Women’s Fiction)—have since been nominated for numerous national contests including the SIBA (Southeastern Booksellers Alliance) Fiction Book of the Year.
Karen’s next book, THAT LAST CAROLINA SUMMER, will be published by Park Row Books in July, 2025.
When not writing, Karen spends her time reading, scrapbooking, playing piano, and avoiding cooking. Karen and her husband have two grown children and currently live near Atlanta, Georgia with two spoiled Havanese dogs.
- See more at: http://www.karen-white.com/bio.cfm#st...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 882 reviews
November 24, 2016
It took me a while to settle to this novel, which tells the story of a family of women in Indian Mound Mississippi. The story starts with Vivien Walker Moise in 2013 and the discovery of bones on the family property she has returned to after a nine year absence. But who do the bones belong to? Just as I was getting interested in that, it changes to Adelaide Walker Bodine in 1920. When she was ten Adelaide’s mother had jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge. Then it returns to Vivien’s story and a couple of chapters later to Adelaide before the reader is introduced through a diary entry to Carol Lynne Walker Moise. Her entries are interspersed at time through the other two narratives. The connections between this women from the same Walker family are revealed as the reader goes along.
I found I could sympathise with Vivien, despite the fact she is a pill popping drug addict. She is not the only one in this story to fall prey to drugs. Adelaide was a lovely character and Chloe, Vivien’s stepdaughter, came across well. Vivien’s ex-husband Mark, has kept Vivien from any contact with Chloe after the divorce because of her pill popping habit which he helped her get into. But is that the real reason or is he just being vindictive? In contrast to Mark is Tripp, who was a childhood friend who fell in love with Vivien at an early age. He has to be the most patient, forgiving person on earth.
I enjoyed the setting and some of the dialogue with its Southern expressions, some of which to this Aussie are very amusing. I can’t imagine telling anyone they are ’as fine as frog’s hair.’ One thing that irritated me was the abundance of characters with names all starting with the same letter. Cora, Carrie, Carol Lynne, Chloe, Carol Shipley, Cordelia, Carmen, and Claire. Some are major players in the story, others minor characters but I did wonder why the author had become obsessed with names starting with C. I found it a distraction in the story.
Despite that, this story of buried secrets, racism, bootlegging and the Ku Klux Klan got me in. Anger and tears appeared at varying times, which shows I was involved in the lives portrayed. Ultimately this is a story about family, mothers and daughters in particular, and the choices people make for love, even if at times I didn’t understand the choices some people made.
May 22, 2016
This is one of those books that you get to the end and you mourn a little because it's over. I loved this book. What made it 5 stars for me, and not 4, is the writing. I am crushing on this author's writing style. It was beautiful. She added so much depth to the characters and the setting that I felt I was right there.
I loved the attention to detail with all the characteristics, dialogue, mannerisms, gestures, emotion. That was my favorite part. I would definitely read this again.
Half of this was historical fiction. It toggled around in time and sometimes that bothers me, but this was well done. I loved the different threads that were sewn in and how they were all pulled together. It covered the lives of 4 generations of southern women (which this author does well). I was pulled into each of their stories. I need to put this book on my Amazon wish list.
I loved the attention to detail with all the characteristics, dialogue, mannerisms, gestures, emotion. That was my favorite part. I would definitely read this again.
Half of this was historical fiction. It toggled around in time and sometimes that bothers me, but this was well done. I loved the different threads that were sewn in and how they were all pulled together. It covered the lives of 4 generations of southern women (which this author does well). I was pulled into each of their stories. I need to put this book on my Amazon wish list.
December 4, 2014
Karen White is by far my favorite southern fiction writer but, sadly, her latest novel just did not live up to what I've come to expect from her. I felt like there were too many stories going on which made the storyline move very slowly. I really did not feel any sympathy for any of the characters with the only exception being Adelaide. I think that White's wonderful writing style shone through best in Adelaide's story and I wish she had just stuck with that and included Booties story which got mostly overlooked. I am a firm believer in 'to much of a good thing is not a good thing' and I think White just tried to make the storyline too complex. Still a huge fan!
June 13, 2014
Mothers staying, mothers leaving, daughters staying, daughters leaving.
When Vivian Walker returns after nine years, she happens upon the scene of an uprooted tree with human bones exposed. She also finds her mother who is in the early stages of dementia. Whose bones could they be? Why did the skeleton have half of a necklace that when complete would say: I Love You Forever.
