Shiner

by Amy Jo Burns

On a lush mountaintop trapped in time, two women vow to protect each other at all costs-and one young girl must defy her father to survive.

An hour from the closest West Virginia mining town, fifteen-year-old Wren Bird lives in a cloistered mountain cabin with her parents. They have no car, no mailbox, and no visitors-except for her mother's lifelong best friend. Every Sunday, Wren's father delivers winding sermons in an abandoned gas station, where he takes up serpents and praises the Lord for his blighted white eye, proof of his divinity and key to the hold he has over the community, over Wren and her mother.

But over the course of one summer, a miracle performed by Wren's father quickly turns to tragedy. As the order of her world begins to shatter, Wren must uncover the truth of her father's mysterious legend and her mother's harrowing history and complex bond with her best friend. And with that newfound knowledge, Wren can imagine a different future for herself than she has been told to expect.

Rich with epic love and epic loss, and diving deep into a world that is often forgotten but still part of America, Shiner reveals the hidden story behind two generations' worth of Appalachian heartbreak and resolve. Amy Jo Burns brings us a smoldering, taut debut novel about modern female myth-making in a land of men-and one young girl who must ultimately open her eyes.

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Contemporary, Book Club, Audiobook, Coming Of Age, Southern

272 pages, Hardcover

First published May 5, 2020

About the author

Amy Jo Burns is the author of the memoir Cinderland and the novel Shiner, which was a Barnes & Noble Discover Pick, NPR Best Book of the year, a Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club selection, and “told in language as incandescent as smoldering coal,” according to The New York Times. Her writing has appeared in The Paris Review Daily, Tin House, Elle, Good Housekeeping, Ploughshares, Electric Literature, Literary Hub, and the anthology Not That Bad.

Her next novel, Mercury, is forthcoming in January 2024. You can find her on Instagram at @burnsamyjo.

Reviews

[Angela M · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Making good moonshine isn’t that different from telling a good story, and no one tells a story like a woman. She knows that legends and liquor are best spun from the back of a pickup truck after nightfall, just as she knows to tell a story slowly, the way whiskey drips through a sieve.”

“Stories, like bottles of shine are meant to be given away.”

“ I didn’t want to be a story. I wanted to live.”

This stunning story takes place on a secluded mountain in West Virginia where days of drink, drugs, death, blind snake faith and isolation were dark. Then as the secrets of the past are revealed, an even darker shadow is cast. Amy Jo Burns writes in clear, beautiful prose that conveys fifteen year old Wren’s isolation and fear, difficult to endure if not for her mother Ruby and her mother’s best friend Ivy and Ivy’s children. Briar Bird, her preacher, snake handling father keeps Wren from the outside world and the outside world as far away as possible.

It’s about the shine and the religion with beliefs manifested in snake handling and the miracle of healing. The relationships are complex - between Wren’s parents, Ruby and Briar “White Eye”, between Ruby and her life long friend, Ivy, between Ruby and Flynn from her past, between Wren and her father and the hope in the budding relationship between Wren and Caleb. The author does an incredible job of fully realizing the individual characters as well. By the end of the story, we know them all.

At first I gave this four stars, but then I thought about the true healing miracles here of unconditional friendship, the capacity to love in spite of suffering caused by those you love, and the possibility of hope when everything feels hopeless and the amazing writing. I decided it was deserving of 5 stars. A heartbreakingly beautiful debut novel about all of those beautiful things that are part of a place and culture where it’s easy to be mistaken that they won’t be found here. I’m hoping for more from Amy Jo Burns.

I received a copy of this Riverhead Books through Edelweiss.

[Debra - can't post any comments on site today grrr · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"The truth turns sour if it idles too long in our mouths. Stories, like bottles of shine, are meant to be given away."

Fifteen-year-old Wren Bird lives in a mountain cabin with her parents Ruby and Briar. She is home schooled and seldom goes to the nearest town. Her parents have no car, no mailbox, and welcome no visitors except for her Mother's friend, Ivy.

"There's is no one lonelier than the wife of a preacher."

Every Sunday, her father leads sermons in an abandoned gas station to the mountain worshipers. He takes up the scriptures along with his serpents and everyone knows the tale of how he survived being struck by lightning as a teen. He loves his wife Ruby and his snakes. That is about all the love he has to give.

