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Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves
At turns haunting and breathtaking, Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves explores legacies of love, family, and the ghostly imprint grief leaves behind as three women face the past to bring light to an old Southern town lost deep beneath the surface.
Years ago, yellow fever gripped the small lakeside town of Prosper, Arkansas. At the height of that summer swelter, in the wake of an unexpected storm, the dam failed and the valley flooded—drowning the town and everyone trapped inside.
The secrets of old Prosper drowned with them.
Now, decades later, when a mysterious locked box is pulled from the depths of the lake, three descendants of that long-ago tragedy are hurled into another feverish summer. Cassie: the reclusive sole witness to an impossible horror no one believes. Lark: a wide-eyed dreamer haunted by bizarre visions. June: caught between longing for a fresh start and bearing witness to the ghosts of the past. Bound together, all three must contend with their home’s complex history—and with the ruins of the town lost far beneath the troubled water.
Years ago, yellow fever gripped the small lakeside town of Prosper, Arkansas. At the height of that summer swelter, in the wake of an unexpected storm, the dam failed and the valley flooded—drowning the town and everyone trapped inside.
The secrets of old Prosper drowned with them.
Now, decades later, when a mysterious locked box is pulled from the depths of the lake, three descendants of that long-ago tragedy are hurled into another feverish summer. Cassie: the reclusive sole witness to an impossible horror no one believes. Lark: a wide-eyed dreamer haunted by bizarre visions. June: caught between longing for a fresh start and bearing witness to the ghosts of the past. Bound together, all three must contend with their home’s complex history—and with the ruins of the town lost far beneath the troubled water.
368 pages, Paperback
First published May 30, 2023
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20416 people want to read
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April 14, 2023
Actual Rating 2.5
The town of Prosper in Arkansas has been submerged for many years since the yellow fever killed many of its residents and a dam burst, flooding the town and creating a lake. Cassie grew up at the lake, though after a terrifying incident as a child, she no longer goes in the water. Lark also spent time there as a child and must return there now to get her family’s boat ready to sell. June has no real connection to the lake other than her family, and as she has a hard time finding a place to belong, she travels there to see if she might be able to settle down. These three girls find themselves drawn together by the discovery of a locked box that is pulled from the depths of the lake. What secrets will they uncover about the lake, the area’s history, and themselves?
This book really wanted to work but unfortunately it fell short in many important aspects. The first major detractor was the multiple narrators. The story is told from the three girls’ POVs as well as from a couple of other characters’ POVs, one of which is a teen boy. But the characters’ voices were all the same and read the same, even the teen boy. This made it impossible to keep track of who was who for the first 40 percent of the book, and even after that I couldn’t remember exactly whose past went with what character. As they lacked any meaningful differences in their characterization or voice, the whole first portion of the book was muddied and impossible to connect with, making their individual narratives bled together. This also made it impossible to become emotionally attached to any of the characters or their struggles and secrets, which was a major detractor as this work relied heavily on that aspect.
The second major issue with this book was the lack of atmosphere. This book needed to be an atmospheric and immersive work for it to be impactful. However, it never came through in the writing. The oppressiveness of the summer heat, the fear and anxiety of knowing what was beneath the lake, the tension from visions and growing pressure to sell their property – none of this was present. It all felt bland. In the second half of the book, when the supernatural aspects began to pick up, things became more engaging and slightly more atmospheric. But there was a lot to wade through to get to that point. If I could split my rating, I would rate the first half of the book 1-star and the second half 3.5-stars.
Also, this isn’t a fantasy read. It’s much more magical realism with supernatural elements. However, the magical realism was never explained. The book appears to be set in the regular, everyday world, but then when the supernatural occurs and when one character has a random magical aspect (that’s very magical and unusual), no one really seems surprised that there’s magic. A little attempt at an explanation would have gone a long way.
There was a lot about this work that wanted to be good but just wasn’t. Despite the intriguing premise and cover, I didn’t enjoy this read. My thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for allowing me to oread this book, which will be published 6 June 2023. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.
The town of Prosper in Arkansas has been submerged for many years since the yellow fever killed many of its residents and a dam burst, flooding the town and creating a lake. Cassie grew up at the lake, though after a terrifying incident as a child, she no longer goes in the water. Lark also spent time there as a child and must return there now to get her family’s boat ready to sell. June has no real connection to the lake other than her family, and as she has a hard time finding a place to belong, she travels there to see if she might be able to settle down. These three girls find themselves drawn together by the discovery of a locked box that is pulled from the depths of the lake. What secrets will they uncover about the lake, the area’s history, and themselves?
This book really wanted to work but unfortunately it fell short in many important aspects. The first major detractor was the multiple narrators. The story is told from the three girls’ POVs as well as from a couple of other characters’ POVs, one of which is a teen boy. But the characters’ voices were all the same and read the same, even the teen boy. This made it impossible to keep track of who was who for the first 40 percent of the book, and even after that I couldn’t remember exactly whose past went with what character. As they lacked any meaningful differences in their characterization or voice, the whole first portion of the book was muddied and impossible to connect with, making their individual narratives bled together. This also made it impossible to become emotionally attached to any of the characters or their struggles and secrets, which was a major detractor as this work relied heavily on that aspect.
The second major issue with this book was the lack of atmosphere. This book needed to be an atmospheric and immersive work for it to be impactful. However, it never came through in the writing. The oppressiveness of the summer heat, the fear and anxiety of knowing what was beneath the lake, the tension from visions and growing pressure to sell their property – none of this was present. It all felt bland. In the second half of the book, when the supernatural aspects began to pick up, things became more engaging and slightly more atmospheric. But there was a lot to wade through to get to that point. If I could split my rating, I would rate the first half of the book 1-star and the second half 3.5-stars.
Also, this isn’t a fantasy read. It’s much more magical realism with supernatural elements. However, the magical realism was never explained. The book appears to be set in the regular, everyday world, but then when the supernatural occurs and when one character has a random magical aspect (that’s very magical and unusual), no one really seems surprised that there’s magic. A little attempt at an explanation would have gone a long way.
There was a lot about this work that wanted to be good but just wasn’t. Despite the intriguing premise and cover, I didn’t enjoy this read. My thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for allowing me to oread this book, which will be published 6 June 2023. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.
June 3, 2023
EXCERPT: 'You ever been to a place without hope? A place just so out of luck that there's no saving it?'
The beer label shredded, caking under her fingernails. She wiped hurriedly at her jeans. 'I don't know. Yes.'
'It became a place like that. Old Prosper, right before they made the lake. It's hard to love a town on borrowed time. Even the dead had to be rehoused after the dam - all those graves flooded,' he replied. 'Funny, isn't it, that we built a new graveyard for the dead and didn't build a new town for the living?'
ABOUT 'CICADAS SING OF SUMMER GRAVES': Years ago, yellow fever gripped the small lakeside town of Prosper, Arkansas. At the height of that summer swelter, in the wake of an unexpected storm, the dam failed and the valley flooded—drowning the town and everyone trapped inside.
The secrets of old Prosper drowned with them.
Now, decades later, when a mysterious locked box is pulled from the depths of the lake, three descendants of that long-ago tragedy are hurled into another feverish summer. Cassie: the reclusive sole witness to an impossible horror no one believes. Lark: a wide-eyed dreamer haunted by bizarre visions. June: caught between longing for a fresh start and bearing witness to the ghosts of the past. Bound together, all three must contend with their home’s complex history—and with the ruins of the town lost far beneath the troubled water.
MY THOUGHTS: The author's note at the beginning of this book shares that 'The town of Prosper was inspired by Buckville, Arkansas, which was flooded in the 1950s by the Blakely Mountain Dam and is now beneath Lake Ouachita. . . . . . The dam resulted in the mass dislocation of Garland County residents, mainly struggling white farmers but also many who were Black and Native American, from their homes. We wanted to wrestle with submerged histories, memory lost and found, and the impact of "progress" on communities and land.'