Could Mathilda, the 104-year-old servant know the answer about the necklace? That necklace and its saying played a major part in the secret that had been kept all these years and a secret that no one really knew was a secret except one person.
A LONG TIME GONE is set in Mississippi and has that Southern charm along with Southern traditions and genuine, believable characters. You will meet the women of the Walker family as each chapter is headed with one of the women's stories being told.
The book moves back and forth from 1923 to 2013 following the Walker women with their secrets and their reasons for leaving and coming back to their families.
You will love Chole; you will feel sorry for Vivian, and you will wonder what made Carol Lynn leave her children all those years ago and then return at random times and leave again. The reason is quite interesting.
Ms. White again has written a beautiful family saga with emphasis on mothers and daughters. A LONG TIME GONE had wonderful descriptions of characters, scenes, and feelings as well as reminding all of us that family is everything.
I enjoyed A LONG TIME GONE because I like reading about Southern-style living and reading about families and the secrets they have carried through the years.
The secret and the bones found is one of the major themes and a theme that has a great twist. As the mystery of those buried bones became unraveled, the story took on an even better turn. 5/5
I received this book free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.
Have you read A LONG TIME GONE? I would love to know what you think.
When Vivian Walker returns after nine years, she happens upon the scene of an uprooted tree with human bones exposed. She also finds her mother who is in the early stages of dementia. Whose bones could they be? Why did the skeleton have half of a necklace that when complete would say: I Love You Forever.
Could Mathilda, the 104-year-old servant know the answer about the necklace? That necklace and its saying played a major part in the secret that had been kept all these years and a secret that no one really knew was a secret except one person.
A LONG TIME GONE is set in Mississippi and has that Southern charm along with Southern traditions and genuine, believable characters. You will meet the women of the Walker family as each chapter is headed with one of the women's stories being told.
The book moves back and forth from 1923 to 2013 following the Walker women with their secrets and their reasons for leaving and coming back to their families.
You will love Chole; you will feel sorry for Vivian, and you will wonder what made Carol Lynn leave her children all those years ago and then return at random times and leave again. The reason is quite interesting.
Ms. White again has written a beautiful family saga with emphasis on mothers and daughters. A LONG TIME GONE had wonderful descriptions of characters, scenes, and feelings as well as reminding all of us that family is everything.
I enjoyed A LONG TIME GONE because I like reading about Southern-style living and reading about families and the secrets they have carried through the years.
The secret and the bones found is one of the major themes and a theme that has a great twist. As the mystery of those buried bones became unraveled, the story took on an even better turn. 5/5
I received this book free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.
Have you read A LONG TIME GONE? I would love to know what you think.
July 29, 2014
Wow! This book deserves to be read by everyone I know. I had known Karen White was a great writer before I read this book, but this was amazing; one of the best books I've read this year. The characters were so real and their past so intriguing that I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend it to everyone!
January 7, 2015
This is a story about three generations of Southern women (really, it's four generations, but essentially skips one of them for some reason) wrapped around a somewhat engrossing mystery story. Adelaide's story takes place in the 1920s. Bootsie, her daughter, we pretty much skip. Carol Lynne's story (Bootsie's daughter) takes place from the '60s to the early '00s, and the lead character, Vivien (Carol Lynne's daughter), is present day. The characters are utterly one-dimensional (a goodie-goodie, a drug-popping, selfish hippie and a prescription pill-popping, whiney 20-something). Then there is the horrid husband, perfect boyfriend, the hurting, difficult stepdaughter, stereotypical librarian, ideal big brother, compassionate black maid…well, you get the picture. Author Karen White IS a good writer, but if I were her book editor, I would have told her to only tell the story of Adelaide. THAT was the good one! But that's not what happened…so I reluctantly give it only two stars.
April 4, 2022
Soaked in sadness, but filled with redemption.
Feels a lot like a Kristen Hannah novel.
Three generations of women repeating the mistakes of the past.
The 1920's timeline with Adelaide was my favorite.
Feels a lot like a Kristen Hannah novel.
Three generations of women repeating the mistakes of the past.
The 1920's timeline with Adelaide was my favorite.
