Etta's Fishing Ground

by Eva Pasco

Just as a whirlwind courtship derailed Momma’s beat-poet dream of hightailing it to North Beach in the Fifties, a badass drifter veers Etta away from seeking haven in the artists’ hub of Greenwich Village during the Seventies.

Etta makes the best of circumstances staying put in the rural enclave of Foster, Rhode Island, sketching the likes of its historic landmarks and scenic overlooks on her fishing ground.

However, deviant twists of fate with deaths resulting, arise from wild speculations and unwarranted suspicions when things aren’t what they seem:

*Chance encounters predispose a besotted admirer to figure things all wrong.
*False impressions taunt Etta’s husband, Keith, with uncertainty until his dying day.
*Acting on a hunch, Etta’s best friend shows up at her door to peddle Keith’s infidelity, unbeknownst to either, in sync with his drowning while fishing.

Blaze a trail to the point of no return where love and friendship shift ground to withstand the vagaries of life.

429 pages, Paperback

Published October 11, 2021

About the author

February 28

My latest weekly BLOG posted on 02/25 - Eva’s Byte #565 – Leaving One's Stamp

WIP: Finished drafting Ch. 27 @ 1820 words. Drafting Ch. 28, progressing from 421 words.

READING:

'Shadowbound' by Lily Lamb: resuming from Ch. 9, p. 108 @ 47 per cent.

LATEST PUBLICATION:

'Aileen's Guesthouse':

Reader Views "Reviewers Choice Awards" General Fiction Finalist (2025)

(Charlestown, Rhode Island) - A portal for stepping into the 1970s in close proximity to those who survive the ravages of a guilt-wracked conscience and struggle to find meaning in the suffering they’ve caused.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DB6FHRY7

AWARDS:

MR. WIZARDO:

2021 Top Shelf Award Runner Up (Fiction)

2020 Best Book Award Finalist: American Book Fest

100 WILD MUSHROOMS: MEMOIRS OF THE '60s:

2018 New Apple Summer eBook Awards for Excellence in Independent Publishing: Solo Medalist Winner

2018 TopShelf Award Finalist in the Category of Memoirs (Other)

The collection sprouted from submissions to "The 60s Official Site" where Eva is a featured contributor.

A former elementary school teacher and Sixties Chick, you can access Eva’s memoirs, essays, previous blogs, and find out what she’s up to on a daily basis by checking out her bio at Authors Den.

http://www.authorsden.com/evapasco

Reviews

[Anna Casamento Arrigo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love, Family, and Drama-YES! perfect blend

An absolutely fantastic roller coaster ride. The engaging , sometimes, contentious, unforgiving, rude, rustic, but, still, there’s always something to love! Life isn’t easy but, despite the trials and tribulations of life in the ‘wild,’ love, in one form or another, shines through along with some dos and don’ts (especially if your supposed to be a lady first and foremost)! Captivating. Huge character development as well as dialogue! Rhodesia Island-flipping back, then fast forward. Ms. Pasco’s settings, the landmarks, (in typically well-crafted historical fiction-are the perfect pièce de résistance). A most definite 5=⭐️ read!!

[Jacqueline Terrill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eva Pasco has cleverly plotted a spell-binding debut with plenty of twists and turns that you won't see coming!
A young woman that has a Bachelor of Fine Arts Illustration Degree that owns a studio in her small town.
A trophy wife married to the "Wild-One," a pro-fisherman. Is he the catch of her life, or was he really having an affair? Where friends and family collide together in a true-to-life setting sure to keep you addicted to the last page!
I highly recommend this book!
Author Jacqueline Terrill
Editor-In-Chief of Pittsburg Press

[Jess Frankel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was gifted with a copy by the author in exchange for an unbiased review...and here it is.

I'm no stranger to Ms. Pasco's work, and, outside of Mr. Wizardo, this ranks as one of my favorites.

Ms. Pasco's story of a Rhode Islander interweaves historical events with regional happenings and place names into a seamless whole. We have Etta who knows a thing or two about fly fishing, is strong-willed, defiant, almost, and the story takes us through the 1960's and 1970's, a tale of generations and secrets, rumors, relationships, and more.

It's a kaleidoscopic view of life as it was, with choices to make and consequences to live with.

I can't recommend this book enough.

[Cindy Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished reading this. It was fantastic! So many ways small assumptions can lead to dramatic and tragic situations. Little things eat at true love and true happiness and cause irreparable harm. Great writing Eva Pasco, fully developed characters and enough plot twists to keep the suspense developing!

Reading the life story of Etta is a tale of how love can change our dreams of the future into what is best for us. I could feel all the passion each member felt for the other.