That is some goal! While I'm not entirely sure that the authors completely achieved their goal, they have penned an interesting and intriguing story.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a book I fell in love with in the first few pages. The writing was stunning and atmospheric. I fell in love with Cassie, her quirky living arrangements, and her fear of becoming a child again. Cassie had been branded as strange and fragile, a freak child who cried and screamed and threw tantrums like no one's business. She had 'night terrors that glistened blue and tasted like mud in her throat.' Although she, as an adult, no longer throws tantrums, she is somewhat of a loner and is still occasionally prone to those night terrors. She ever forgotten her childhood friend Catfish, who appeared one day when she was swimming, and was later involved in the biggest trauma of Cassie's life. Catfish also plays an important role in this story.
Our other two main characters, Lark and June, have equally intriguing backgrounds.
Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, I fell out of love with Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves. I still enjoyed it, but didn't love it anymore.
The writing is superb, descriptive and atmospheric, the characters intriguing; so what went wrong? In the end, I think it was simply too much. There were too many storylines, too much going on - for example, was the Rig/Woody/Bolt/Sammy storyline necessary? I didn't think so. It detracted from the main storyline rather than adding to it.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a debut novel by this duo of authors. They are obviously excellent writers. I just believe that they need to focus more on what is integral to the story in order to produce a great read. Definitely a duo to watch.
⭐⭐⭐.5
#CicadasSingOfSummerGraves #NetGalley
I: @quinn.connor.writes @bookmarked
T: #QuinnConnorWrites @Sourcebooks
#contemporaryfiction #familydrama #fantasy #friendship #lgbt #paranormal #romance #smalltownfiction
THE AUTHOR: Quinn Connor is one pen in two hands: Robyn Barrow and Alexandra Cronin. An Arkansan and a Texan, when they aren’t writing, they’re arguing about the differences between queso and cheese dip. Both writers from young ages, Robyn and Alexandra met in college and together developed their unique co-writing voice.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves by Quinn Connor for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
The beer label shredded, caking under her fingernails. She wiped hurriedly at her jeans. 'I don't know. Yes.'
'It became a place like that. Old Prosper, right before they made the lake. It's hard to love a town on borrowed time. Even the dead had to be rehoused after the dam - all those graves flooded,' he replied. 'Funny, isn't it, that we built a new graveyard for the dead and didn't build a new town for the living?'
ABOUT 'CICADAS SING OF SUMMER GRAVES': Years ago, yellow fever gripped the small lakeside town of Prosper, Arkansas. At the height of that summer swelter, in the wake of an unexpected storm, the dam failed and the valley flooded—drowning the town and everyone trapped inside.
The secrets of old Prosper drowned with them.
Now, decades later, when a mysterious locked box is pulled from the depths of the lake, three descendants of that long-ago tragedy are hurled into another feverish summer. Cassie: the reclusive sole witness to an impossible horror no one believes. Lark: a wide-eyed dreamer haunted by bizarre visions. June: caught between longing for a fresh start and bearing witness to the ghosts of the past. Bound together, all three must contend with their home’s complex history—and with the ruins of the town lost far beneath the troubled water.
MY THOUGHTS: The author's note at the beginning of this book shares that 'The town of Prosper was inspired by Buckville, Arkansas, which was flooded in the 1950s by the Blakely Mountain Dam and is now beneath Lake Ouachita. . . . . . The dam resulted in the mass dislocation of Garland County residents, mainly struggling white farmers but also many who were Black and Native American, from their homes. We wanted to wrestle with submerged histories, memory lost and found, and the impact of "progress" on communities and land.'
That is some goal! While I'm not entirely sure that the authors completely achieved their goal, they have penned an interesting and intriguing story.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a book I fell in love with in the first few pages. The writing was stunning and atmospheric. I fell in love with Cassie, her quirky living arrangements, and her fear of becoming a child again. Cassie had been branded as strange and fragile, a freak child who cried and screamed and threw tantrums like no one's business. She had 'night terrors that glistened blue and tasted like mud in her throat.' Although she, as an adult, no longer throws tantrums, she is somewhat of a loner and is still occasionally prone to those night terrors. She ever forgotten her childhood friend Catfish, who appeared one day when she was swimming, and was later involved in the biggest trauma of Cassie's life. Catfish also plays an important role in this story.
Our other two main characters, Lark and June, have equally intriguing backgrounds.
Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, I fell out of love with Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves. I still enjoyed it, but didn't love it anymore.
The writing is superb, descriptive and atmospheric, the characters intriguing; so what went wrong? In the end, I think it was simply too much. There were too many storylines, too much going on - for example, was the Rig/Woody/Bolt/Sammy storyline necessary? I didn't think so. It detracted from the main storyline rather than adding to it.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a debut novel by this duo of authors. They are obviously excellent writers. I just believe that they need to focus more on what is integral to the story in order to produce a great read. Definitely a duo to watch.
⭐⭐⭐.5
#CicadasSingOfSummerGraves #NetGalley
I: @quinn.connor.writes @bookmarked
T: #QuinnConnorWrites @Sourcebooks
#contemporaryfiction #familydrama #fantasy #friendship #lgbt #paranormal #romance #smalltownfiction
THE AUTHOR: Quinn Connor is one pen in two hands: Robyn Barrow and Alexandra Cronin. An Arkansan and a Texan, when they aren’t writing, they’re arguing about the differences between queso and cheese dip. Both writers from young ages, Robyn and Alexandra met in college and together developed their unique co-writing voice.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves by Quinn Connor for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
June 15, 2023
This was so so eerie and I loved it!
Plot: This was such a twisty story, with layers upon layers of meaning and symbolism. I loved the way everything built up. It made for a very suspenseful mystery!
Characters: All of the characters were super complex and interesting. June, with her mysterious abilities and infectious energy. Cassie, the shy store owner who is content to live her life beside the lake she fears more than anything else. Lark, given the responsibility to clean out the treasures of her father's houseboat that drove him (and may drive her as well) to insanity.
Pacing: definitely slower, but I think it fit the vibe of the book perfectly. A kind of slow seeping storyline.
Overall: Highly recommend to anybody looking for a story that will haunt you for a while.
Content warnings:murder, drowning.
————————————————————
Thank you so much Sourcebooks for this ARC!
Plot: This was such a twisty story, with layers upon layers of meaning and symbolism. I loved the way everything built up. It made for a very suspenseful mystery!
Characters: All of the characters were super complex and interesting. June, with her mysterious abilities and infectious energy. Cassie, the shy store owner who is content to live her life beside the lake she fears more than anything else. Lark, given the responsibility to clean out the treasures of her father's houseboat that drove him (and may drive her as well) to insanity.
Pacing: definitely slower, but I think it fit the vibe of the book perfectly. A kind of slow seeping storyline.
Overall: Highly recommend to anybody looking for a story that will haunt you for a while.
Content warnings:murder, drowning.
————————————————————
Thank you so much Sourcebooks for this ARC!
March 25, 2025
A town rediscovers its flooded roots.
My husband surprised me for my birthday with a blind date with a book purchase from a local bookstore. This was the book. I was so beyond excited about the idea of it that he went back for Christmas and bought me all they had in stock which ended up being forty more. I am still glowing from it three months later.
One would hope that the first book from that truly awesome gift experience would be a great one. Sadly, that was not the case.
Thoughts:
The idea behind the story was interesting. I did a little research on the topic after I read the introduction and then again, when I finished the book. The plot was overloaded. Reducing some clutter (secondary stories) would have improved the core of the story. There were so many bits of the story that were never fully explained, and I was left holding so many loose threads at the end.
The writing style seemed weird. It took me reading the author bio page at the end of the book to figure out why. It was two people co-writing a book. I have read other books that have done this, and I did not notice because it was seamless. This one felt like two people in a room telling parts of a shared experience. As one person left the room midsentence to fetch something, the other person would pick up where they abruptly left off. Then the first person would come back in and interrupt the second one to finish the story that they had originally started. Two distinct voices poorly blended. Not a fan.