"I can't survive her anymore."
Ruby and Ivy have always been friends and wanted to get away but instead stay and live on the mountain, having homes near each other and relying on each other often. When tragedy strikes, Wren learns some truths, some harsh realities and perhaps Wren might be the one to get away - maybe.

"There's danger in letting your desires define you..."

This book is about so many things: love, friendship, motherhood, loyalty, faith, isolation, heartbreak, moonshine, snakes, control, obsession, grief, fear, growing up, secrets and longing. There are several characters in this book, and they are all expertly drawn. You can feel their sadness, and loneliness dripping off the pages. They live a rough, slow, and hard life. They have also made sacrifices, suffered for those sacrifices, paid their dues, stood by their friends, hoped for better tomorrows, and made tough choices. We get to know all their pain and see how over the course of time they will either becomes stronger or dwindle away. This is also a coming of age tale for Wren as she learns more about herself and the adults in her life.

I found this book to be absorbing and captivating. Snake handling in Appalachia still exists and occurs in this book. So, does making moonshine. Both play a part in this book but mainly this book is about various forms of relationships. I was drawn into these characters lives and because of this, I found this book to be a fast read. It is not a happy go lucky book, and yet there is hope and strength within the pages. I found this book to be well written with sheer beauty in the passages.

If this book is not on your radar, it should be.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

West Virginia, hidden on a mountain top, miles from the nearest town, Wren lives with her parents, Ruby and Briar. At fifteen she has never been to school, taught by her mother. Her father, a snake handling preacher, whose path in life was formed by a lightening strike, when he was a younger man. Wren has been hidden away from the world, seeing only her mother's best friend, Ivy and her family. That is until she meets Caleb, which sets in motion detrimental changes to all their lives.

Five fully realized characters. Beautiful descriptions of the land, wonderful writing. It travels back in time , to when Ivy and Ruby become friends, as do Briar and Riley. Strong friendships between the ladies and two events that change the friendships between the men. We learn the secrets of all involved, and share in heartbreaking losses.

These gritty. edgy and melancholy Southern novels hold for me a strong appeal. Shiner refers to moonshine, the way mountain people have for a long time, made a living. Harder now that drugs are becoming more lucrative. Although much in this novel is dark, it leaves a strong impression with the reader. Time out of mind, and taking me to a different place, world. It does end with hope.

[Anne Bogel · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Making good moonshine isn't that different from telling a good story, and no one tells a story like a woman."

Wren lives in the Appalachian Mountains with her family: her snake-handler father, who scares and enraptures the town with his preaching, and her mother, who only ever wanted to get off the mountain with her best friend Ivy, but whose parents made her marry. When Ivy stumbles into the fire and Wren's father performs a "miraculous healing," it sets in motion a chain of events that has devastating consequences for all.

Gorgeous, lush, and beautifully sympathetic, I read this in one sitting; it will definitely land on my best-of-the-year list.

[Jenna ❤ ❀ ❤ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the second book in a month where I enjoyed the blurb much more than the book. It sounds so freaking good! 

In the beginning, I enjoyed Shiner, enjoyed the way the author writes, thought this was gonna be a 4 or 5 star book for me. Unfortunately, the characters are never fully fleshed out and the more I read, the less plausible the characters became. 

For instance, there are some teens in foster care who immediately upon meeting one of the main characters (Wren) tell her their stories. Bull!  A kid who's been traumatized or tossed about from home to home has trust issues. They're not gonna just blab their life story to everyone they meet. It takes time and a lot of it before that happens. If it ever happens. This pissed me off. Sure, they're minor characters but really. If you're going to write a book, you need to understand the psychology of your characters.

As for young Wren, she wasn't believable either. None of the characters were. It seemed to me like the author came up with a story and then wrote the characters to fit it, rather than let the characters build the story. Pushed circles into squares. I couldn't identify with or feel anything for any of these characters and so I had a hard time enjoying the book. I didn't care what happened, only wanted it to happen soon so I could be done with the book. 

How can you care about characters the author herself appears not to know?

I should have DNF'ed this but I kept thinking it would get better.

Maybe it's just me. This book has a high rating here on Goodreads but I thought it was boring and unbelievable. 

