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Under the Falls
Not yet published
Expected 11 Aug 26The Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Empire Falls returns with his first stand-alone novel since Chances Are . . . —a spellbinding page-turner about a crime in a small town that exposes long-held secrets and betrayals among a group of lifelong friends
When Tyler Sinclair left Stone Mountain at eighteen, he had no plans of returning. With only a duffel bag full of clothes, a few bucks stolen from his father’s dresser, and a guitar, his most prized possession, Tyler disappeared without so much as a goodbye. Eighteen years later, and Tyler, now the frontman of a famous band aptly named Stone Mountain, finds himself returning to his hometown for a one-night-only benefit concert to support his old friend, Doc, who lost feeling in his legs following a childhood accident. As Tyler ascends the mountain, memories of his childhood come rushing back—memories of his abusive father and despondent mother, of the friends he left behind—and he quickly learns that, for many people on Stone Mountain, the past does not feel like so long ago, and not everyone has been eagerly awaiting Tyler’s return.
At the concert, resentment simmers just beneath the surface, and Tyler finds himself confronted with faces new and old: there’s Curt, Tyler’s childhood best friend, now Stone Mountain’s chief of police, and his star officer, Deb, an out-of-towner who may have bitten off more than she can chew by accepting a job in Stone Mountain. And then there’s Freddi, Curt’s wife and Tyler’s former lover, a woman whose questionable dealings and fraught history with Tyler will become the catalyst for a tragedy that will upend each of their lives and threaten to validate Tyler’s worst fear: that “Stone Mountain is the kind of place you might escape from once, if you’re lucky, but not twice.”
Under the Falls is at once a propulsive thriller, a gut-wrenching portrait of a tight-knit rural community undone by the sins of its past, and an unflinchingly honest depiction of how porous the line between right and wrong, good versus evil, can become. A stunning, deeply empathetic novel, one that takes Russo’s penchant for character-driven drama to thrilling new heights.
When Tyler Sinclair left Stone Mountain at eighteen, he had no plans of returning. With only a duffel bag full of clothes, a few bucks stolen from his father’s dresser, and a guitar, his most prized possession, Tyler disappeared without so much as a goodbye. Eighteen years later, and Tyler, now the frontman of a famous band aptly named Stone Mountain, finds himself returning to his hometown for a one-night-only benefit concert to support his old friend, Doc, who lost feeling in his legs following a childhood accident. As Tyler ascends the mountain, memories of his childhood come rushing back—memories of his abusive father and despondent mother, of the friends he left behind—and he quickly learns that, for many people on Stone Mountain, the past does not feel like so long ago, and not everyone has been eagerly awaiting Tyler’s return.
At the concert, resentment simmers just beneath the surface, and Tyler finds himself confronted with faces new and old: there’s Curt, Tyler’s childhood best friend, now Stone Mountain’s chief of police, and his star officer, Deb, an out-of-towner who may have bitten off more than she can chew by accepting a job in Stone Mountain. And then there’s Freddi, Curt’s wife and Tyler’s former lover, a woman whose questionable dealings and fraught history with Tyler will become the catalyst for a tragedy that will upend each of their lives and threaten to validate Tyler’s worst fear: that “Stone Mountain is the kind of place you might escape from once, if you’re lucky, but not twice.”
Under the Falls is at once a propulsive thriller, a gut-wrenching portrait of a tight-knit rural community undone by the sins of its past, and an unflinchingly honest depiction of how porous the line between right and wrong, good versus evil, can become. A stunning, deeply empathetic novel, one that takes Russo’s penchant for character-driven drama to thrilling new heights.
- GenresFictionLiterary Fiction
256 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication August 11, 2026
4 people are currently reading
699 people want to read
About the author
Richard Russo
58 books4,825 followersRICHARD RUSSO is the author of seven previous novels; two collections of stories; and Elsewhere, a memoir. In 2002 he received the Pulitzer Prize for Empire Falls, which like Nobody’s Fool was adapted to film, in a multiple-award-winning HBO miniseries.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
* thanks to Knopf for the NetGalley review copy (pub date: August 2026)
DNF @ 17% because omfg this is tedious
DNF @ 17% because omfg this is tedious
January 28, 2026
I really don't know what happened here. Richard Russo has long been ol' reliable for me. His books are funny and heartwarming and full of curmudgeonly and flawed but lovable characters. This book, which was originally a pilot script for a tv show, is a departure and not a welcome one.