This was a character heavy read. The three primaries were women working through their own issues. They had some depth, but not enough to keep me from mixing up two of them (Lark and June). The secondaries were mostly men. The Mitch character irritated me. He was so simple, so two-dimensional. “See woman. Want woman. Protect woman. She is mine.” This is a caveman way of thinking, and I am not here for it. A male character can be so much more than that. What did he want out of life? What drove him to be the person that he was? Give me more or do not bother writing them.
Two stars to a book that has done nothing to take from the bestest gift experience ever.
LIVING THE QUOTES LIFE:
“It was all a line of solitary individuals weathering life.”
“They were getting up to go now, floating on the dark current of whiskey and beer and ready to close their eyes on the night.”
“Because hers was a guarded goodness, and few people were welcome.”
“He knew her, knew that sometimes she got exhausted with people.”
“Bolt didn’t know yet how complex an instrument the human heart was, the many ways it could love and resent and despise and cherish all in perfect symphony.”
“People are always gonna hurt you, let you down. Hell, you’ll let them down. But…keep the door open.”
My husband surprised me for my birthday with a blind date with a book purchase from a local bookstore. This was the book. I was so beyond excited about the idea of it that he went back for Christmas and bought me all they had in stock which ended up being forty more. I am still glowing from it three months later.
One would hope that the first book from that truly awesome gift experience would be a great one. Sadly, that was not the case.
Thoughts:
The idea behind the story was interesting. I did a little research on the topic after I read the introduction and then again, when I finished the book. The plot was overloaded. Reducing some clutter (secondary stories) would have improved the core of the story. There were so many bits of the story that were never fully explained, and I was left holding so many loose threads at the end.
The writing style seemed weird. It took me reading the author bio page at the end of the book to figure out why. It was two people co-writing a book. I have read other books that have done this, and I did not notice because it was seamless. This one felt like two people in a room telling parts of a shared experience. As one person left the room midsentence to fetch something, the other person would pick up where they abruptly left off. Then the first person would come back in and interrupt the second one to finish the story that they had originally started. Two distinct voices poorly blended. Not a fan.
This was a character heavy read. The three primaries were women working through their own issues. They had some depth, but not enough to keep me from mixing up two of them (Lark and June). The secondaries were mostly men. The Mitch character irritated me. He was so simple, so two-dimensional. “See woman. Want woman. Protect woman. She is mine.” This is a caveman way of thinking, and I am not here for it. A male character can be so much more than that. What did he want out of life? What drove him to be the person that he was? Give me more or do not bother writing them.
Two stars to a book that has done nothing to take from the bestest gift experience ever.
LIVING THE QUOTES LIFE:
“It was all a line of solitary individuals weathering life.”
“They were getting up to go now, floating on the dark current of whiskey and beer and ready to close their eyes on the night.”
“Because hers was a guarded goodness, and few people were welcome.”
“He knew her, knew that sometimes she got exhausted with people.”
“Bolt didn’t know yet how complex an instrument the human heart was, the many ways it could love and resent and despise and cherish all in perfect symphony.”
“People are always gonna hurt you, let you down. Hell, you’ll let them down. But…keep the door open.”
June 20, 2023
This is a beautifully written story that covers different genres, which I wasn't expecting, but was a pleasant surprise. I generally gravitate towards psychological thrillers. There's magical realism, suspense, fantasy, and even horror.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is set in Prosper Arkansas, and told from multiple point of view. It has dark elements throughout that sound almost poetic. Lake Prosper floods the Buckville, Arkansas, after the dam breaks and drowns the town.
Decades later, a mysterious box in the lake is found, which begs the question, "Does anything ever really stay buried?"
This was a slow but very enjoyable read. Thank you Sourcebooks and Netgalley for the ARC.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is set in Prosper Arkansas, and told from multiple point of view. It has dark elements throughout that sound almost poetic. Lake Prosper floods the Buckville, Arkansas, after the dam breaks and drowns the town.
Decades later, a mysterious box in the lake is found, which begs the question, "Does anything ever really stay buried?"
This was a slow but very enjoyable read. Thank you Sourcebooks and Netgalley for the ARC.
December 17, 2022
I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this book and was pleasantly surprised. I ordered it because it mentioned LGBTQ+ as a category and I'm always on the hunt for great books in this genre that aren't romances. However, that category is surely not the reason you should or shouldn't buy the book. At all.
If I would have to categorize it I'd say "fantasy, slight horror" and would mention "most beautiful use of language." And the language part is something that will stay longer with me - meaning the description of everything: nature, horror, love, hate, people, everything.
Did I enjoy reading it? Yes. The plot is great, the history is interesting (and painful), and the protagonists are great. If I ever find the time (which is something I don't really have) I'd read it again to enjoy it again.
Why only four stars and not five? Mostly because of too many POVs, which made it hard to get to know the characters better. Maybe it would have been cool to turn this into two books - but... anyway: four really good stars for this one!
If I would have to categorize it I'd say "fantasy, slight horror" and would mention "most beautiful use of language." And the language part is something that will stay longer with me - meaning the description of everything: nature, horror, love, hate, people, everything.
Did I enjoy reading it? Yes. The plot is great, the history is interesting (and painful), and the protagonists are great. If I ever find the time (which is something I don't really have) I'd read it again to enjoy it again.
Why only four stars and not five? Mostly because of too many POVs, which made it hard to get to know the characters better. Maybe it would have been cool to turn this into two books - but... anyway: four really good stars for this one!
January 18, 2023
Wow. I truly can’t wrap my mind around this book yet. When the book opened up with an explanation of "development-induced displacements“, I never expected to fall for a story so quickly. (Not because the topic doesn’t interest me but because it sounds so complicated.)
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is not a light-hearted read. It’s as deep and multi-layered, as the lake described in its story. It’s a story of ghosts, memories, letting go, loss and history.
The story is inspired by a real town - Buckville, Arkansas, which was flooded in the 1950s. We follow a set of three main characters. All of these characters share a deeper connection to Lake Prosper, which we get to explore throughout the story. We soon find out that lake Prosper is not only a pretty holiday destination but that there are ghosts of the past lurking around every corner.
If you would ask me to explain this story, I would not be able to. The story-telling and the characters were so unique and haunting, that this book felt like reading an old diary, which I loved. The set of characters is super diverse and I was able to connect to all of them on different levels.
I especially loved the author’s note in the beginning because it really gives a perspective on the importance of telling these kinds of stories. Being from Germany, it also really helped me to understand the history involved in the story.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with this arc.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is not a light-hearted read. It’s as deep and multi-layered, as the lake described in its story. It’s a story of ghosts, memories, letting go, loss and history.
The story is inspired by a real town - Buckville, Arkansas, which was flooded in the 1950s. We follow a set of three main characters. All of these characters share a deeper connection to Lake Prosper, which we get to explore throughout the story. We soon find out that lake Prosper is not only a pretty holiday destination but that there are ghosts of the past lurking around every corner.
If you would ask me to explain this story, I would not be able to. The story-telling and the characters were so unique and haunting, that this book felt like reading an old diary, which I loved. The set of characters is super diverse and I was able to connect to all of them on different levels.
I especially loved the author’s note in the beginning because it really gives a perspective on the importance of telling these kinds of stories. Being from Germany, it also really helped me to understand the history involved in the story.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with this arc.
May 26, 2023
The lakeside town of Prosper, Arkansas has known horror. Years ago, the town flooded after the dam failed during an unexpected storm, drowning everyone trapped in the valley - and their secrets, too.
The novel follows three women as they discover the haunting history of Prosper through their connections to relics that float up to the lake's surface and visits from a ghost or two!
It took me a while to get into this story. The writing felt uneven in the beginning and I had trouble keeping track of the three MCs as they swapped chapters. Eventually, the story fell into a rhythm and I learned each character's "voice". It wasn't until I finished the book that I learned the book is actually written by two authors, which seems to explain the trouble I had in the beginning.
Once I became familiar with these characters, I fell into the atmosphere: a hot summer in a small southern town with hauntings that will give you some thrills and chills!