I wonder if there are any award categories for blurb writers? If not, there should be. Shout out to the writer of this book's blurb. Thanks for making me waste time on a book that isn't nearly as interesting as your synopsis.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Taking place amid the abject poverty of the “hollers” of Appalachian West Virginia, a miracle goes very wrong and has devastating repercussions. The storyline follows two generations of mountain men and women and their traditions of making moonshine, snake handling, and what appears to be male dominance. Alcoholism and the opioid crisis rear their heads, yet there is a great sense of love. Love for each other, their land and their mountain traditions which are not to say that there isn’t a pervading sense of being trapped. In a sense, this is a coming of age novel as young Wren learns the truth of her father’s divinity untangles her mother’s past and finally sees possibilities for her future.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"Making good moonshine isn't that different from telling a good story, and no one tells a story like a woman. She knows that legends and liquor are best spun from the back of a pickup truck after nightfall, just as she knows to tell a story slowly, the way whiskey drips through a sieve . . . " - narrator Wren Bird

There is a certain serendipity with this opening paragraph - although it describes the plot's female protagonists, it can also be applied to author Burns. Shiner is her debut novel (her only prior work was a memoir), and I found it to be sublime, in that 'impressive, yet simple' meaning of the word.

Set in the economically-depressed and mountainous section of West Virginia (where the coal mining industry has died out, but opiod addiction has sadly picked up the slack; the unlawful but accepted moonshine production, however, has stayed the same for decades), Shiner focuses on teenager Wren Bird. Wren drearily lives a sheltered, home-schooled existence in a remote cabin with her bored housewife mother Ruby and the oddball preacher father Briar who routinely handles snakes during his moments at the pulpit. (The 'church' is an abandoned Texaco service station.) As Wren is in the throes of adolescence she is pining away for any change in her life . . . which is quickly granted after a shocking accident and then a subsequent alarming incident spur her to flee from the homestead.

The book's masterstroke is after about 100 pages into the story it switches from Wren's effective present-day, first-person narration to jump backwards about fifteen or so years earlier. We then get to follow the teenage versions of the handful of adults in Wren's life as they make decisions, take actions, and/or keep secrets that will influence or just ultimately determine (or is it damage?) the respective paths in their lives. Then, in the final fifty pages, it reverts back to Wren's focus again until the ending. This was one gripping and involving generational drama, grounded by its unique and vivid setting, that immediately hooked me in the initial chapters and kept my interest throughout.

[Kelly (and the Book Boar) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/

Here’s an embarrassing confession: I noticed this book sitting on the “new release” shelf behind the counter at Barnes and Noble while I was waiting in line to pick up my pre-ordered copy of Midnight Sun by Sparkles the Vampire. Since I had already blown my book budget on that sure to be Pulitzer winner, I had to go home and get this one from the library.

I didn’t know anything about Shiner before beginning aside from the fact that the cover didn’t make me want to gag since it didn’t have a face on it, there was no “girl” in the title so it most likely wasn’t a thriller, and shiner probably meant there was either going to be moonshine or someone getting punched in the face - which are both generally good times when it comes to me and fiction.

The story here is about Wren and her coming of age as the daughter of a snakehandling preacherman in Appalachia. Basically, as soon as I started this I was pretty much like . . . . .



I did question where things were going right about the thirty percent mark, only to discover the narrator was set to change (and then change again and again) and rather than turning me off the story I became even more invested. This was another heartbreaker of a tale – although not quite the gut punch that Betty was. If you were a fan of Where the Crawdads Sing, I certainly don’t feel I’d be steering you wrong to point you in the direction of this story.

[DeAnn · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 moonshine stars

This gem had so many elements that I love in a book: small town Southern setting, memorable characters, love, blind faith, friendship, passion, and tragedy.

Wren is fifteen and has been sheltered her whole life in the remote backwoods of West Virginia. She’s homeschooled, but anxious to learn more about the world. Her father is a snake handling pastor who has special healing powers after being struck by lightning.

Wren’s mom, Ruby and her best friend Ivy, grew up together but always vowed to get away. Instead, they both married, had children, and are stuck “on the mountain” and in the same environment. Will Wren be able to break the pattern?

There’s the myth and reality of moonshine explored in this one too – is it an honest profession? Flynn, a true shiner, might make you think otherwise. This one was lyrically written, and even though it was heartbreaking, I really enjoyed it.

[Kyra Leseberg (Roots & Reads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Deep in the hollers of West Virginia is the Bird family. They live a simple life and would be completely closed off from the world if not for Briar Bird’s sermons and snake handling every Sunday to his faithful flock in an abandoned gas station.
Ruby Bird spends her days with her best friend Ivy. They’ve been friends since they were kids and have become like sisters. Their bond is seemingly unbreakable and they have settled for the lives they’ve chosen as long as they have each other.
When Ivy becomes ill, the Bird family begins to unravel as the legends and secrets that have held them all together are given a closer look by fifteen-year-old Wren Bird.