March 12, 2016
When Vivien Walker Moise returned to her childhood home in Indian Mound, Mississippi, she had been gone a long time. She brings with her a nine-year legacy of pain and loss, with emotional scarring that needs to heal. Can she find healing in this old yellow house? In LA, she has left behind her cruel ex-husband Mark, but she has also lost her step-daughter Chloe, whom she loves. Mark has taken out a restraining order to prevent contact between them. Vivien developed a pill habit, partially with Mark’s help, as he prescribed the pills, but he has used it all against her.
As she arrives back home, she sees a group of people standing around the old tree, and she finds out that a skeleton has been discovered beneath it. Who could it be? What secrets have been hidden here for all these years?
A Long Time Gone is a beautifully wrought story of family, of secrets, and about the pain that drives them away, and the strength within each of the women that keeps bringing them back home.
They have a long tradition of leaving, these women, starting back with Vivien’s great-grandmother. Her grandmother Bootsie also left for a few years; then her own daughter, Carole Lynne, Vivien’s mother, spent years going back and forth, like a boomerang. Now Carole Lynne is home to stay, but her memories are going. She has been diagnosed with dementia, but sometimes she seems almost normal. Will Vivien find the lost connection between them, finally?
Our story is narrated by three women whose stories weave together a rich tapestry of secrets and loss. Adelaide, whose story begins in the 1920s; Carole Lynne, whose time in the 60s and beyond was all about trying to rid herself of the pain of being without her own mother for years. And finally, Vivien’s story, and how she strives to make up for her own mistakes by taking on Chloe, who has run away from her father. With the help of her childhood best friend/boyfriend, Tripp Montgomery, she searches for the answers to some burning questions: who is the skeleton in the garden? What happened to the women in this family that made them keep leaving? And what finally brought most of them back home again?
The canvas is full of richly drawn characters, from those in the 1920s to the present. With each of them, we learn how the stories fit together, and we finally discover the answers. I loved this book, which earned 5 stars from me.
As she arrives back home, she sees a group of people standing around the old tree, and she finds out that a skeleton has been discovered beneath it. Who could it be? What secrets have been hidden here for all these years?
A Long Time Gone is a beautifully wrought story of family, of secrets, and about the pain that drives them away, and the strength within each of the women that keeps bringing them back home.
They have a long tradition of leaving, these women, starting back with Vivien’s great-grandmother. Her grandmother Bootsie also left for a few years; then her own daughter, Carole Lynne, Vivien’s mother, spent years going back and forth, like a boomerang. Now Carole Lynne is home to stay, but her memories are going. She has been diagnosed with dementia, but sometimes she seems almost normal. Will Vivien find the lost connection between them, finally?
Our story is narrated by three women whose stories weave together a rich tapestry of secrets and loss. Adelaide, whose story begins in the 1920s; Carole Lynne, whose time in the 60s and beyond was all about trying to rid herself of the pain of being without her own mother for years. And finally, Vivien’s story, and how she strives to make up for her own mistakes by taking on Chloe, who has run away from her father. With the help of her childhood best friend/boyfriend, Tripp Montgomery, she searches for the answers to some burning questions: who is the skeleton in the garden? What happened to the women in this family that made them keep leaving? And what finally brought most of them back home again?
The canvas is full of richly drawn characters, from those in the 1920s to the present. With each of them, we learn how the stories fit together, and we finally discover the answers. I loved this book, which earned 5 stars from me.
June 13, 2014
So, I've been in a bit of a rut. I'm having a really hard time finding books that hold my interest after reading The Game of Thrones series. I bought this book by Karen White and could not put it down. Loved it!
August 8, 2021
And just now an age thing happened. I finished this book apparently 5 years ago and just finished it again, with no recollection of reading it before.
I gave it 4 stars each time and loved the relationships inside.
I gave it 4 stars each time and loved the relationships inside.
May 25, 2014
This is one of the best books I have ever read! Thank you goodreads.com for the advanced copy I won!
Vivian Walker returns to Indian Mound, Mississippi, the home she left after 9 years. Like all four generation Walker women that have lived in the same house they leave, but return again to where they belong. Vivian, now divorced & motherless, returns because she misses her grandmother, Bootsie; however, Bootsie is no longer alive, and Vivian's estranged mother has dementia. As soon as she arrives, she sees an unmarked car in her driveway. It had stormed the night before and lightening stuck down an oak tree uplifting the roots, exposing a skeleton of a female that had been buried many years ago. Shortly after, her stepdaughter that she considers as her daughter, Chloe, calls from the Jackson airport asking Vivian to pick her up. Due to her nasty divorce, Mark, Vivian's ex-husband had filed a restraining order preventing her from seeing Chloe because of Vivian's prescription pill addiction. This book brings the past to the present bringing family together and holding family dear to the heart, while mending the hurt, and bringing together past relationships.