Magic realism, fantasy, horror, and southern gothic combine for this haunting tale.
Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is scheduled for release on May 30, 2023.
For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com
The novel follows three women as they discover the haunting history of Prosper through their connections to relics that float up to the lake's surface and visits from a ghost or two!
It took me a while to get into this story. The writing felt uneven in the beginning and I had trouble keeping track of the three MCs as they swapped chapters. Eventually, the story fell into a rhythm and I learned each character's "voice". It wasn't until I finished the book that I learned the book is actually written by two authors, which seems to explain the trouble I had in the beginning.
Once I became familiar with these characters, I fell into the atmosphere: a hot summer in a small southern town with hauntings that will give you some thrills and chills!
Magic realism, fantasy, horror, and southern gothic combine for this haunting tale.
Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is scheduled for release on May 30, 2023.
For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com
March 27, 2023
3/5 stars
"The dead have a tight grip on this place. Did they even know their world was gone and that they were nothing more than the brutal afterimage left behind after a flashing light?"
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a difficult book for me to review. For one, because it doesn’t fit neatly into a single distinct genre (I’d say it’s magical realism/contemporary with a bit of horror). Also because I desperately wanted to love this book more than I did. With its stunning, descriptive writing and so many individual elements and ideas that I loved, this was a lock to be a new personal favourite. And right up until the final page I was rooting, even looking for it to be just that. Unfortunately, although the concept was a 10, but the execution failed to climb above a 6.
What I loved:
First things first: the atmosphere, the imagery and the sense of setting and place are phenomenal. Heat swelters of these pages and this entire read feels like an oppressively clammy July-day with the thickness of a thunderstorm weighing down the air. The authors have a beautifully descriptive narrative voice and a keen eye for striking scenes and setting. From a houseboat filled with glaring telescope lenses hoarded by a troubled individual, to the silhouettes of strange figures wading through reddish lake-waters; I had genuine chills from some of the pictures they painted.
Additionally, the book is packed to the brim with phenomenal ideas for layered storytelling, and important themes. Each of our three protagonists, as well as some of the major side-character, each have their own (family-)history, their own themes, and even their own motifs sprinkled through the story. They also all have a historical counterpart in Old prosper, into which the authors clearly put a lot of research. Reading the foreword, you find out the story was inspired by the real Arkansas town of Bucksville, that flooded after a dam-break and an epidemic of yellow-fever. The authors specifically mention the important themes of racial- and class inequality that meant some communities were hit harder than others by the tragedy that took place. All of this was interesting, and clearly, so felt the authors. Unfortunately, trying to put it all into a single 400 page novel made for a product that is wide as a lake but deep as a puddle.
What I didn’t like:
Simply stated: this book was too ambitious with the amount of themes, motifs, story-lines and threads it had going on. Unable to explore them all, these ideas end up hanging in the air; unresolved and heavy like the muggy summer heat we started this review with. In my opinion, this book would’ve been better had some of the ideas been left on the cutting room floor. Sometimes less is more, and scratching can create room for more depth and a less disjointed narrative.
With ideas and a stunning talent for language and writing, I cannot wait to see what this author duo produces in the future, and I will absolutely read whatever they publish next. For Cicadas, I’m left with an enjoyable read, but also the slight aftertaste of “what could’ve been”.
Many thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinion are my own.
"The dead have a tight grip on this place. Did they even know their world was gone and that they were nothing more than the brutal afterimage left behind after a flashing light?"
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a difficult book for me to review. For one, because it doesn’t fit neatly into a single distinct genre (I’d say it’s magical realism/contemporary with a bit of horror). Also because I desperately wanted to love this book more than I did. With its stunning, descriptive writing and so many individual elements and ideas that I loved, this was a lock to be a new personal favourite. And right up until the final page I was rooting, even looking for it to be just that. Unfortunately, although the concept was a 10, but the execution failed to climb above a 6.
What I loved:
First things first: the atmosphere, the imagery and the sense of setting and place are phenomenal. Heat swelters of these pages and this entire read feels like an oppressively clammy July-day with the thickness of a thunderstorm weighing down the air. The authors have a beautifully descriptive narrative voice and a keen eye for striking scenes and setting. From a houseboat filled with glaring telescope lenses hoarded by a troubled individual, to the silhouettes of strange figures wading through reddish lake-waters; I had genuine chills from some of the pictures they painted.
Additionally, the book is packed to the brim with phenomenal ideas for layered storytelling, and important themes. Each of our three protagonists, as well as some of the major side-character, each have their own (family-)history, their own themes, and even their own motifs sprinkled through the story. They also all have a historical counterpart in Old prosper, into which the authors clearly put a lot of research. Reading the foreword, you find out the story was inspired by the real Arkansas town of Bucksville, that flooded after a dam-break and an epidemic of yellow-fever. The authors specifically mention the important themes of racial- and class inequality that meant some communities were hit harder than others by the tragedy that took place. All of this was interesting, and clearly, so felt the authors. Unfortunately, trying to put it all into a single 400 page novel made for a product that is wide as a lake but deep as a puddle.
What I didn’t like:
Simply stated: this book was too ambitious with the amount of themes, motifs, story-lines and threads it had going on. Unable to explore them all, these ideas end up hanging in the air; unresolved and heavy like the muggy summer heat we started this review with. In my opinion, this book would’ve been better had some of the ideas been left on the cutting room floor. Sometimes less is more, and scratching can create room for more depth and a less disjointed narrative.
With ideas and a stunning talent for language and writing, I cannot wait to see what this author duo produces in the future, and I will absolutely read whatever they publish next. For Cicadas, I’m left with an enjoyable read, but also the slight aftertaste of “what could’ve been”.
Many thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinion are my own.
May 27, 2023
On my blog.
Actual rating 2.5
Rep: sapphic mc, Black Latina sapphic mc, Jewish mc
CWs: gore, violence
Galley provided by publisher
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a book that, for me, had promise but didn’t live up to it. It’s a book that didn’t seem able to land on what genre it wanted to be — contemporary, fabulism, outright fantasy, or paranormal — so became a mishmash of them all, and not in a good way.
It’s hard to say what exactly drives the plot, since for much of it, there doesn’t seem to be anything of one. Let’s say, for now, a haunting does. A haunting and a trauma. Related, perhaps, but not in a way that’s clear. You would think that this book might play into that confusion, to make you wonder what exactly is real. Is this character really haunted? Or is there something else going on that we don’t know about, because of an unreliable narrator aspect? However, the confusion here simply seems a product of the writing and story in general. It doesn’t know what genre it wants to be, so neither do we have any sense of the framework by which to read this by.
It doesn’t help, though, the random flower magic that’s inexplicably thrown in for? Reasons unknown! Until, lo and behold, it proves useful right at the end. This is partly why I ask exactly the genre it’s supposed to be, because no one in the town bats an eyelid at this sudden magical power showing up. But we’re also told that no one believes Cassie when she talks about the lake being haunted. It’s this kind of pick-and-choose when it comes to the fabulist aspects that, in part, makes it such a frustrating book.
The other aspect of that comes to the lack of feeling I had around it. Perhaps this relates too to the flowery prose it uses, such that you’re held at a distance from the actual narrative and you don’t feel what you need to. It doesn’t evoke the heat of a Southern summer, there’s no creeping sense of unease as the haunting slips into view (in fact, I’m not even sure the haunting even registers until the final third of the book. Perhaps, but only in some minor aspects). You don’t feel at all like you’re being haunted yourself. The idea of the ghost town beneath the dam could, I think, have played a bigger role as well.
On top of this, the three (occasionally four) POVs barely felt distinct from one another. At times, I couldn’t tell whose it was, and was only saved by the fact that it was in third person so the name of the POV character popped up every so often. Other than that, it basically wasn’t possible to tell them apart. They all bled into one, in a way that was much smoother than the book’s attempt to merge four separate genres. Unfortunately.