Wren is at the heart of this tale. It’s the summer of her fifteenth year when Briar attempts to heal Ivy and she learns the long history of her father’s faith and her mother’s choices. The truths she discovers allows her to see a much different future for herself than she dared to imagine before.

My feelings about this book are complicated. The writing and the atmosphere are both lovely; several paragraphs knocked me out with their beauty.
There are many Appalachian stereotypes/cliches/traditions in this book: a snake handling preacher, obedient women quietly birthing babies, moonshine operations, addiction, and poisoned water in impoverished communities. It’s all here and at times overdone.
We begin with Wren’s narration in the present and then switch to third person for a good portion of the book as it details the past and return to Wren’s present narration for the final section. This normally wouldn’t bother me or even be something I was aware of but I struggled with it in this novel because it made the pacing uneven. The present felt slow while the past felt rushed and for that reason I didn’t really connect with any of the characters.

This is a story with great potential but it missed the mark for me in the way in which it was delivered.

Thanks to Riverhead Books and Edelweiss for providing me with a DRC in exchange for my honest review. Shiner is scheduled for release on May 12, 2020.

For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com

[Bkwmlee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had actually received an ARC of this book over a year ago and even though, at that time, I had every intention of reading it, life unfortunately got in the way and that was that. It wasn’t until recently, when one of my book clubs chose this for our monthly read, that I remembered about the ARC, so I went and dug it up. I will admit that the slow pace of the story in the beginning turned me off a bit initially, as did the characters, several of whom I found annoying at first with the way they behaved. What drew me in though was the beautiful, immersive writing — almost lyrical in its cadence — and as soon as I started to understand what the author, Amy Jo Burns, was trying to do with the story, I became fully engaged in the lives of these characters, several of whom I grew to love by the end of the story.

Though much of the narrative revolves around Briar Bird, the snake handling preacher who rules the mountaintop with his ‘White Eye’ legend, the heart and soul of the story are actually the “women who give this mountain its splendor” but who get nothing in return — women like Ruby (Briar’s wife), Ivy (Ruby’s best friend), and Wren (Briar and Ruby’s teenage daughter). I love the strong female characters in this story, all of whom have no choice but to forge their own path of survival in a land of men whose power often went unchecked and unchallenged. This is also a story about the complexities of human relationships and how messy and convoluted they can become.

Structure-wise, the narrative is divided into 4 main sections, each told from the perspective of one of the main characters: Wren (the snake handler’s daughter), Ivy (the fearless best friend), Flynn (the moonshiner). Through these segments, we gradually gain insight into the lives of these characters: their triumphs and tragedies, their joys and their heartbreaks, their strengths and their fragilities. Having said that, I thought it was interesting how central of a role Briar played as the instigator of nearly every negative incident, yet we get to hear from every other character except him — whether this was done deliberately or inadvertently, I don’t know, but I feel it was a brilliant move nonetheless, as it gives voice to those who are expected to stay hidden: the wives and daughters living in the mountains of Appalachia, isolated from the outside world, not necessarily by their own choice.

This is the type of book that is difficult to read due to its subject matter, yet at the same time, it’s also an absolutely necessary and worthy read. With its themes of doing the best with the little you have, finding strength in the face of desperation and suffering, survival through sheer determination and grit, the overall tone of the story is melancholic and despondent, yet also hopeful, especially with Wren’s coming of age story and her will to survive in spite of the fates her mother and Ivy suffered.

This is a debut that I highly recommend, one that perhaps takes a little patience to read, but definitely worth the effort. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Received ARC from Riverhead Books via Edelweiss.

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5. Heavy. Loved the ending though. Beautifully written story of a young girl coming of age. Her father was a snake handling preacher living off the grid up in the mountains. Her mom was like a trapped bird who wouldn't leave the cage even when the door opened. Secrets were revealed as the story went on. It was heartbreaking at times and infuriating too.