Vivian Walker returns to Indian Mound, Mississippi, the home she left after 9 years. Like all four generation Walker women that have lived in the same house they leave, but return again to where they belong. Vivian, now divorced & motherless, returns because she misses her grandmother, Bootsie; however, Bootsie is no longer alive, and Vivian's estranged mother has dementia. As soon as she arrives, she sees an unmarked car in her driveway. It had stormed the night before and lightening stuck down an oak tree uplifting the roots, exposing a skeleton of a female that had been buried many years ago. Shortly after, her stepdaughter that she considers as her daughter, Chloe, calls from the Jackson airport asking Vivian to pick her up. Due to her nasty divorce, Mark, Vivian's ex-husband had filed a restraining order preventing her from seeing Chloe because of Vivian's prescription pill addiction. This book brings the past to the present bringing family together and holding family dear to the heart, while mending the hurt, and bringing together past relationships.
July 6, 2014
This multi-generational Southern tale, set in the Mississippi Delta, held promise, but I had a very, very hard time relating to the main character, Vivien. She's so determined to be a self-absorbed, selfish, prescription-addicted train wreck when she so clearly isn't that I had no sympathy for her character whatsoever. Her motivations (irresponsible, hippy mom and a bad marriage, complete with a late-term miscarriage) just didn't seem to warrant her weak-kneed, run-away-and-take-a-pill responses. I kept wondering if she was ever going to find a little backbone, and while she finally did, it was very late in coming. I enjoyed the secondary characters more than the main ones (teenage Chloe, elderly Mathilde, idealistic Adelaide), and the sections of the book written from the viewpoint of Vivien's mother and great-grandmother more than Vivien's modern-day self-absorptive late-coming-of-age portion of the story. Three stars.
Read
September 18, 2014No review, no rating. At about 1/3rd point I have abandoned. Too redundant, too whining, too slow and no connection whatsoever with these characters. Wordy without any connection of interest for me.
March 4, 2017
This book was as satisfying as a slice of peanut butter pie savored on a wide front veranda on a hot summer day. There is something so comforting to me about stories of the South. Especially when those stories feature strong female characters, as this one did.
It's told in the distinct voices of three women from three different generations: Adelaide, her granddaughter Carole Lynne and her great-granddaughter Vivien. This is the first book I've ever read by Karen White, but she appears to excel at the genre of contemporary southern novels focused on multi-generational stories of love, loss and mystery. This has all three and it kept me riveted for days.
I don't know if Indian Mound, Mississippi, is a real place, but it comes alive in this book. I loved the portions of the book set in the 1920s, as well as the modern day challenges Vivien faces.
It was a plummy read. This is how I treat myself between books I consider "brain draining" for the amount of focus and concentration required to understand them. Loved every minute of this book.
It's told in the distinct voices of three women from three different generations: Adelaide, her granddaughter Carole Lynne and her great-granddaughter Vivien. This is the first book I've ever read by Karen White, but she appears to excel at the genre of contemporary southern novels focused on multi-generational stories of love, loss and mystery. This has all three and it kept me riveted for days.
I don't know if Indian Mound, Mississippi, is a real place, but it comes alive in this book. I loved the portions of the book set in the 1920s, as well as the modern day challenges Vivien faces.
It was a plummy read. This is how I treat myself between books I consider "brain draining" for the amount of focus and concentration required to understand them. Loved every minute of this book.