So, while this book had a lot of promise, it ultimately fell short. Perhaps this is a me problem, though (as ever). I have no doubt it’ll find its readership, but that just didn’t include me.
Actual rating 2.5
Rep: sapphic mc, Black Latina sapphic mc, Jewish mc
CWs: gore, violence
Galley provided by publisher
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a book that, for me, had promise but didn’t live up to it. It’s a book that didn’t seem able to land on what genre it wanted to be — contemporary, fabulism, outright fantasy, or paranormal — so became a mishmash of them all, and not in a good way.
It’s hard to say what exactly drives the plot, since for much of it, there doesn’t seem to be anything of one. Let’s say, for now, a haunting does. A haunting and a trauma. Related, perhaps, but not in a way that’s clear. You would think that this book might play into that confusion, to make you wonder what exactly is real. Is this character really haunted? Or is there something else going on that we don’t know about, because of an unreliable narrator aspect? However, the confusion here simply seems a product of the writing and story in general. It doesn’t know what genre it wants to be, so neither do we have any sense of the framework by which to read this by.
It doesn’t help, though, the random flower magic that’s inexplicably thrown in for? Reasons unknown! Until, lo and behold, it proves useful right at the end. This is partly why I ask exactly the genre it’s supposed to be, because no one in the town bats an eyelid at this sudden magical power showing up. But we’re also told that no one believes Cassie when she talks about the lake being haunted. It’s this kind of pick-and-choose when it comes to the fabulist aspects that, in part, makes it such a frustrating book.
The other aspect of that comes to the lack of feeling I had around it. Perhaps this relates too to the flowery prose it uses, such that you’re held at a distance from the actual narrative and you don’t feel what you need to. It doesn’t evoke the heat of a Southern summer, there’s no creeping sense of unease as the haunting slips into view (in fact, I’m not even sure the haunting even registers until the final third of the book. Perhaps, but only in some minor aspects). You don’t feel at all like you’re being haunted yourself. The idea of the ghost town beneath the dam could, I think, have played a bigger role as well.
On top of this, the three (occasionally four) POVs barely felt distinct from one another. At times, I couldn’t tell whose it was, and was only saved by the fact that it was in third person so the name of the POV character popped up every so often. Other than that, it basically wasn’t possible to tell them apart. They all bled into one, in a way that was much smoother than the book’s attempt to merge four separate genres. Unfortunately.
So, while this book had a lot of promise, it ultimately fell short. Perhaps this is a me problem, though (as ever). I have no doubt it’ll find its readership, but that just didn’t include me.
June 11, 2023
Nice writing and I’m in love with the title, but I’m still trying to figure out what the plot is.
December 19, 2022
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a deliciously slow, poignant novel that FEELS like summer. I don't know how to describe it, but reading it just gave me the feeling of literally being at a lake in the summertime. I felt like I was there with Cassie, June, and Lark going through everything with them, and I always felt the lake lingering in the background of every sentence. Right away, the note in the beginning about how manmade lakes affect oppressed groups with forced relocation told me what I was getting into with the novel, and I knew I'd love it. And I did. The authors, combined as Quinn Connor, create a poetic world of complex characters who are navigating a town's intergenerational trauma due to the tragedy behind the manmade lake. I don't know how to say much more without giving away spoilers, but once the big reveal came together, everything started to make sense. I wish we'd learned a little bit more about Catfish, but I think that was the point. We're not supposed to have all the answers about everything in life, and we've got to live with all those questions, which is something that Quinn Connor did remarkably well. Overall, I highly recommend this book and can't wait to see more from this duo!
April 7, 2023
4,5⭐️
Received an arc from NetGalley, thanks!
"I, she would think, I am alive. I am so alive that it hurts. I am so alive that it's growing out of me."
If I had a nickel everytime in 2023 I read a book that dances around magic, ghosts and stale waters, which enchanted me deeply and stole my heart, I would have two nickels.
Which isn't a lot, but I don't know if I have enough hearts to be stolen.
Authors hidden behind the name Quinn Connor built a story so stale as the lake, and yet so deep as one. It's foggy and melancholic, this lives of Cassie, June and Lark, haunted by ghosts of silent relatives and forgotten history. I find it hard to describe the actual plot, not because it's complicated or badly written, quite the opposite really – with peculiar happenings and mysteries under every blade of grass it affects something deeper in reader. I genuinely recommend reaching for this title as soon as it's published, just to let its magic consume you, just to try how deep into this fairytale you can go.
"Just a dream. And yet."
Received an arc from NetGalley, thanks!
"I, she would think, I am alive. I am so alive that it hurts. I am so alive that it's growing out of me."
If I had a nickel everytime in 2023 I read a book that dances around magic, ghosts and stale waters, which enchanted me deeply and stole my heart, I would have two nickels.
Which isn't a lot, but I don't know if I have enough hearts to be stolen.
Authors hidden behind the name Quinn Connor built a story so stale as the lake, and yet so deep as one. It's foggy and melancholic, this lives of Cassie, June and Lark, haunted by ghosts of silent relatives and forgotten history. I find it hard to describe the actual plot, not because it's complicated or badly written, quite the opposite really – with peculiar happenings and mysteries under every blade of grass it affects something deeper in reader. I genuinely recommend reaching for this title as soon as it's published, just to let its magic consume you, just to try how deep into this fairytale you can go.
"Just a dream. And yet."
September 21, 2023
not enough box, too many unnecessary pov's
April 16, 2024
I stayed to the very end on this read, but had a hard time pulling the three storylines of Cassie, Lark and June together, other than their common location. The lake remained after the drowning of a community, and was a spooky character on its own. The stories of the three women are written and set off in parts, full of description and dialogue, with rotating happenings, people, parts and pieces, all of which became less comprehensible as the read progressed. Mea culpa, most likely.
*A sincere thank you to Quinn Connor, Sourcebooks Landmark, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and independently review.* #CicadasSingOfSummerGraves #NetGalley
*A sincere thank you to Quinn Connor, Sourcebooks Landmark, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and independently review.* #CicadasSingOfSummerGraves #NetGalley
May 28, 2023
3.25 from me.
I finished Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves by Quinn Connor and I'm ready to share my thoughts.
This story follows three women that have different ties to the old town of Prosper buried under the lake. And its dark history haunts even our days.
This book feels like a blend of genres and I'm not completely sure where it lends. Magical realism, contemporary fiction, some horror elements, paranormal.
It was a very immersive read, surprisingly immersive read, luckily immersive read.
Some books drive me through them by plot, others use the character development to guide me. But this book didn't feel like these categories.
The characters were interesting, but after finishing the book I think that one POV could have worked much better and solved some of the book's problems. Multi POV structure broke the tension and also made the plot very slow.
And it felt like there was just not enough of the plot. I grasped some general plot direction only after 50% of the book.
And for horror elements to work, we just needed more of the story, more eerie events, more disturbing clues. We spent too much time doing regular things with characters and even though some unnerving moments were blended into it, it wasn't enough for me.
So usually it's a DNF. But in the case of this book, I was charmed into continuing. I enjoyed the way of writing and the atmosphere the book created - it was immersive. I felt this hot summer, some wrongness in the air, the sensation that you don't belong, the pressure of others who always want something from you. It was a strong side of the book.
Another thing I liked about the book is the discussion of memories, our heritage, and family dynamics - it resonated with me and made me feel a variety of emotions.
In the end, I feel like the book wanted to do too many things, and because of it didn't deliver in many of them.
Though it was an interesting debut and I'm curious about the next book by Quinn Connor, I feel the potential for me.
And I'm grateful to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with this advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review.
I finished Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves by Quinn Connor and I'm ready to share my thoughts.
This story follows three women that have different ties to the old town of Prosper buried under the lake. And its dark history haunts even our days.
This book feels like a blend of genres and I'm not completely sure where it lends. Magical realism, contemporary fiction, some horror elements, paranormal.
It was a very immersive read, surprisingly immersive read, luckily immersive read.
Some books drive me through them by plot, others use the character development to guide me. But this book didn't feel like these categories.