I knew when I began reading and found that part of the story is told by a twentysomething Black woman (for those not in the know, Russo is a 76 year-old white man) that things were not looking good. Maybe the story would have worked better in its original form, as a serialized tv show?
Some Lingering Questions (SPOILERS ahead, be warned)
-If Tyler hated his hometown so much and wanted to distance himself, why did he name his band after it?
-Did the concertgoers, like, bring cartons of eggs into the concert?
-Did Doc really die how they said he did? He's used as a plot device and a reason for Tyler to return then quickly discarded and forgotten.
-Why is Beth so mad at Tyler? Even if he called Curtis Jr. while THEIR LIMO WAS ACTIVELY BEING PUSHED OFF A MOUNTAIN, the accident was already in motion.
-Why did Freddi tell Curtis Jr. about who she suspected his father was? She doesn't even know for sure, and she didn't tell her husband.
-Speaking of Freddi, there is nothing about this character or her motivations that I understand.
-How did Tyler figure out it was Curtis Jr. and not Freddi who was driving the hearse?
-What was Curtis Jr. planning to do when he bumped the limo off the mountain? Was he intending to kill its four inhabitants? Much like Freddi's, his motivations are a mystery. And we have so little of him in the novel that it's hard to guess.
I knew when I began reading and found that part of the story is told by a twentysomething Black woman (for those not in the know, Russo is a 76 year-old white man) that things were not looking good. Maybe the story would have worked better in its original form, as a serialized tv show?
Some Lingering Questions (SPOILERS ahead, be warned)
-If Tyler hated his hometown so much and wanted to distance himself, why did he name his band after it?
-Did the concertgoers, like, bring cartons of eggs into the concert?
-Did Doc really die how they said he did? He's used as a plot device and a reason for Tyler to return then quickly discarded and forgotten.
-Why is Beth so mad at Tyler? Even if he called Curtis Jr. while THEIR LIMO WAS ACTIVELY BEING PUSHED OFF A MOUNTAIN, the accident was already in motion.
-Why did Freddi tell Curtis Jr. about who she suspected his father was? She doesn't even know for sure, and she didn't tell her husband.
-Speaking of Freddi, there is nothing about this character or her motivations that I understand.
-How did Tyler figure out it was Curtis Jr. and not Freddi who was driving the hearse?
-What was Curtis Jr. planning to do when he bumped the limo off the mountain? Was he intending to kill its four inhabitants? Much like Freddi's, his motivations are a mystery. And we have so little of him in the novel that it's hard to guess.
November 25, 2025
This is very sub-par for such a good writer as Russo. Curt is the only interesting character. The plot is pretty predictable. I think it needs better editing as there are way too many sentences ending with question marks. I see at the end it was originally a pilot for a tv series that did not survive the writers’ strike. Russo should have passed on it. I think he generally aims for depth in his novels. There is also zero humor and he can be a master of sarcasm clever ridicule of human nature. I am hoping it will be cleaned up before the release date next year.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
ARC for review. To be published August 11, 2026.
3 stars
So, Russo. He’s not my favorite, but he’s usually pretty reliable. This….is not his best.
First off, now I’m sure this is primarily because I’m a Southern person, and I know Russo’s books are very specific as to place, which, if I remember correctly, is typically New York State. However, there are many, many of us Southern people and we do read. This book is set in a small town called Stone Mountain.
I don’t know about y’all (placed here very specifically, of course) but where I come from there’s only one Stone Mountain. It’s in Georgia. Kind of well known. The protagonist names his popular band Stone Mountain and the town name keeps coming up over and over again throughout the book. Has Russo never heard of Stone Mountain, Georgia? No editor? Because I have to say that it kept throwing me off. It would be like naming the fictional town in your book Kalamazoo, but not THAT Kalamazoo. Weird. But, again, maybe it’s just me.