April 25, 2024
The overall plot is very good and better written than "The Beach Trees" (the only other K. White book I've read up to now); however, I found the characters and events hard to follow at times with all the jumping around in time making the details and events difficult to retain with this rather long story. Halfway through I almost gave up, but decided to complete the book by reading the Adelaide renditions through and then went back to the Vivien and Carol Lynne narratives, which helped me follow the various story lines better. I think Adelaide's story should have been the first half, and the Vivi and Carol Lynn chapters a second half. The Adelaide character is drawn well, and more could have been included about her life and still remained interesting. Vivien is generally unlikeable, particularly with the redundant whiny headaches and pills obsession that is irritatingly over-referenced, and her story could have been shorter. Her personality is contradictory since she is described as an effective and dogged problem solver but simultaneously portrayed as causing most of her own problems. Her unchanging positive regard for Chloe is supposed to convey Vivi's basic loving nature, but her unconditional love seems improbable since the 12 year old step daughter is so unpleasant most of the time. To me, this reflects more the modern ideology of never criticizing or disciplining children no matter what they do supposedly to protect their ever important self-esteem. This author displays an aggravating habit of using repeated trivial interruptions during the telling of pertinent facts, i.e., somebody needs a drink of water and then doesn't, someone inevitably comes to the door at a crucial moment, the meal is ready and interrupts the action, somebody gets mad and won't answer a question, etc. etc. This does not promote the story's suspense or meaning. It only unnecessarily delays the inevitable past when the plot is ready to move on. There remains a question for me whether these various past family events would logically cause such profound personal problems, including serious depression lasting years to the point of repeatedly leaving, bad marriages, and drug addiction. Although the mothers were absent, these children evidently did receive good parenting. Since the males in the family did not react in similar ways, do we presume these issues adversely affect only daughters? Perhaps rereading the book would clarify the author's rationale about the main theme, but I don't know if I'll bother. I enjoy multi-generational stories, and this contains several interesting references and tie-ins to past events, real and imagined. The lifestyle details of days gone by in the rural South sounds authentic. Overall, this story has great highlights and wonderful imagery throughout but is bogged down with extraneous wordiness and the before mentioned repeated interruptions. I'd resolved to not read anymore of this author, but upon reflection, I may give White another try at some point partly because most other reviewers think her books are great.
June 18, 2014
Karen White has written books I love.
This one wasn't really one of them. I think that successfully pulling three life stories in three time periods is difficult. Always, it seems to me, at least one voice isn't as strong as it should be. I find that almost always to be the modern voice, and that was the case here. Vivi is the least vivid of the characters, and the oversimplification of her drug use paired with excessive description of her clothes didn't work for me. I found her ex-husband too simple a villain.
However, the past story was engrossing, and an interesting mix of flawed, more realistic people.
This one wasn't really one of them. I think that successfully pulling three life stories in three time periods is difficult. Always, it seems to me, at least one voice isn't as strong as it should be. I find that almost always to be the modern voice, and that was the case here. Vivi is the least vivid of the characters, and the oversimplification of her drug use paired with excessive description of her clothes didn't work for me. I found her ex-husband too simple a villain.
However, the past story was engrossing, and an interesting mix of flawed, more realistic people.
July 12, 2014
This is a well woven story of 4 generations of women. It goes chapter to chapter with the story of each, and how they all came back to their roots for the love of their children. I really enjoyed all the characters, and I think Karen White is an excellant storyteller. This is the first book I've read by her. I will look forward to reading her other works. I recommend this if you like multi generational, or historical fiction. It is a ligh, clean read. I'm passing it to my Mom to enjoy!
March 28, 2015
This is a multi-generational story full of dramatic history and deep family secrets. Told from three different perspectives and time periods spanning from the mid 1920's, the 1960's through to current day. With themes of abandonment and maternal love it is a novel about tradition and families, love and forgiveness, second chances, digging down deep to find the truth whatever the risk. Towards the end, I felt the author was in a bit of a rush to reach the somewhat predictable conclusion.
April 30, 2021
This book was a little slow to start, but gets better the further you go. It’s a great generational Southern saga set in Mississippi (20’s, 60’s and current days). Karen White is a master at exploring the complexities of mother-daughter relationships. I always enjoy stories placed in the Deep South, and the author did it justice, especially with her descriptions of the cypress and the earthiness of the bayou. It also explores the way families can be what we make it, and that’s not always blood kin. There’s a little something for everyone too: betrayal, murder, history, family secrets, and a little romance. Enjoyable read, that leaves you satisfied.
August 30, 2022
My second favorite K White, after Flight Patterns. I enjoyed both stories, and the mystery didn’t feel as far-fetched as a couple of the others (The Time
Between and The Sound of Glass). Could have been a little shorter.
Between and The Sound of Glass). Could have been a little shorter.
September 26, 2021
Read it in one night (till 4am) could not put it down!