The characters were interesting, but after finishing the book I think that one POV could have worked much better and solved some of the book's problems. Multi POV structure broke the tension and also made the plot very slow.
And it felt like there was just not enough of the plot. I grasped some general plot direction only after 50% of the book.
And for horror elements to work, we just needed more of the story, more eerie events, more disturbing clues. We spent too much time doing regular things with characters and even though some unnerving moments were blended into it, it wasn't enough for me.
So usually it's a DNF. But in the case of this book, I was charmed into continuing. I enjoyed the way of writing and the atmosphere the book created - it was immersive. I felt this hot summer, some wrongness in the air, the sensation that you don't belong, the pressure of others who always want something from you. It was a strong side of the book.
Another thing I liked about the book is the discussion of memories, our heritage, and family dynamics - it resonated with me and made me feel a variety of emotions.
In the end, I feel like the book wanted to do too many things, and because of it didn't deliver in many of them.
Though it was an interesting debut and I'm curious about the next book by Quinn Connor, I feel the potential for me.
And I'm grateful to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with this advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review.
December 17, 2023
This dark magical realism novel is based on the history of towns in the US being flooded in 'development-induced displacements'. The fictional town of Prosper, Arkansas, was drowned after a dam burst - just when a yellow fever outbreak was killing its inhabitants. Now, many years later, people live in a new town built around the lake which was formed by the flood. One especially feverish summer, three women are feeling drawn to the lake and become increasingly involved with its dark history...
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves captivated me from the start with its unique premise, emotional depth and dark summer atmosphere. The writers portrayed the eerie, foreboding summer feeling around the lake so well throughout the entire book. An example of this is a scene in which one of the protagonists visits an old café decorated with dead fish and fishing nets:
"June had the disquieting impression that she and everyone else were underwater, that perhaps the roof was truly a surface, dotted with fishing boats that dipped their nets in, hoping to pull wriggling treasure back up. As if they had already drowned, only none of them knew it."
I love how the authors used the lake to connect everything: the characters to each other, the characters to their own background, the past to the present, the old town to the new town... The lake and the history of the sunken town truly came alive through magical realism. Without spoiling it, the way the lake pulled people towards it and seemed to change them was horrifying, but done so well.
My only critique is that it felt as if I got to know only one of the characters well, which I think could have been solved if there weren't so many alternating POVs. However, I still felt a deep connection to the story and think about the feverish, emotional finale in which everything was revealed.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the eARC.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves captivated me from the start with its unique premise, emotional depth and dark summer atmosphere. The writers portrayed the eerie, foreboding summer feeling around the lake so well throughout the entire book. An example of this is a scene in which one of the protagonists visits an old café decorated with dead fish and fishing nets:
"June had the disquieting impression that she and everyone else were underwater, that perhaps the roof was truly a surface, dotted with fishing boats that dipped their nets in, hoping to pull wriggling treasure back up. As if they had already drowned, only none of them knew it."
I love how the authors used the lake to connect everything: the characters to each other, the characters to their own background, the past to the present, the old town to the new town... The lake and the history of the sunken town truly came alive through magical realism. Without spoiling it, the way the lake pulled people towards it and seemed to change them was horrifying, but done so well.
My only critique is that it felt as if I got to know only one of the characters well, which I think could have been solved if there weren't so many alternating POVs. However, I still felt a deep connection to the story and think about the feverish, emotional finale in which everything was revealed.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the eARC.
May 15, 2023
This book was such a disappointment. There were multiple perspectives, but they were so similar that it was nearly impossible to tell any of them apart and keep track of or care about their individual stories.
April 23, 2023
There was a lot to like about Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves. I loved our three main characters and their similar but very different complicated relationships with their parents. The writing is gorgeous and managed to convey the beauty as well as the horror of Lake Prosper, although some metaphors felt a little wonky at times (how does a place have "the scrubbed, rebellious look of a little boy in church clothes"?).
While I liked Lake Prosper's history and the inevitable hauntings the characters and their families faced because of it, the actual plot was very slow and sometimes confusing. As much as I loved June, I was utterly confused by the flowers springing up in her hair and how this manifested later on. Some parts were kinda hard to follow and disorienting, though I can't tell if this was intentional or not. Even though the book was pretty slow-paced, I felt like it had too many elements that weren't properly explored. The man with the fireworks, the five fishermen, and Catfish all came up multiple times but they still felt underdeveloped. I get that they added to the air of mystery and I like ambiguity in my novels; I think the slow pace just made me want to learn more about them instead of having scenes that felt inconsequential at times.
Also, I think the book needs another round of editing. I found quite some typos and one or two grammatical errors, which of course didn't make or break my enjoyment but since I received an ARC of Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves, I feel I should mention it.
The beautiful prose and interesting family relationships ultimately couldn't fully make up for the slow pace. I did like it and wanted to explore the characters and the setting further, at times spinning wild ideas about where the story would take me. Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves didn't go where I hoped and while I definitely want to acknowledge it as a beautiful and haunting piece of literature, I couldn't enjoy its quietness as much as I would've liked.
- ARC received by NetGalley -
While I liked Lake Prosper's history and the inevitable hauntings the characters and their families faced because of it, the actual plot was very slow and sometimes confusing. As much as I loved June, I was utterly confused by the flowers springing up in her hair and how this manifested later on. Some parts were kinda hard to follow and disorienting, though I can't tell if this was intentional or not. Even though the book was pretty slow-paced, I felt like it had too many elements that weren't properly explored. The man with the fireworks, the five fishermen, and Catfish all came up multiple times but they still felt underdeveloped. I get that they added to the air of mystery and I like ambiguity in my novels; I think the slow pace just made me want to learn more about them instead of having scenes that felt inconsequential at times.
Also, I think the book needs another round of editing. I found quite some typos and one or two grammatical errors, which of course didn't make or break my enjoyment but since I received an ARC of Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves, I feel I should mention it.
The beautiful prose and interesting family relationships ultimately couldn't fully make up for the slow pace. I did like it and wanted to explore the characters and the setting further, at times spinning wild ideas about where the story would take me. Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves didn't go where I hoped and while I definitely want to acknowledge it as a beautiful and haunting piece of literature, I couldn't enjoy its quietness as much as I would've liked.
- ARC received by NetGalley -
July 6, 2025
My entire fyp is about how July 5th is the official start of Halloween. And it is wonderful. I LOVE Halloween, and am always ready for something spooky. So I picked up Cicadas sing of Summer Graves at the used bookstore, and dove into this ghostly summer story.
Cicadas sing of Summer Graves is a story based on the unfortunate American pastime of building a damn and flooding an area, displacing the poor, black or indigenous people of the area. This is a story about Prosper Arkansas, and how the past and the present live side by side, separated by only a thin veil.
I was locked in for this book. I sat down to read and was surprised to realize I was already halfway through - it just sucked me in.
I loved how this book mixes ghosts, teenage boys, rich men, and trauma to create the thriller that this book is. There are pieces of paranormal in each character, and on each page. But sometimes its the teenager who's never faced consequences that is horrifying me. And the mix of paranormal and everyday things brings the thrill up.
I am very picky about my horror. I dont do gore, and I dont do anything where the dog dies. This book has one scene I would consider gorey (though its also just gross), and no animals die. So this was a great way to get my spooky fill for this weekend.
I reccomend this book!
Cicadas sing of Summer Graves is a story based on the unfortunate American pastime of building a damn and flooding an area, displacing the poor, black or indigenous people of the area. This is a story about Prosper Arkansas, and how the past and the present live side by side, separated by only a thin veil.
I was locked in for this book. I sat down to read and was surprised to realize I was already halfway through - it just sucked me in.
I loved how this book mixes ghosts, teenage boys, rich men, and trauma to create the thriller that this book is. There are pieces of paranormal in each character, and on each page. But sometimes its the teenager who's never faced consequences that is horrifying me. And the mix of paranormal and everyday things brings the thrill up.
