The Unquiet Grave

McCrumb, Sharyn. The Unquiet Grave. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2017.

McCrumb fictionalizes the story of the "Greenbrier ghost," a true murder story set in Greenbrier County, West Virginia in which the testimony of a ghost was at least partially responsible for a conviction. The cast of characters is an interesting mix of Appalachian mountain folks, scoundrels, African-Americans not that far removed from slavery, and more. Part of the story is narrated by an African-American lawyer who was second on the defense team. His story is told to one of his doctors at the colored asylum. McCrumb's book tour brought her through my city where I heard her discuss the research done on the book. The book's dedication was to a friend and fellow local genealogist who assisted her in the research. She also spoke about her role and finds that day. I knew most of the plot before I read it, but I still really enjoyed the way the story unraveled. Some people commented it took the story awhile to get going. Since I knew what was to come, that was not a problem for me. This book is the all-conference read for the conference at which I'm speaking later in the week, set in the very county where the book is set. The venue for the conference is at the Greenbrier, referred to as the "White Hotel" in the book. The story is a well-done Appalachian story, blending a real life murder trial with Appalachian life and lore. Fans of historical fiction and Appalachian fiction will find much to like in this story.