September 7, 2014
Several days ago my husband reacted to my description of my older cousin as “quirky.” His view of this woman and her family pointed out generations of dark, troubling personality traits. I have a different perspective about this cousin and her family growing up in a tiny home in the middle of the woods with a complicated, artistic mother, who now I understand struggled with depression, who would rather be creating a game or painting or taking a walk in the woods with a child than any household task.
That discussion coincided with my reading of Karen White's latest novel and perhaps influenced my opinion. The novel moves seamlessly between 1920 and 2013, revealing the stories of four women in the Walker family, all bound by a 200 year-old rambling yellow house on the Mississippi Delta. One view of these women might be dismissive, their actions seen as selfish, their decisions, destructive, but there was a complexity to them that gave this novel substance. The novel opens with Vivien, 27 years old, recently divorced, addicted to pills prescribed by her ex-husband, returning home after nine years of isolation because she has no place to go. Arriving home hours after a ferocious storm, she discovers her beloved grandmother, Bootsie, has died the year before, her mother, Carol Lynne, has Alzheimer's, and a woman's skeleton has been found in their yard under a cypress tree that has fallen in the storm.
Versions of that “coming home” story have been told before, but Karen White wraps the history and mystery of the South around her characters imbedding the lingering effects of World War I, restrictive social mores, Prohibition, organized crime, and racism as well as more contemporary issues such as substance abuse, step parenting, and Alzheimer's. “Three generations of Walker women grew up believing that the only way to find ourselves was to leave this place, regardless of who we left behind.” Secrets have marked these women and their history, compromising their relationships ...“Maybe that's just the way of mothers and daughters, to always be at opposite ends of a rope, tugging like you'd win some prize if your opponent fell.”
This is a novel about tradition and families, love and forgiveness, second chances, digging down deep to find the truth whatever the risk...”It's all about the fight in them that brought them back. It's who you you are.”
That discussion coincided with my reading of Karen White's latest novel and perhaps influenced my opinion. The novel moves seamlessly between 1920 and 2013, revealing the stories of four women in the Walker family, all bound by a 200 year-old rambling yellow house on the Mississippi Delta. One view of these women might be dismissive, their actions seen as selfish, their decisions, destructive, but there was a complexity to them that gave this novel substance. The novel opens with Vivien, 27 years old, recently divorced, addicted to pills prescribed by her ex-husband, returning home after nine years of isolation because she has no place to go. Arriving home hours after a ferocious storm, she discovers her beloved grandmother, Bootsie, has died the year before, her mother, Carol Lynne, has Alzheimer's, and a woman's skeleton has been found in their yard under a cypress tree that has fallen in the storm.
Versions of that “coming home” story have been told before, but Karen White wraps the history and mystery of the South around her characters imbedding the lingering effects of World War I, restrictive social mores, Prohibition, organized crime, and racism as well as more contemporary issues such as substance abuse, step parenting, and Alzheimer's. “Three generations of Walker women grew up believing that the only way to find ourselves was to leave this place, regardless of who we left behind.” Secrets have marked these women and their history, compromising their relationships ...“Maybe that's just the way of mothers and daughters, to always be at opposite ends of a rope, tugging like you'd win some prize if your opponent fell.”
This is a novel about tradition and families, love and forgiveness, second chances, digging down deep to find the truth whatever the risk...”It's all about the fight in them that brought them back. It's who you you are.”
June 30, 2014
A Long Time Gone is just the sort of women’s fiction I adore, its story wise and beautifully told. What’s more, I cannot resist a novel that threads a lyrical narrative with mystery and suspense, plus more than a dash of winsome romance. From its first lines, you know you’re reading the work of an artist, a master at her craft. And yet words never get in the way of its warm heart.
The very first Karen White novel I read, The Memory of Water, I still consider one of her best. (It so happens I recently reread it–and yep, still a fave.) A Long Time Gone is like it in many ways, containing textured prose, richly layered story lines, and complex characters–mostly ones you’ll love and a few you’ll love to hate. The Mississippi delta setting becomes a character in itself, and in White’s hands, the result is altogether magical.
White writes champion last lines to conclude each chapter, ones that somehow capture the essence of what has come before while drawing you into what might come next. She manages to hold the big picture firmly in hand while at the same time lavishing attention on every last, little detail. And in this story, I love the way she interweaves her overarching themes of family and place and the universal quest for identity.
Though I wouldn’t call this a feel-good novel, it still left me feeling good, full of hope for the promise of goodness, health and happiness. In sum, A Long Time Gone is Karen White at her finest.