Tyler Sinclair is Stone Mountain’s prodigal son; left at 18 and now he returns, eighteen years later, a star. He’s there, reluctantly to do a benefit show for his boyhood friend Doc who has severe medical issues.
Curt, Tyler’s childhood best friend is now chief of police. Freddi, Tyler’s former lover is Curt’s wife. Curt and Tyler reconnect. We also meet Deb, Curt’s star officer.
“Stone Mountain is the kind of place you might escape from once, if you’re lucky, but not twice.” This is a bit of a departure for Russo, or I think it is based on what I’ve read of him in that his has some thriller elements, but’s it’s still the examination of a rural, small town and a look at right and wrong.
The book is blessedly short. The big secrets are both pretty clear by page 20, one would have been obvious to a 5th grader with a calendar and Russo should know better. Plus, did this never occur to Tyler or has he suffered a brain injury we are not told about? The entire thing was predictable and disappointing. It gets three stars versus two only because Russo is still a great writer.
3 stars
So, Russo. He’s not my favorite, but he’s usually pretty reliable. This….is not his best.
First off, now I’m sure this is primarily because I’m a Southern person, and I know Russo’s books are very specific as to place, which, if I remember correctly, is typically New York State. However, there are many, many of us Southern people and we do read. This book is set in a small town called Stone Mountain.
I don’t know about y’all (placed here very specifically, of course) but where I come from there’s only one Stone Mountain. It’s in Georgia. Kind of well known. The protagonist names his popular band Stone Mountain and the town name keeps coming up over and over again throughout the book. Has Russo never heard of Stone Mountain, Georgia? No editor? Because I have to say that it kept throwing me off. It would be like naming the fictional town in your book Kalamazoo, but not THAT Kalamazoo. Weird. But, again, maybe it’s just me.
Tyler Sinclair is Stone Mountain’s prodigal son; left at 18 and now he returns, eighteen years later, a star. He’s there, reluctantly to do a benefit show for his boyhood friend Doc who has severe medical issues.
Curt, Tyler’s childhood best friend is now chief of police. Freddi, Tyler’s former lover is Curt’s wife. Curt and Tyler reconnect. We also meet Deb, Curt’s star officer.
“Stone Mountain is the kind of place you might escape from once, if you’re lucky, but not twice.” This is a bit of a departure for Russo, or I think it is based on what I’ve read of him in that his has some thriller elements, but’s it’s still the examination of a rural, small town and a look at right and wrong.
The book is blessedly short. The big secrets are both pretty clear by page 20, one would have been obvious to a 5th grader with a calendar and Russo should know better. Plus, did this never occur to Tyler or has he suffered a brain injury we are not told about? The entire thing was predictable and disappointing. It gets three stars versus two only because Russo is still a great writer.
November 17, 2025
Tyler Sinclair left Stone Mountain, a small sleepy town in the Adirondacks, when he was 18, vowing never to return. He made it big, fronting a band called Stone Mountain. When asked to play a benefit concert for an old friend, his band mates convince him to return to Stone Mountain, even though he knows that it will dredge up old memories and rivalries. The concert doesn't go as planned, and after an accident changes the course of Tyler's life, the community of Stone Mountain must grapple with its history and the relationships that shaped Tyler's life.
This really was a wonderful novel. Richard Russo is a master at character development, and this book was a study in the many layers that make up good character driven novels. We saw so many different aspects of Tyler - the scared child, the petulant teenager, the mentally cracking rock star. And Curt... the Chief of Police who is torn between his job and his family. The other characters, Freddi and Deb and Beth, all add to the story in their own important ways.
So many of the book these days are written in dual timelines. This one is too and it works okay. I think this is one book that could have been told in chronological order instead of jumping back and forth. By doing that, we could have had more history between Curt and Freddi and Tyler which, in my opinion, would have made Tyler's return to Stone Mountain more suspenseful. As it was, the author tries to build suspense only on the premise that he was returning without the reader understanding what was suspenseful about it.
