A good mystery with some NC history; to my mind a great combination.

**edited 12/04/13Frankie Silver was not quite what I expected from the description. It does indeed interweave the present-day with the past, but it is the past where McCrumb focuses her energy and narrative. The two present-day cases only add a frame of reference and a sense of immediacy and connection to that long-ago crime. In the present day, Tennessee Sheriff Spencer Arrowood, laid up at home due to injuries during a shootout, is brooding on the upcoming execution of a man he helped to put b...

So many parts that didn't lead anywhere. Frankie's death was sad and so was Fate's. Ending conveyed poor are hanged and family values of mountain people. Cool fact: We don't wonder the reason why someone commits a crime because that would be questioning Gods will! That's why the system is set up this way; to put bandages instead of solving the problem. Religion is truly embedded in everything. Good quotes:-- I'm just not sure that you can take one day of a person's life, draw a line, and judge h...

Mary Jane has suggested Sharyn McCrumb to me innumerable times over the years, and I finally picked up a library discard to read on the plane. I really enjoyed it, though I wouldn't binge-read McCrumb's books if this one is representative; the tone is dark enough to require some spacing out, and the historical figures are pretty accurate and detail-heavy, down to enumerating a complex web of relatives of the family into which Gaither married. That's why it deserves tagging as history. I would re...

Description: A career lawman will bear witness to the final judgement, as a man he put away twenty years ago is about to be executed for the brutal slaying of two hikers. However, his conscience is no longer clear to the point of absolute certainty about the man's guilt. Also of intense interest to the lawman is the parallel between the current events and a legendary murder and execution over 100 years old -- the story of a great injustice, and a woman condemned to die for a crime she didn't com...

Cowboy stories are definitely not my thing. I should know better than to read books nominated by people who consider Ernest Hemingway the greatest writer ever even if it was for my in person book club.

This passage makes me swoon: "The blonde man was a Mr. Silver, the keeper of the family history. He could have been any age, and he had been born here in the county, but his accent had been worn away like a river rock, softened by years spent in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles. Now he had come home to stay and attend the legends."One of my favorite characters from this wonderful series is Nora Bonesteel. She has the Sight which unnerves some people. Indeed, "Nobody wanted to have much to do with N...

Frankie Silver was a real person,the first woman hanged in the state of North Carolina, on July 12, 1833. Hers was a tragic story - 18 years old when brought to trial for the murder of her husband, mother of an infant daughter.Convicted in a two-day trial, she was not allowed by law to testify in her own behalf. Her appeals denied by the state supreme court, a grass-roots effort in the community arose to secure a pardon ,but it was not to be. As she stood on the gallows, about to speak, her own

Didn't really hold my attention. Weird subplot that I'm guessing was meant to parallel the main story, but didn't really. Odd details and foreshadowing that didn't lead anywhere and/or their resolutions were anti-climatic (for example, Burgess mentioned the death of his brother a few times and within the context, made it sound like the death would be an integral part of the story later on. . . of which it was certainly not. And such a big deal was made about keeping the newest murder news away f...

This book has two threads:one is about a trial and execution of Frankie Silver in 1830 North Carolina. The second is about a modern day murder in Tennessee. The author goes back and forth between the two and connects the two at the end. Sheriff Spencer Arrowood is the modern day central character in the book. He is a central character in other ballad books. I give it four stars out of five.

Based on the historical story of Charlie and Frankie Silver’s complicated case. I loved this novel. Nuanced and layered with many facets of the complications of law, justice and humanity. Powerful and highly recommended for anyone who is interested in going into police work, social services and/or counseling. Would recommend for 18+ because of details of the case.

The Ballad of Frankie Silver is the only Sharyn McCrumb novel I've read. And that's to my loss. I read the paperback version of The Ballad of Frankie Silver about five years ago and I've kept it on my shelf ever since, knowing I'll reread it at least a couple more times over the next few years. Yeah, it's that good. The story alternates between two murder cases, one from 1833, the other from the 1990s. Sheriff Spencer Arrowood is working on the latter while researching the former. What he finds

I never imagined that the story of two double murders and a woman who hacked her husband to death with an axe could be mind-numbingly boring, but Sharyn McCrumb was able to do it. I can't tell you how many pages of intertwining family trees I read through, willing my poor brain to keep them all in order, until I finally realized that they were going to have nothing, NOTHING to do with ANYTHING. How many times could we be reminded about how small and young Frankie was? How many letters sent to th...

I live in the rural town of Morganton, where the first woman ever was sentenced to hang in the state of North Carolina. Ive always wanted to find out more about this tragic yet sad tale. It was interesting indeed to learn more about the legendary infamous Frankie Silver.

Some verses from the Bible about equal justice under the law:Leviticus 19:15 "Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly."Proverbs 29:7 "The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern."This book made me see that even among decent, respectable people, of good moral character, it is very difficult to be impartial, and one must really 'go against the flow' to show equal justice and mercy t...

Excellent historical fiction based on an actual event from North Carolina’s history, the early 1830s trial and conviction of Frankie Silver, a young mother accused of murdering her husband. When present day Sheriff Spencer Arrowood begins to have misgivings about an upcoming execution – one he must witness – it causes him to reflect back on the folklore surrounding the Frankie Silver case. The parallel he uncovers between the two cases leads to an unsettling revelation and provides insight into...

Four stars for historic research, three for writing. Feels a bit dated and slightly melodramatic.

A little slow in places but I quite liked the fact that the novel is based on the true story behind a ballad. Tugged at my heartstrings in a few places too

A tedious, plodding family history. Absolutely no mystery to it. The resolution is apparent from the start.

I've been wanting to read one of McCrumb's Ballad Series for a few years, and man did I enjoy it. I love that she's bringing these ballads to life. I loved reading about life in Appalachia in both the 19th and 20th centuries. And I just love Southern Lit.