Ron Rash proves once again he is a master of southern fiction (as if there was any doubt) in his latest book "The Risen."

When erosion reveals human bones alongside Panther Creek in a small North Carolina town, brothers Eugene and Bill relive the fateful summer of 1969 when they met the wild and mysterious Ligeia.

While the novel is fueled with questions of "who dunnit?" and "what the heck happened?" its true strength is in its character study of two very different brothers, their tyrannical grandfather, and an untethered free spirit. Rash forces his readers to consider whether reprehensible acts are ever justifiable, and what, if anything, someone can do to earn redemption. He relies on his readers to draw conclusions and says just enough, without fully closing the circle -- which can make for an even stronger impact.

Highly recommended. 4 stars

Thank you to Ecco publishing and Edelweiss for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. ( )

This is another excellent novel by Ron Rash with highly developed characters. It centers around two brothers who live with their widowed mother and her controlling, manipulative father-in-law, the small town's doctor and autocrat.

The brothers, Eugene and Bill, are four years apart in age, with Bill excelling in academics and sports to his grandfather's delight. Eugene's strengths lie in the appreciation of literature and his own writing. They share a fear and dislike for their grandfather and a love for their gentle, dominated mother.

When Eugene is 16 and Bill is 20, they happen upon a girl named Ligeia, who is living with her right-wing aunt and uncle after being banished by her parents for embracing the counterculture movement of the late 1960s, drugs and sex. Unfortunately, both boys fall under her spell; however, Bill's is short-lived as he goes on to medical school and a successful career as a surgeon. Eugene's infatuation extends to stealing drugs from his grandfather's medical practice for Ligeia.

Fast forward nearly 50 years, and Eugene is a raging alcoholic who has lost everything that meant anything to him.
When a skeleton is found and identified as Ligeia, both brothers are under scrutiny.

I love the setting of Asheville and the references to Thomas Wolfe and his wonderful book, Look Homeward Angel. Ron Rash is a gifted writer, making the characters, the place and the "Age of Aquarius" come to life. ( )

Rash does it again with his smooth prose. His writing is so easy to read, I'd finish even if I didn't care for the story, which wasn't the case here. I'm just a tad bit younger than the characters in this novel, and I grew up in the South, so I related to the times and setting. Another page turner from a great writer. ( )

The Risen is tragic and vivid. Rash is a master of storytelling, taking the reader back and fourth in time to weave the tale of the cost a brother is willing to pay to protect his sibling.

The story is told from the pov of Eugene as he searches his memory for clues to the death of Ligeia Mosely, a young woman he and his brother Bill spent a summer with in 1969. Her remains have been found recently after washing up from where they were buried. Through flashbacks of this summer along with the revelation of their unhappy childhood under their domineering grandfather.

Rash uses his knowledge of the NC mountains to create a simple world with an intense story. A must read, The Risen will stick with you long after closing the book. ( )

I first read Ron Rash last year with his book above the falls which I really liked. This book "The Risen" is a good story but it is quite short. It is almost as if the author either already had it written but it was around 100 pages and in order to make it a stand alone book, he had to plump it up with extra information, or he just ran out of steam with what to do with the story.
The book is about two brothers, Bill- older and in college, and Eugene- younger and impressionable, who live with their mother and are beholden to their grandfather- the towns Doctor and a huge force to be reckoned with, living in a small town in N Carolina. In the summer of 1969, ( wasn't this a Brian Adams song?),while fishing on a deserted section of a creek they meet a new girl, Ligeia, who is more San Francisco than anything they have ever been exposed to. The girl has been sent to the town to live with her strict very religious aunt and uncle, because of some trouble she got in in her home town of Daytona Florida, and is now missing the sex and drugs lifestyle she had adopted. The girl has sex with each brother, but latches onto the younger one who is more easily manipulated. In the fall of 1969 she gets into trouble needs money and needs out of town fast. Bill and Eugene come to her rescue and she flees. Or does she?
Jump to today.
Bill is a hugely successful surgeon, and Eugene is a disgraced, divorced alcoholic, who own family won't speak to. While reading the paper one morning Eugene see that a body has been discovered that was buried at their old fishing spot.
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