I'm so glad I got to read this novel. I love many of Richard Russo's other novels. Under the Falls is another one to add to his long list of really great books. 4 ⭐s!
Many thanks to Netgalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for an advanced copy. The book is scheduled to be published on August 11, 2026.
This really was a wonderful novel. Richard Russo is a master at character development, and this book was a study in the many layers that make up good character driven novels. We saw so many different aspects of Tyler - the scared child, the petulant teenager, the mentally cracking rock star. And Curt... the Chief of Police who is torn between his job and his family. The other characters, Freddi and Deb and Beth, all add to the story in their own important ways.
So many of the book these days are written in dual timelines. This one is too and it works okay. I think this is one book that could have been told in chronological order instead of jumping back and forth. By doing that, we could have had more history between Curt and Freddi and Tyler which, in my opinion, would have made Tyler's return to Stone Mountain more suspenseful. As it was, the author tries to build suspense only on the premise that he was returning without the reader understanding what was suspenseful about it.
I'm so glad I got to read this novel. I love many of Richard Russo's other novels. Under the Falls is another one to add to his long list of really great books. 4 ⭐s!
Many thanks to Netgalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for an advanced copy. The book is scheduled to be published on August 11, 2026.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
“Under the Falls” by Richard Russo is an unusual mix of genres but, as always, he makes it work.
Nominally, the book is about Tyler Sinclair, a rock star, returning somewhat unwillingly to his hometown (Stone Mountain, NY), the hometown he left when he was 18, for a benefit concert for an old friend. He returns to find an economically depressed town, not all of whom are happy to see the star come back.
One thinks that it’s ultimately going to be a hybrid of Russo’s other work - the upstate New York milieu, resentment of the resort towns downstream (e.g., Everybody’s Fool) mixed with the famous person who left and the people left behind who claim a friendship that may or may not be reciprocated (Bridge of Sighs). It’s the ultimate conundrum of knowing famous people from before they were famous - you’re their friend, but are they yours? I was reminded, in the relationship of Curt and Tyler, of “Shotgun Lovesongs,” by Nickolas Butler, another story centered on the person who went away and became famous, and the people who stayed behind.
To be clear, I would’ve been satisfied with that, as I’ve been with his earlier books. But then, it segues into a crime novel. I don’t want to give spoilers and so won’t go into details, but Russo has done a great job in that genre as well.
Once again, he’s created a novel with multiple protagonists, all of whom have pasts they’re escaping and/or futures they fear, especially Curt, Tyler’s childhood best friend and the town’s chief of police. His saga of learning how to open his eyes is the fulcrum of the book.
This honest review was given in thanks to Net Galley and Knopf, Pantheon and Vintage for an advanced reader copy.
Nominally, the book is about Tyler Sinclair, a rock star, returning somewhat unwillingly to his hometown (Stone Mountain, NY), the hometown he left when he was 18, for a benefit concert for an old friend. He returns to find an economically depressed town, not all of whom are happy to see the star come back.
One thinks that it’s ultimately going to be a hybrid of Russo’s other work - the upstate New York milieu, resentment of the resort towns downstream (e.g., Everybody’s Fool) mixed with the famous person who left and the people left behind who claim a friendship that may or may not be reciprocated (Bridge of Sighs). It’s the ultimate conundrum of knowing famous people from before they were famous - you’re their friend, but are they yours? I was reminded, in the relationship of Curt and Tyler, of “Shotgun Lovesongs,” by Nickolas Butler, another story centered on the person who went away and became famous, and the people who stayed behind.
To be clear, I would’ve been satisfied with that, as I’ve been with his earlier books. But then, it segues into a crime novel. I don’t want to give spoilers and so won’t go into details, but Russo has done a great job in that genre as well.
Once again, he’s created a novel with multiple protagonists, all of whom have pasts they’re escaping and/or futures they fear, especially Curt, Tyler’s childhood best friend and the town’s chief of police. His saga of learning how to open his eyes is the fulcrum of the book.
