The Down River People by Adam Smith

A dark Southern tale hums along nicely until an unexpected and confusing hard turn in the plot.

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Publisher’s Blurb

In order to keep his father’s speakeasy afloat, Myers unwittingly gets caught up in his family’s ties to the occult.

Myers Carpenter is a bootlegger who just inherited his family’s bar, The Flatbed. Unsure of whether or not he even wants to keep the famous speakeasy, Myers is forced to find a new booze supplier when he burns his bridges at his long time source in Mississippi. The only option he can turn to is his estranged mother, a woman he hasn’t seen since he was a young boy, now running a fishing Lodge for the wealthy; and a half sister he knew nothing about. As Myers becomes more entangled in the lives of his newfound family, he begins to learn the secrets of the Lodge and a dark cult thriving just under the surface of wealth and opulence.

Adam Smith and Matt Fox, the acclaimed creative team behind Long Walk to Valhalla, reunite for a gripping southern gothic thriller about finding your family and the true cost of happiness

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The first act of The Down River People tells the story of a young man in pain. His father has just committed suicide and he wants to keep his dad’s bar open. He has to head with suppling the booze through a dry county and a host of other issues. It’s at this moment that his estranged mother shows up. All this works for me: the community coming together for Myers, the grief he’s dealing with, and the renewed connection with his mother. What happens next is confusing… a series of disjointed dream sequences tied to her mother’s new family’s church.

Take a minute and look and this sneak peek. There are some very good things to say about the artwork and the color palette.

This book had a lot of potential for me and Smith’s note at the end of the book reveals some of his inspiration. I just couldn’t see the whole arc work together.

2 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boom Studios, and the author for an advanced copy for review.