[Anya · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book seemed to start strong, as the story line seemed promising, but it petered out quite rapidly. It's main flaw was how wildly unbelievable its characters were. I so often found myself pulling away from the book and asking out loud: "what!? why??" The book mostly centers on female characters, and in particular a strong female friendship, but the female characters are given so little agency, particularly compared to the male characters, and the friendship is hardly explored in any way that explains its power, leaving it wholly unfulfilling. I was honestly hoping the entire time that this strong female friendship would have actually been a queer relationship, but I was disappointed in that as well. One of the key female characters experiences a pivotal shift in her personality as a key driver of the plot and it is never explained (it is possible that a revelation at the end is meant to explain her change of heart, but I don't know how one would find that plausible). There are so many moments where characters act rashly or pivotally but we are never given any understanding as to why they would act that way, and in fact their choices are often contrary to what one would expect given what (minimal) character development the reader is provided with leading up to and following those actions. In my frustration upon reaching the end, I was honestly a bit tempted to leave a one sentence review: "this book made no sense" and leave it there. I could tell the characters were going to be weak before I got to the end of the first section, and by the end of the second section, I knew there would be no plot twist that could tie things together in a way that would make their motivations make sense. Fortunately, this was a short book, and by the time I reached that realization I was already halfway through and with no other books to switch to on a boring day, I reluctantly finished it. This book floats between 1 and 2 stars, because while I have read books that I disliked a great deal more than this one, I don't really think there was anything here that I truly liked. I seem to be in the minority with this opinion, however, so I suppose you should take my curmudgeonly opinion with a grain of salt.

[Pauline]

Lu vite et aisément, mais sans être captivée pour autant.
Je crois que je sature un peu des romans qui se déroulent dans l’Amérique profonde et mettent en scène des filles aux pères abusifs. (C’est une des raisons pour lesquelles j’avais aimé Betty d’ailleurs : pas de père abusif dans cette histoire-là.)
Ce n’était pas nul, il y avait de très jolis passages et des retournements surprenants, les personnages étaient intéressants, leurs relations complexes, mais voilà, le thème et le cadre m’ont lassée, j’en ai trop lus.

[Cranky Commentary (Melinda) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I blew through this book for the second time. I still couldn’t put it down. Even though I’ve revised this review, I feel it still falls short.

A fifteen year old girl named Wren Bird lives in not only an isolated area in the West Virginian mountains, but is further isolated by her reclusive father and his strict religion. He is the preacher to a small congregation, and is known to work miracles, speak in tongues and take up serpents. The area they live in has been damaged by coal mining, but it is their home, and Wren’s parents are not leaving. Her mother, Ruby, and her mother’s best friend from childhood, Ivy, depend heavily on each other for support in this isolated world where men turn their wives into victims either purposely or unwittingly.

Very character driven, the book goes back in time to tell the story of when Ruby and Ivy were young girls, and the boys who would become their husbands. In the present, Wren struggles to rise above the life she has been given.

This rather dark story is beautifully written. The book is very atmospheric and paints vividly the green wilderness and also the land ruined by coal mining of the mountain. The dismal reality of the life of the mountain people is described so well that it came to life for me. The writing is so lovely it borders on poetry at times, and quote-worthy wisdom is tucked into the story. It’s also a coming-of-age story, and the reader comes into understanding right along with Wren.

Lately I’ve either been loving books or hating them. This is a love, but probably not for everyone. This isn’t fluffy by any means. Still, for me, five stars!

[Meagan (Meagansbookclub) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook: enjoyable single narrator! A little heavy on the southern accent, but overall, good.

I’ve had Shiner on my TBR ever since it came out and it wasn’t until I saw her new book Mercury was coming out that I made it a point to read this one. I thought the story really flowed well at the beginning, but really pumped the breaks for me when it switched to part 2 and told her mothers story. I think both were important to tell, but the pacing felt off. Otherwise, I liked the story, the highs and lows of this West Virginia life, and think there is a lot to takeaway. Might be a good one to discuss with a book club!

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

*I just updated my rating on this book. I initially had it at 4.5 stars due to one minor criticism but, really, I still think of the unputdownable beauty of this book since reading it in May and I think it really was a 5 star read for me.*

“Moonshine earned its name from spending its life concealed in the dark, and no one understands that fate more than I do.”

Shiner is the story of three women: Ruby, her best friend Ivy, and her daughter Wren. It is also the story of isolation, secrets, toxic beliefs, and, at its core, a miracle that crumbles into tragedy.

If ever a novel felt like poetry, it’s this one. I felt its power clench in the pit of my stomach, stealing my breath away. The words flowed beautifully and made me hungry for more.

The author laced the threads of this story together gracefully and tragically. This was one of the least predictable books I’ve ever read, with countless surprising developments along its winding path. I rarely find authentic page-turners outside of the world of thrillers but this was one of the exceptions.