[P.S. Winn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The rural atmosphere of this book minds me f home and looking back to life in the sixties and seventies adds much to this tale. The character of Etta is wonderful. She is a strong woman and a bit of a carefree personality, and is someone you feel you would like to sit down and talk to. Readers get to follow Etta through her dreams, her friendships and her life. The author does a great job bringing readers into a contemporary life story of the paths' that life leads us all.

[Jack Kregas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Characters that you like, situations that you can relate to, with twists and turns in relationships that are all too common. I felt the author knew many of the characters in real life and was relating what she had been told. This book confirms why Eva Pasco is a outstanding author with an ever growing fan base. As a fisherman myself, I believe she also knows her way around fly fishing.

[Toni Kief · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful trip into the 60s and 70s, flawed friendship, and the intricacies of love. The language of the day held me deeper into the story. Eva has captured amazing, truly complex characters, with some of the secrets we keep trying to be the people we imagine for our lives. I would like to move to cabin #4 near the water and the beauty of nature.

[Iwan Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Etta’s Fishing Ground is one of those rare novels that quietly takes hold of you and refuses to let go. I began reading with the intention of dipping in for a chapter or two and found myself still awake hours later, utterly absorbed, turning pages long past when I should have been sleeping.

At its heart, this is a deeply human story — rooted in place, memory, and the fragile misunderstandings that shape entire lives. Eva Pasco paints rural Rhode Island with a patient, observant hand, allowing the rhythms of small-town life to unfold naturally. The landscapes, the social dynamics, and the unspoken tensions all feel lived-in rather than constructed.

Etta is a compelling central figure — resilient, thoughtful, and quietly strong. Her life is shaped not by grand declarations, but by moments of chance, misinterpretation, and loyalty. Pasco explores how false assumptions can ripple outward, leaving lasting consequences, particularly within marriage and friendship. The tragedy at the heart of the novel never feels sensationalised; instead, it emerges with a heartbreaking inevitability that mirrors real life.

What struck me most was the novel’s emotional intelligence. Pasco has a remarkable ability to capture how people convince themselves of truths that may not be true at all — and how those beliefs can persist long after the facts are gone. Themes of love, loss, creativity, and perseverance are woven together with a light, confident touch.

Etta’s Fishing Ground is not a book that shouts for attention. It earns it. It lingers. And when you finally close the book, it leaves you reflecting on the quiet forces — timing, circumstance, and human error — that guide us all more than we care to admit.

A beautifully observed, deeply satisfying read, and one I won’t soon forget.

Read the review here.

[Alan Vandervoort · Rating 5 out of 5]

Etta’s Fishing Ground goes beyond a simple yarn of New England life. It is a detailed examination of small-town culture - a highly entertaining social science lesson on the intricacies of human existence. Not surprising from an intelligent author of profound thought and story-telling talent - Ms. Pasco has an uncanny insight into American life with the ability to express in an epic novel.

Through 93 easy-to-read chapters, the story covers romance, lust, tragedy, friendship, enterprise, choices, and dreams – subtlety touching on the importance of each. Enthusiasts for Italian food, motorcycles, art, outdoor life, and family dynamics will relate. Appropriately placed cliches enhance the tone and pace. A wealth of characters are carefully formed with none lacking personality.

The title character’s extensive back story builds an understanding of motivations with an envious example of strength and perseverance. Etta’s story comes with many jolts of the unexpected with reader-satisfying outcomes. The role of serendipity leads to the realization that circumstances are as relevant as decisions in guiding one’s life story.

Etta’s Fishing Ground is a worthy addition to an impressive collection of novels, novellas, and memoirs by Ms. Pasco.

[Martha Perez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eva Pasco has written an astonishing story of Rhode Islander with historic events, geographic landmarks, and regional cultivation into excellent storytelling between facts and fiction, a perfect recipe for fascinating reading.

Etta is a strong-willed young lady who graduated with an honors lovely girl and became a beautiful woman. It's tough not to fall in love with her character. The story will take you back to her life sixties and seventies-era.

With the drama and sexy scenes, fantastic twists and plots, and suspense and shattered moments, you won't be able to put the book down. There is a personal secret, true or false, from the first tale, and who acts on a hunch. Be careful who and how you tell a story to a friend or husband; it will affect everyone.

Be careful about what you wish for curiosity killed the cat. Etta is an artist with a beautiful imagination who makes preeminent out of any situation. The other characters are fantastic. The read is a page-turner.

I enjoy reading talented authors' books. Eva Pasco is one of my favorites; she takes you on an intriguing journey. I highly recommend this Masterpiece.