I am very picky about my horror. I dont do gore, and I dont do anything where the dog dies. This book has one scene I would consider gorey (though its also just gross), and no animals die. So this was a great way to get my spooky fill for this weekend.
I reccomend this book!
May 30, 2023
i don't know how to say this in a fancy way but IT WAS JUST SO BEAUTIFUL. the writing, the plot, the characters, the entire premise, all of it. i mean the language of the book, you know the whole concept of using the words in such a way that you just stop and stare because everything you just read is so eerily haunting and exceedingly beautiful. if i was left so speechless by this, then why the four stars you might ask. that's because even though i loved it so much that i might reread it, i also felt like there was something missing like i can't place exactly what was missing but something but other than that its an incredible read.
thanks to netgalley and the author for providing me with an arc of the book
thanks to netgalley and the author for providing me with an arc of the book
October 1, 2023
This book has plenty of elements that should have made it interesting. It's set beside a lake that was created on top of a yellow-fever-ridden town near Hot Springs, Arkansas. Current residents keep finding artifacts and seeing visions of the townspeople from the past. The book feels like it wants to be a Stephen King novel with its mysterious fireworks man, the off-his-rocker tycoon, a girl who grows poppies in her hair, and a world that's not quite what it seems. There are also over 200 references to eyes in this book and only five to the cicadas mentioned in the title. However, there's no eye-related payoff for all those eyes -- or anything else for that matter.
I had a hard time getting through this book and know now that I've finished it that I would have been better off abandoning it. It sounds like it should be good, but it wasn't enjoyable to read. I think the problem was that it didn't feel like it was moving toward anything and there was no big reveal at the end that hadn't already been hinted at from the beginning of the book. Sure, you learn how the town of the past was connected to the present, but it doesn't feel like it justifies or explains anything happening in the book. It felt like a book full of all these little interesting ideas that don't really add up to much.
I had a hard time getting through this book and know now that I've finished it that I would have been better off abandoning it. It sounds like it should be good, but it wasn't enjoyable to read. I think the problem was that it didn't feel like it was moving toward anything and there was no big reveal at the end that hadn't already been hinted at from the beginning of the book. Sure, you learn how the town of the past was connected to the present, but it doesn't feel like it justifies or explains anything happening in the book. It felt like a book full of all these little interesting ideas that don't really add up to much.
June 7, 2024
I received this as a giveaway copy!
The atmosphere in this book is DEFINITELY a hot, sticky summer on the lake. Perfect book to read for the summer season. I enjoyed how this novel had horror elements but the focus was on the characters’ growth and relationships, as well as their relationship with their town. And it’s a great book to pick up for pride month:)
The atmosphere in this book is DEFINITELY a hot, sticky summer on the lake. Perfect book to read for the summer season. I enjoyed how this novel had horror elements but the focus was on the characters’ growth and relationships, as well as their relationship with their town. And it’s a great book to pick up for pride month:)
June 23, 2024
This had good writing and the summertime atmosphere was palpable, but that’s about it. All of the different character perspectives read the same and I didn’t really care about any of them, and since this basically had no plot, I really needed to enjoy the characters. Also, the magical realism aspects felt so out of place in the story and made no sense. Overall, I just don’t know what the point was.
Want to read
February 11, 2023The cover is beautiful.
October 18, 2024
Thank you to Sourcebooks for the giveaway I received. My review is not impacted by this and reflects my honest opinion of it.
Actual Rating: 2.7/3
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a very eerie novel mixed with a subtle element of magical realism and horror. The book follows three women, Cassie, Lark, and June, as they confront the troubled waters and roots of their town.
When I read the book, I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style. The prose and descriptions evoked a mix of a subtle miasma of despair and nostalgia, which felt really unique. The writing style really highlighted the supernatural events and corruption from the ghosts of the past and capture the subtle horror element of the book well. I was also drawn in by the author’s note and how Prosper was inspired by Buckville, Arkansas, which was located on the Indigenous Caddo Nation’s land and flooded by a dam. Before reading the book, I wasn’t aware of the dam flooding and how it was kind of erased from history books, so I appreciate the themes that went into the book.
Despite the writing being very atmospheric and descriptive and the book’s exploration of the flooded town, the book felt quite lacking when it came to the characters and storyline progression.
Compared to Cassie and Bolt, June and Lark did not feel as fully realized despite being the two other major protagonists. Moreover, their relationship to the history of the town is hardly explored at all, with only Cassie’s receiving substantial development. What really bothered me though was the three women’s relationship to one another. The synopsis seemed to imply that Cassie, Lark, and June would all unite to confront their town’s past, especially since each of them has some kind of supernatural ability enabling them to see the truth of what happened to Old Prosper. Instead, Cassie barely interacts with Lark and June throughout the entire book while Lark and June mainly confront their own personal issues and traumas.
The story also bounced between POVs so quickly that it was hard to keep track of all the little subplots happening with each character. Some of the character voices also felt difficult to distinguish, particularly Cassie’s and Lark’s. In addition, because there were so many different subplots to keep track of, the plot didn’t have a clear progression and kind of escalated too quickly toward the end of the book.
Aside from the characters and plot, I just felt like the book left so much more room to explore the greater historical context and issues surrounding Prosper. At the beginning of the book, the author’s note states that Buckville’s flooding dislocated not only “mainly struggling white farmers but also many who were Black and Native American,” according to the book. However, Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves never really addresses the impact of Prosper’s flooding on Black and Indigenous people despite taking major inspiration from the actual flooding of Buckville. Speaking of which, excluding June and her aunt Eliza, there were no other Black and/or Indigenous characters that had significant ties to Prosper. Something about this absence kind of rubbed me the wrong way, especially since the authors stated that they consulted local Black history bearers and historians about the impacts on Black and Indigenous communities.
Overall, had a great concept and writing but wasn’t executed very well. Even though it covered an obscure facet of Southern history and delved into the trauma stemming from the flooding, I felt like it could’ve taken things a bit farther with the characters and plot. Aside from that, it’s a pretty decent read, and I would recommend it if you enjoy a more subtle horror mixed with magical realism.
Actual Rating: 2.7/3
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves is a very eerie novel mixed with a subtle element of magical realism and horror. The book follows three women, Cassie, Lark, and June, as they confront the troubled waters and roots of their town.
When I read the book, I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style. The prose and descriptions evoked a mix of a subtle miasma of despair and nostalgia, which felt really unique. The writing style really highlighted the supernatural events and corruption from the ghosts of the past and capture the subtle horror element of the book well. I was also drawn in by the author’s note and how Prosper was inspired by Buckville, Arkansas, which was located on the Indigenous Caddo Nation’s land and flooded by a dam. Before reading the book, I wasn’t aware of the dam flooding and how it was kind of erased from history books, so I appreciate the themes that went into the book.
Despite the writing being very atmospheric and descriptive and the book’s exploration of the flooded town, the book felt quite lacking when it came to the characters and storyline progression.
Compared to Cassie and Bolt, June and Lark did not feel as fully realized despite being the two other major protagonists. Moreover, their relationship to the history of the town is hardly explored at all, with only Cassie’s receiving substantial development. What really bothered me though was the three women’s relationship to one another. The synopsis seemed to imply that Cassie, Lark, and June would all unite to confront their town’s past, especially since each of them has some kind of supernatural ability enabling them to see the truth of what happened to Old Prosper. Instead, Cassie barely interacts with Lark and June throughout the entire book while Lark and June mainly confront their own personal issues and traumas.
The story also bounced between POVs so quickly that it was hard to keep track of all the little subplots happening with each character. Some of the character voices also felt difficult to distinguish, particularly Cassie’s and Lark’s. In addition, because there were so many different subplots to keep track of, the plot didn’t have a clear progression and kind of escalated too quickly toward the end of the book.
