"Life was for the living and death was for the dead, and there was enough beauty and grace in both to mend the most tender and broken."

When These Mountains Burn is a book about addictions and especially a book about grief. As I'm sure you know, opiates steal thousands of souls every day. In North Carolina, where When These Mountains Burn take place (I believe), in 2018 alone, an estimated 79% of drug overdose deaths involved opioids. It's an epidemic that is literally destroying our society, tearing families apart.

David Joy's When These Mountains Burn tackles this horrible subject in a fast-moving story crime story, one that is focused on the bonds of family, father and sons, and the horror of addictions and the hope of healing.

The novel is about Raymond Mathis, Denny Rattler, DEA Agent Ronald Holland, and addiction. Mathis is attempting to save his son from opiates and is trying to carry on without his wife who is deceased. This impulse to rescue his son is ruining him, both emotionally and financially. Denny Rattler is a Cherokee Nation member and heroin addict. Denny commits calculated, small crimes to get funding for his next high. Holland is a DEA Agent who has lost his belief in the criminal justice system. Holland is a mercenary, in it for money and excitement. As the novel progresses, Raymond’s son dies with Denny in the room. Simultaneously, Agent Holland investigates the murky drug-world of Western North Carolina.

These three men, through the weight of unavoidable decisions, become entangled with one another. A vigilante, a junkie, and a lawman float through Appalachia’s hills. Things get violent, unexcepted alliances are formed, and it ends in a very surprising way.

And I personally found the ending to be incredibly powerful and moving.

With memorable characters, ingenious plotting, and attention to detail, and often, moving prose, Joy has written a masterful work of crime fiction. It's unforgettably powerful and quite visceral. Don't miss out on reading this novel.

David Joy is truly a gifted storyteller. I look forward to reading more of his work. ( )

Another excellent book from this author. Poetic writing of trials and tribulations in Appalachia.
Every book from this author has been excellent. ( )

David Joy is among America’s greatest living authors. ( )

I loved this book! Last year, I read David Joy's previous novel, The Line That Held Us, and was blown away and knew that I needed to read more of this amazing author's work. Well, I finally had the chance to sit down and read his newest book and found it to be equally impressive. This was one of those books that I did not want to put down once I picked it up and felt moved by the story.

This book deals with the difficult topic of drug abuse. I found the descriptions to be incredibly vivid and sometimes eye-opening. Several different perspectives come together to tell this tale of desperation. From an addict, we see the uncontrollable need for the next high and how the entire focus on his life has become centered on doing whatever necessary to get the drugs he needs. From the parent of an addict, we see how much they want to help and their frustration with how little they are able to actually do. We get to see law enforcement take steps to cut off the supply and how slowly the system move.

This book is set in the mountains of North Carolina and I really felt those mountains come to life in this story. The characters were very well-developed and the descriptions were incredibly vivid. The writing was beautiful despite the rather harsh reality of the story. I was really drawn into the story and wondered how things would eventually work out for these characters that I had grown to care about.

I would highly recommend this book to others. I found this to be a beautifully written tale of desperation and the need to take steps towards change. I am now considering myself to be a card-carrying member of the David Joy fan club (is there such a thing?) and will definitely be planning to read more of his work in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this book from G.P. Putnam's Sons via Edelweiss. ( )

Joy never disappoints!
Favorite passage "There was always this uneasiness when he reached the edge of the Boundary. Boundaries were strange to begin with -- what belonged to who, and who belonged to where-- all of these imaginary things treated as concrete so that our lives were governed by nonsense. It was hard to wrap his head around the meaninglessness of it all, but every time he crossed that line he got anxious. The Boundary was a blessing and a curse, a place where he felt at once safe and trapped, but he knew he could not stay there anymore." ( )