This honest review was given in thanks to Net Galley and Knopf, Pantheon and Vintage for an advanced reader copy.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Under the Falls
Tyler was born in Stone Mountain, a small town in the Adirondacks in NYState. He grew up with two close friends, Curt and Doc. When he decided to leave the town at 18, he did so without telling anyone. He went to Nashville where he became famous. His hit band was named Stone Mountain . He had no intention to ever return to that town until 18 years later when his manager arranged for him to kick off a tour there.
When Tyler and the band arrived in town, they discovered that there was a lot of animosity toward him. Even some of his childhood friends were not happy to see him. That night they left the town and had a fatal accident driving down the mountain. Tyler survived but spent a long time recovering in a hospital in Albany.
After he was discharged Tyler discovered why some of his former friends wanted to destroy him.
This is a story about how love can turn to hate very easily. It also explains how far someone would go to protect a loved one.
I enjoyed the book. The author gives a vivid description of what life is like in a town is no longer flourishing. He explains how easy it is to hide criminal activities in a small town. The characters in the book are exposed for all to see their failings.
I received this ARC from the publisher & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Tyler was born in Stone Mountain, a small town in the Adirondacks in NYState. He grew up with two close friends, Curt and Doc. When he decided to leave the town at 18, he did so without telling anyone. He went to Nashville where he became famous. His hit band was named Stone Mountain . He had no intention to ever return to that town until 18 years later when his manager arranged for him to kick off a tour there.
When Tyler and the band arrived in town, they discovered that there was a lot of animosity toward him. Even some of his childhood friends were not happy to see him. That night they left the town and had a fatal accident driving down the mountain. Tyler survived but spent a long time recovering in a hospital in Albany.
After he was discharged Tyler discovered why some of his former friends wanted to destroy him.
This is a story about how love can turn to hate very easily. It also explains how far someone would go to protect a loved one.
I enjoyed the book. The author gives a vivid description of what life is like in a town is no longer flourishing. He explains how easy it is to hide criminal activities in a small town. The characters in the book are exposed for all to see their failings.
I received this ARC from the publisher & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
3.5 rounded up. Like many of the other reviewers, I love Richard Russo's books. He gives us time to get to know the characters and inhabit their lives. That being said, this book seems to be a short version of a longer book that was rushed into publication. I believe Russo said it was originally a tv pilot, which is what it reads like. We don't get to know the characters very well. I wasn't a fan of any of the characters, except maybe Deb, the new police officer. The book showed early promise, making me want to read more. However, then the characters started speaking and their dialogue felt stiff and wooden. Possibly, as this was once a pilot, that is the reason. I felt like I was reading a Russo novel, and someone else came in and wrote the dialogue between the characters. I still liked the book, but about midway through, started speed reading it, to get to the end. I still love Russo's books, and this is not a bad book, it's just not up to the level I was expecting from him.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Tyler Sinclair left Stone Mountain when he was eighteen, and now he is a rock star. His agent thinks going back to Stone Mountain for a concert will refresh him and give him a place to work on a new album. But Tyler did not leave Stone Mountain under good circumstances . He is under a cloud of guilt about things that happened before, and some people he was close to when he was young resent who he is. It took a while for me to get started on this one. I eventually found some sympathy for Tyler, but I did not like or have sympathy for most of the other characters. Not a feel good read. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc with no pressure for a positive review.
November 25, 2025
Under the Falls feels like a departure from Richard Russo's usual fare. Like his other books it does have a very strong sense of place, but there is a criminal thriller element to the book that I was not expecting when I started reading it. I was less interested in that than I was the book that I thought it was going to be during the first couple of chapters. I appreciate that he was interested in trying something a little different, and I liked it okay but it's definitely not one of my favorites.
tbr-arc
November 8, 2025i know i will love this. the premise draws me right in.
*thank you to Knopf for the ARC*
*thank you to Knopf for the ARC*
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I loved this book! It reminded me of Empire Falls. I hated to come to the end!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews