In the summer of 1969, men walked on the moon; Holly Lee Carter returned home in a wheelchair to save her family legacy from the Klan; and my best friend fell passionately, dangerously in love. Little did we know that first July morning when she hurtled into our staid, small town lives and gridiron dreams that nothing in who we were or what we were to become would be the same after her. And that Cattahatchie County – the last segregated one of its kind, even in Mississippi – would be transformed by fire and blood and snake venom, hard truth and desperate need, and by all other things that the river holds. – Nathan Wallace, narrator “Park’s gripping debut novel, an unconventional love story, unfolds in KKK-controlled Cattahatchie County, Mississippi, during a violent 1969 civil rights struggle. … the author’s ability to turn a phrase, capturing, in a few words time, place and atmosphere, is a joy. Solid character portrayals, personal melodrama, a murder mystery, and unrestrained violence propel this page-turner to its explosive conclusion. … an addictive read with some final surprises.” – Kirkus Reviews “Louis Hillary Park is one of those rare authors who spins an intelligent story driven by complex, believable characters with heartbeats a reader can hear.” – New York Times bestselling author John Ramsey Miller, author of THE LAST DAY.