Thanks to New American Library for providing me a free copy to review. All opinions are mine.
The very first Karen White novel I read, The Memory of Water, I still consider one of her best. (It so happens I recently reread it–and yep, still a fave.) A Long Time Gone is like it in many ways, containing textured prose, richly layered story lines, and complex characters–mostly ones you’ll love and a few you’ll love to hate. The Mississippi delta setting becomes a character in itself, and in White’s hands, the result is altogether magical.
White writes champion last lines to conclude each chapter, ones that somehow capture the essence of what has come before while drawing you into what might come next. She manages to hold the big picture firmly in hand while at the same time lavishing attention on every last, little detail. And in this story, I love the way she interweaves her overarching themes of family and place and the universal quest for identity.
Though I wouldn’t call this a feel-good novel, it still left me feeling good, full of hope for the promise of goodness, health and happiness. In sum, A Long Time Gone is Karen White at her finest.
Thanks to New American Library for providing me a free copy to review. All opinions are mine.
July 28, 2014
When I began to read I was so impressed by Karen White's beautiful, layered language... this was not a "beach book", but much more intense. I did find that I got somewhat bogged down by keeping character's straight and towards the end I was speed reading... I figured out the identity of the skeleton exposed under the cypress tree about half way through.... I must say I also found many similarities to other books such as The Help due to the timeframes....prohibition, bootlegging, racism, commune living, drug abuse.... and I found myself feeling like I'd read this story before. It lost some of it's freshness. The contemporary character, Vivien, seemed much older than her 27 years ... but I stuck with her story and seemed to enjoy it the most. I think the story could have been told with fewer words and perhaps a few more twists that were not as predictable... it kind of felt like this story had been told before by other authors.....
October 9, 2014
A Long Time Gone was a mediocre read. There were many aspects of this book that I enjoyed immensely - such as the historical setting (Mississippi Delta in the 1920s during the Great Flood and Prohibition), the author's descriptive writing and the story told through the perspective of three Walker women.
However, the novel had several detracting flaws. For starters, the life of one of the Walker women was completely ignored. Second, abandonment of family and return to the home were major themes in this book, but yet they were poorly developed and executed. I could not understand why and how the trend started - again, this could have been explained had the author not omitted the personal story of one of the characters. Third, there numerous plot gaps and holes and the story in parts was sketchy.
I was glad to read the novel and I would hesitantly recommend.
However, the novel had several detracting flaws. For starters, the life of one of the Walker women was completely ignored. Second, abandonment of family and return to the home were major themes in this book, but yet they were poorly developed and executed. I could not understand why and how the trend started - again, this could have been explained had the author not omitted the personal story of one of the characters. Third, there numerous plot gaps and holes and the story in parts was sketchy.
I was glad to read the novel and I would hesitantly recommend.
November 29, 2016
I love Karen White and her style of writing. However, A Long Time Gone wasn't my favorite by her. She did create strong southern women as is her style but there were just too many stories going on. I loved Adelaide story; I wish Bootsie's story had been more developed. Of course, I look forward to reading more by Karen White!
Go Cards! L1C4!!
Go Cards! L1C4!!
February 24, 2017
One of Karen White's best! I love her depiction of southern life and it's many strong traditions - the good, bad and ugly, and the fact that her characters are human, flawed, real. I like the way this story is told through the experiences and perspective of three generations of women, all deeply influenced and impacted by the people and events that have come before each of them. At the center of it all is a mystery that unfolds along the way. One of those books that was hard to put down, made me sad when I was finished reading, and has me missing the characters.
June 2, 2014
I loved this multi-generational story, and I especially loved that the story was told from various points of view. Once I got into the story, I couldn't put it down! I just had to know how it all played out, who the body was, and how she died! One of my favorite characters was Chloe, since my children are around her age. I can't wait to read more books by this author. I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
April 23, 2014
I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this book, which is why I'm reviewing well before the publish date. In the beginning, I admit I had a tough time getting into the characters, but once I did get into the characters, this book easily became one I couldn't put down. I just wanted to see how both stories ended, as this was another book with two separate, yet linked storylines going on. This book is a must read for the summer!
March 11, 2021
Trying to expand my reading circles. This one was not for me. Lots of stereotyped characters, some unhealthy and antiquated notions about respect, love, and family, a half-hearted mystery, some half-hearted romance, and a Hallmark ending.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 882 reviews