I do wish that the relationship between Flynn and Ruby had been better developed. It was difficult to comprehend his devotion to her, other than an infatuated phase. There wasn’t enough depth for me to believe in his love and this is the one component that left me unsatisfied.

I think this book will be especially meaningful to those who’ve lived under the watchful eye of toxic religious beliefs or the oppressive views of dominant men. That’s not to say that others won’t enjoy it, as well, but it captures a sad acceptance and hopeless desire to escape that I believe will resonate with those who’ve experienced it firsthand. It’s a special story that will sit with me for a long time. I hope you’ll choose to experience it, too.

[Karen M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love and loyalty, lies, revenge, fear, and hope are what this story is about.

The love and loyalty that grew from childhoods of want and suffering and a need for friendship that grew deeper through the years. Two women whose lives are shaped and trapped by the mountains of West Virginia and the men who dominate their lives, Ruby and Ivy.

Fathers and husbands control their lives because the women have no say in this world of moonshiners, thieves and drunks. The only true thing in their lives is their loyalty to each other and the hope of leaving this place but this too disappears when Ruby marries and Ivy is now tied to the mountain and this way of life because of her love for Ruby.

Lies are not just told but lived with so they shape one’s very existence and create a fear of discovery and destruction. Revenge twists and turns and finally destroys.

Hope lies in the young. Ruby’s daughter, Wren, who desires so much more than what the mountain has given her and yet will finally determine her own surprising future.

Wonderful book with such well drawn characters that you get pulled into their lives. The book is a world away from my own life but it quickly drew me into Ruby and Ivy’s lives. Resigned to a male dominated life style and yet Ivy still held out hope. Just a really good read.

I won this ARC in a First Reads giveaway. Thank you to Riverhead Books and the author, Amy Jo Burns.

[Paris (parisperusing) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a beautifully woven tale, one drunk on love and faith and hope. It's not just the story of a daughter coming of age but also of the unbreakable friendship forged between two childhood friends who, under the pressures of their time, had to flatten their dreams of embarking another life. It's a generation-sweeping story that unlocks life-changing secrets — some buried, others resurfaced — that speak vastly to the unforgivable ways men lay claim to women who refused to be tamed.

Amy Jo Burns has crafted a truly gripping tale of how much women — mothers, daughters, and friends — must sacrifice to keep each other alive.

[TracyGH · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book during Co-vid and four years later I finally got to it. I am so glad I did. My first read by this author and it was very well done.

The mountains of West Virginia was the background of this book. Moonshine and serpents. Lost dreams and deep friendships.

I highly recommend this book. It runs in the same veins as “When the Crawdads Sing” and “The Great Alone.”

[Zoe Hana Mikuta · Rating 5 out of 5]

prose rich as honey oh my god

[Andy Weston · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a poor imitation of the great writing of the likes of Harry Crews, William Gay and Donald Ray Pollock. Burns uses the same sort of setting, a backward and backwoods Appalachia, where the same sort of oppressive and hardline preacher is busy building myth with snakes and strychnine.
Amongst the problems in Burns's premise, is that this is set in the modern day, and she asks readers to accept an absence of child protection, a thriving moonshine operation, and a lawless society not only without police, but any authority at all, or even medical treatment.
It is also rare to read a piece of contemporary fiction these days in which women fare so badly. In this respect it is dated. Even with those southern gothic greats set in the early / mid 20th century the key female characters got along better than they do here; their tormentors got their come-uppance, and the writing was clever enough for the reader never to doubt whose side they were on.
Her characters here come over as stupid and ignorant, the complete opposite of the aforementioned, which was one of the reasons their writing was so enjoyable.

[Leah Schmidt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! The characters were so rich and full of life. I love the shifting perspectives and the storytelling in reverse. My only complaint is it wasn’t long enough. I hope the author chooses to revisit this place and tell another tale ❤️

[Rachel · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's like being attacked by a dementor for almost 300 pages and having all the joy slowly sucked out of the world.

[Tess · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful story about growing up in West Virginia, SHINER is a wallop of a book: short, sour, and vivid. Wren, our 15 year old protagonist, is the daughter of a preacher and snake charmer, Briar, who is as unknowable as her mysterious mother Ruby. They live isolated from the rest of the modern world in the Appalachian mountains close to Ruby's best friend Ivy, who also has secrets of her own. The story moves fast, and as tragedy strikes and we meet the moonshiner Flynn, we are whipped back and forth through time to learn more about these characters and how they all play a big part in the story of their lives and, along the way, Wren’s life.

