Sorrow Wood

by Raymond L. Atkins

When the charred remains of a murdered woman are discovered on Sorrow Wood farm, police chief Wendell Blackmon is called to the scene. It is quickly determined that the body is Sand Valley’s resident “witch”, a promiscuous woman best known for her free-love coven meetings. As Wendell begins interviewing suspects, the story frequently flashes back to the early decades of the 20^th century, first to his childhood and then his courtship and marriage to Reva, a woman at turns capable (she welds broken battleships during WWII despite the handicap of missing a leg) and mystical (Reva believes she and Wendell are reincarnated lovers who find each other in life after life). These past lives are revealed in small snippets at the end of every chapter.

Raymond L. Atkins’ strength is in his writing style, and his ability to create living, breathing individuals with just a few critical details. Even better, he does this in a humorous way. A scene from Wendell’s childhood, in which he abandons his abusive father at the bottom of a well isn’t a funny situation at all. But the way the story is told makes you laugh out loud. 

His characters are interesting and memorable, too. I really like Wendell, a tough but fair man who isn’t happy with his life, but keeps on trucking along without complaining too much. He’s madly in love with his wife after decades of marriage, and she’s just as crazy about him. Wendell’s mother was born to talk, and she doesn’t let little things like not being present at the event she’s describing prevent her from describing the setting, mood, and inner thoughts of every person involved. Resident reprobates like Otter Price and Deadhand Riley follow the lawman to the letter: if he says no more cock-fighting, then by God they’ll have no cock-fighting. But Wendell never specified about dog-fighting, so it really is horribly unfair to punish them for no reason. Otter and Deadhand often provide the comic relief, but even they are capable of a redeeming moment or two.

Sorrow Wood forces you to slow down to the pace of the characters. It isn’t a book to be rushed, but savored. Whenever I put the book down, the story lingered. When I picked the book up again, I'd easily fall back into the rhythm of the narration.  It’s a great read, entertaining but poignant and touching as well.