[H.M. Holten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Contemporary Nineteen-Seventies: At the End of the Rainbow

Etta’s fishing ground has more to offer than the random smallmouth bass. It has a gallery of vivid characters and gives the reader a many-faceted insight into the fifties and the seventies without ever moving away from Foster, Rhode Island.

It is nothing new that love can derail the best laid plans. Neither is it surprising that false impressions can derail the closest relationships. Ms Pasco manages to give an age-old story new twists and make the life and love of ordinary people extraordinary.

That alone is enough to blaze a trail and immerse any reader in a human drama of depth and psychological insight. Add to that Ms Pasco’s crisp and inventive prose and you have a whirlwind of a book that keeps surprising and enchanting the reader.

[Pamela Allegretto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Etta's Fishing Ground offers up another example of Eva Pasco’s masterful story telling and unique “voice.” Her complex and interesting characters are not the only stars of the show. Sharing the stage is a small town in rural Rhode Island that is a fascinating character unto itself. I’m a huge fan of Eva’s writing and look forward to her subsequent endeavors. An easy 5-stars.

[Susan Sage · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant, character-driven novel that simultaneously portrays a bygone era of American society! Pasco’s characters are both empathetic and relatable. She clearly has a keen understanding of human nature and psychology. Etta and her friend, Muriel, are a study in contrasts. Lately, it seems like authors shy away from fully dealing with love relationships. So not true of this one! Better qualities of human nature, like tenderness and caring, come to the fore. Even minor characters pop out from the page in three-dimension.

The author’s command of the English language is as exceptional, seen not only in descriptions, but in her skill at dialogue and colloquial expressions.

Detailed and realistic depictions enable the reader to visualize Etta’s world. I found myself laughing and crying over the fates of Etta’s family and friends—especially that of Etta herself. Was this because I clearly recall my own girlhood of the 1960s and 70s? I asked myself this a few times while reading. I’ve concluded that it is in Eva Pasco’s ability to bring her story to life through language, careful observation, and exquisite detail that renders such a cinematic quality to her writing. Put this novel at the top of your reading list!!

[Joseph Ferguson · Rating 5 out of 5]

First rate storytelling rules in Etta’s Fishing Ground.

Pasco, a skilled wordsmith. painstakingly builds solidly empathetic characters from the ground up. Her protagonists, Keith, Etta, Muriel, Obbie Sal, and Rosalia are living, breathing individuals from which her tale of love, jealousy, deep understanding, and tragic misunderstanding grows and evolves.

Throughout, the author drops hints, foreshadowings, and intimations of events past and yet to be. Each paragraph is packed with cultural and literary allusions – “Etta’s doorbell had rung twice. This time it tolled for Keith. The door flew open … undermining the best-laid plans of mice and two men.” (91), as well as intricate and clever wordplay – “Obie scraped, scrubbed, and swept up the residue from a grime scene …”(96)

Etta’s Fishing Ground is and epic work, which spans some 70 years in the lives of multiple, intricately complex characters, and a must-read for devotees of great literature.

[Tina-Marie Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gem you won’t want to miss!

Whilst I’ve never visited the rural enclave of Foster, Rhode Island, the authors prose – which flows as beautifully as the Ponaganset River – easily conjured up images of the surrounding historic landmarks and scenic views overlooking Etta’s Fishing Ground. My imagination went into overdrive visioning plates of delicious antipasto served up in the congenial atmosphere of Sal’s Italian Deli! But all is not as it seems in this small, rural setting.

It's easy to make assumptions about the characters introduced in the opening chapters of this multi-faceted tale set in the 60s/70s era.

I loved the character of Etta from the off; beautiful, intelligent, sassy and strong willed – you think you know exactly where the story is headed but you cannot even begin to second guess this exceptionally well-crafted tale by author Eva Pasco.

[Kristina Gallo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about two couples: Keith and Etta, and Muriel and Obbie. The description of two marriages that pass through difficulties, infidelity, and gossip captures the reader's attention.
When Keith dies, Etta reveals a bitter truth about him.
Page by page, readers reveal the background of the characters' lives. It is not all as it looks, this is the story's message. In a small community, things can't be hidden for so long.

[Mary Woldering · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story of two families in a small Rhode Island that spans seventy years. The central character Etta is an illustrator and honors student who had a future ahead of her, only to choose another path because of love. It was the same path her mother had chosen a generation earlier: heart over future.
There are other characters and secrets to keep that lead to lifelong misunderstandings – people who mean well but because their assumptions are wrong, ruin everything. The story is wonderful but heartbreaking because it underlines the need for clear communication and being upfront about a skeleton or two in a closet.
Ms. Pasco is a favorite author of mine. I like the portrayals of New England life and the great humanity her writing displays. Family drama? You won’t want to miss Etta’s Fishing Ground