I loved how the story unravelled and secrets came to light. This made the book hard to put down and I didn't find it slow moving at all, by the end. It's heartbreaking and rough, but it's also about hope and finding your way as a girl, and woman, in a small southern town. It's about faith and miracles, and learning that you usually can't trust in miracles at all. Burns' writing is lyrical and a joy to read, I can't wait to see more from her in the future.

[Megan C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 (WHY CAN'T WE HAVE HALF-STAR RATINGS, @GOODREADS ?!)

A very satisfying and enjoyable read. The reason for 3.5 as opposed to 4 stars is likely my own internal bias. I adore southern noir and Appalachian fiction like The Line That Held Us, Gods of Howl Mountain, and Bull Mountain. I was looking for something dark and gritty, like those books, in Shiner. It certainly had dark and gritty moments, and I really did enjoy it, but the story just didn't pack the level of punch I wanted, which is my fault only. So, if you love richly atmospheric reads with raw and dark undertones, please give this one a try!

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anne Bogel sold me on this in a recent Patreon podcast. I listened to audio. Loved the characters and story.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t know about you, but I absolutely LOVE a novel that the opening pages have been so well written, are so captivating, that you are instantly transported to those late summer nights, sitting around a bonfire, wrapped in a soft blanket and silky words, told by your grandma that instantly transport you another time and place. THIS is one of those stories.

From Amy Jo Burns opening chapter “The Truth,” I knew I had just entered a tale that wasn’t going to allow me to simply close the cover and walk away.

Her description of life deep in the West Virginia mountains was so familiar to me, and head on acknowledged and challenged the stereotypical views of the mountain people before opening into a story so complex and believable, I was invested.

Wren, the daughter of a backwoods preacher (that has been deemed a “miracle,” and is the leader of what feels like a cult like existence in a faith that still takes up snake handling and strychnine drinking) has the feeling that maybe there is more out there for her than what she is allowed to know, events and past secrets tip a domino chain that could burn them all off the mountain. The mountain is all she’s ever known, but could there be more out there?

The friendship (sister-ship) portrayed between Wrens mother Ruby and best friend from childhood Ivy, is both empowering and heart breaking. The want to be something more, but stuck where they are resonated through the novel. All the choices, good and bad, leading to so many lives changed.

Burns did such a good job writing this novel from Wrens perspective, the going back to her father Briar’s, (White Eye to the mountain people), and his best friends perspective, then circling back to Ruby and Ivy’s perspective, and finishing with how legends are born (or changed), will keep you speed reading through this novel at break neck speed.

The writing in this novel is so strong- and her messages of female struggle with equality, strong female characters, as well as the feeling of being stuck, (yet fearing the thought of change), as well as the horrible cost of the choices we make, and the secrets we keep, made this a definite 4 to 4.5 out of 5 star read for me. The story and images remain haunting even after closing the book and bidding farewell to the characters I met within (now old that remain waiting while I forge on to new adventures… once again leaving them stuck in the pages that now contain them.)

I’ve been lucky to be on such a great novel reading spree. This is one I definitely recommend you check out both for the story, and the incredibly powerful writing and storytelling contained within.

As always, you can check out my reviews at oceansofbooks.com , and I would love to hear your feedback or your opinion if you’ve read this one. How did it impact you? I hope you give this a go. Thank you so much for reading my review, I hope you’re having a great day wherever you are! Stay safe and happy reading my friends!

[Anaïs Coste · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ce roman m'a transportée. Le style est incroyable, riche et vibrant ; et l'histoire, oh, l'histoire.
Amy Jo Burns démontre avec une efficacité incroyable que oui, les femmes n'ont pas d'histoires : elles ont des secrets, qui se murmurent sous un saule ou sur le pas d'une maison au fin fond de la montagne.

La force de Wren, d'Ivy et de Ruby font vivre les hommes qui voudraient les posséder, mais on ne possède pas la liberté : elles sont entières sans les hommes et plus vivantes encore loin d'eux.

[Amy Meyerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shiner is so lyrically written, you might overlook how masterfully plotted it is, too. Every word of this taut, captivating novel is carefully planted, and I found myself stopping more often than I normally do to admire a sentence, a paragraph, a passage. This one is not to be missed.