Aside from the characters and plot, I just felt like the book left so much more room to explore the greater historical context and issues surrounding Prosper. At the beginning of the book, the author’s note states that Buckville’s flooding dislocated not only “mainly struggling white farmers but also many who were Black and Native American,” according to the book. However, Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves never really addresses the impact of Prosper’s flooding on Black and Indigenous people despite taking major inspiration from the actual flooding of Buckville. Speaking of which, excluding June and her aunt Eliza, there were no other Black and/or Indigenous characters that had significant ties to Prosper. Something about this absence kind of rubbed me the wrong way, especially since the authors stated that they consulted local Black history bearers and historians about the impacts on Black and Indigenous communities.
Overall, had a great concept and writing but wasn’t executed very well. Even though it covered an obscure facet of Southern history and delved into the trauma stemming from the flooding, I felt like it could’ve taken things a bit farther with the characters and plot. Aside from that, it’s a pretty decent read, and I would recommend it if you enjoy a more subtle horror mixed with magical realism.
December 17, 2022
(This review is based on an advanced reader’s copy provided by NetGalley.)
When NetGalley asks you why you requested a certain book, the options are something like: “title,” “cover,” “author,” “description,” and “I keep hearing about this book.” I requested this book for a highly specific and slightly silly reason: because I’m trying to read a queer book set in every state, and Arkansas was one of the states I still needed.
The book was engaging enough that I finished it in a week (which for me is neither particularly short nor particularly long; a very average amount of time), and it had a strong sense of setting, so it fulfilled my desire to check Arkansas off the list. Other than that, I’m not sure what to make of this book. I enjoyed it well enough, but didn’t feel strongly about it, and feel neither a strong yes nor a strong no about checking out the authors’ other/future work.
This is an odd book, and hard to categorize genre-wise. It feels contemporary at first, but it’s also a ghost story and has additional fabulist elements besides the ghosts. Normally this is exactly what I like in a book: I love when books are so weird that you don’t even know how to categorize them! But something about this book felt not entirely satisfying. Maybe it’s too weird to be a “normal” book, but not weird enough to be a weird book? (Or at least not weird enough to be satisfying as a weird book.) It felt strange to realize that I had reached the halfway mark of the book, because I felt like the plot had only just kicked off, and I still wasn’t entirely sure what the book was about.
There is something of a mystery element where certain plot threads eventually come together. I liked this but felt it didn’t quite stick the landing, like maybe some more rounds of revision would have made the revelations clearer and punchier. As it was, some of them felt a bit more nebulous than I would like. I don’t necessarily need a book to give clear-cut answers to everything, but I sort of get the feeling that this book thinks its answers are clearer than they actually are. But maybe this was my own failing as a reader.
Rep: Four POV characters: 1) a pale-skinned woman with both white and Syrian parentage, and a male love interest; 2) said woman's teenaged brother (with no love interest); 3) a white woman with a female love interest; and 4) a biracial Black woman with a female love interest. #1 and #2 are implied to be more or less working-class (it’s complicated, but they live in a trailer). All three women are in their twenties. I read #4 as possibly having undiagnosed ADHD, but this is open to interpretation. No sexual orientation labels are used or explicitly rejected. The queerness is a non-issue in the book. Some characters die, but (mild spoiler) .
Content notes: Mental illness, including possible psychosis; eye trauma; blood; drowning; quasi-flashbacks to a historical plague (yellow fever) and quarantine; scene of a teen sexually harassing a younger child (condemned in the text).
When NetGalley asks you why you requested a certain book, the options are something like: “title,” “cover,” “author,” “description,” and “I keep hearing about this book.” I requested this book for a highly specific and slightly silly reason: because I’m trying to read a queer book set in every state, and Arkansas was one of the states I still needed.
The book was engaging enough that I finished it in a week (which for me is neither particularly short nor particularly long; a very average amount of time), and it had a strong sense of setting, so it fulfilled my desire to check Arkansas off the list. Other than that, I’m not sure what to make of this book. I enjoyed it well enough, but didn’t feel strongly about it, and feel neither a strong yes nor a strong no about checking out the authors’ other/future work.
This is an odd book, and hard to categorize genre-wise. It feels contemporary at first, but it’s also a ghost story and has additional fabulist elements besides the ghosts. Normally this is exactly what I like in a book: I love when books are so weird that you don’t even know how to categorize them! But something about this book felt not entirely satisfying. Maybe it’s too weird to be a “normal” book, but not weird enough to be a weird book? (Or at least not weird enough to be satisfying as a weird book.) It felt strange to realize that I had reached the halfway mark of the book, because I felt like the plot had only just kicked off, and I still wasn’t entirely sure what the book was about.
There is something of a mystery element where certain plot threads eventually come together. I liked this but felt it didn’t quite stick the landing, like maybe some more rounds of revision would have made the revelations clearer and punchier. As it was, some of them felt a bit more nebulous than I would like. I don’t necessarily need a book to give clear-cut answers to everything, but I sort of get the feeling that this book thinks its answers are clearer than they actually are. But maybe this was my own failing as a reader.
Rep: Four POV characters: 1) a pale-skinned woman with both white and Syrian parentage, and a male love interest; 2) said woman's teenaged brother (with no love interest); 3) a white woman with a female love interest; and 4) a biracial Black woman with a female love interest. #1 and #2 are implied to be more or less working-class (it’s complicated, but they live in a trailer). All three women are in their twenties. I read #4 as possibly having undiagnosed ADHD, but this is open to interpretation. No sexual orientation labels are used or explicitly rejected. The queerness is a non-issue in the book. Some characters die, but (mild spoiler) .
Content notes: Mental illness, including possible psychosis; eye trauma; blood; drowning; quasi-flashbacks to a historical plague (yellow fever) and quarantine; scene of a teen sexually harassing a younger child (condemned in the text).
June 7, 2023
Sorry, did not have a fun time with this one at all. Too many POVs across the chapters, and they are all so similar that it became near impossible to differentiate the characters and keep their individual threads on track in my mind.
For some reason I always end up falling into magical realism novels despite actively not being a fan of the genre, but that's on me!
For some reason I always end up falling into magical realism novels despite actively not being a fan of the genre, but that's on me!
May 30, 2023
The Author’s Note at the beginning, shares the fact that what happened in the town of Prosper is based on real life events. Buckville, Arkansas was flooded( the why will be revealed), and the devastation that followed was truly horrific.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves focuses on three main characters: Lark,June, and Cassie. Each of them are struggling in their own way. We learn how they spent their childhood summers and the ghosts that lie underneath the surface of this lake. It’s almost impossible to talk about the story and what each of them go through, especially in the now, without treading into spoiler infested lake water.
The story is eerie in the beginning, and it captures the feel of a hot and hazy summer. The lake may be a place for houseboats and summer vacations, but it is what lies below the surface that had me constantly on edge, wondering what havoc the ghosts in the lake would play on this story. The discovery of a box unearthed from the lake has major repercussions for this town, and for all those who live here.
Did I have a favorite POV? I would say Cassie. What she went through in the then and what she is still going through in the now gripped me the most. It’s such a tragic story and the fact that it is based on a real event was just so sad. I didn’t put this book down until I was done.
Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves focuses on three main characters: Lark,June, and Cassie. Each of them are struggling in their own way. We learn how they spent their childhood summers and the ghosts that lie underneath the surface of this lake. It’s almost impossible to talk about the story and what each of them go through, especially in the now, without treading into spoiler infested lake water.
The story is eerie in the beginning, and it captures the feel of a hot and hazy summer. The lake may be a place for houseboats and summer vacations, but it is what lies below the surface that had me constantly on edge, wondering what havoc the ghosts in the lake would play on this story. The discovery of a box unearthed from the lake has major repercussions for this town, and for all those who live here.
Did I have a favorite POV? I would say Cassie. What she went through in the then and what she is still going through in the now gripped me the most. It’s such a tragic story and the fact that it is based on a real event was just so sad. I didn’t put this book down until I was done.
February 3, 2023
This one was hard to write a review for. It was outside of my typical reading genres, mixing horror and magical realism/fantastical elements. It was so beautifully written that at times it also felt like I was reading poetry. I enjoyed reading this book, but at the end didn’t really have strong feelings towards it?
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