Alabama Writers' Forum

FIREBALL, a one-woman show by Norman McMillan
2024-03-08 19:00 - 21:00, 2024-02-27 10:47 (America/Chicago) | Parnell Memorial Library Theatre, 277 Park Drive, Montevallo, AL, 35115, United States
FIREBALL, a one-woman show by Norman McMillan, will be presented March 8 and 9 at 7:00 p.m., and March 10 at 2:00 p.m. , at the Parnell Memorial Library Theatre, 277 Park Drive, Montevallo, Alabama. The play is based on the memoir, FIREBALL: THE TRUE STORY OF A TENNESSEE PLOWGIRL WHO SURVIVED POVERTY, ABUSE, AND ELEVEN HUSBANDS WITH WIT, WISDOM, AND TENACITY, by Hazel Lindsey and Julia Walker. Tickets may be purchased online at: https://our.show/Fireball2024

Meet Johnny Compton, Author of "The Spite House!"
2024-03-07 17:30 - 20:00 | The Haunted Book Shop, 9 S JOACHIM ST, MOBILE, AL, 36602-2707, United States
Horror author JOHNNY COMPTON is coming to Mobile! The Haunted Book Shop is thrilled to host Johnny Compton for conversation, followed by a book signing, of his debut southern gothic paranormal novel The Spite House. Publisher’s Weekly called this smash hit “horror with heart.” Great for fans of Stephen Graham Jones, Rebecca Roanhorse, and Silvia Moreno-Garcia.
Here’s an excerpt from the review by Kait, of the Haunted Book Shop: “Eric Ross and his two daughters are living out of motel rooms when Eric gets a job to stay at a spite house to try to capture any evidence of supernatural activity. The twist about why the family is on the run is epic! Eric is a bad dude for staying in that creepy house by himself to try to make a better life for himself and his girls!”
What’s In Store?
In-conversation: We will have an in-conversation portion with Johnny Compton who will accept questions from the audience.
Book Signing: Johnny Compton will be signing copies of the paperback edition of his debut horror novel. Only books purchased from The Haunted Book Shop may be personalized by the author.
Specialty Cocktails: Next door at The Alchemy, enjoy a Johnny Compton-themed cocktail menu.
Ease Your Wait!
We’ll be using a timed-entry system for the book signing. So instead of tiring while you wait, you’ll have more time to explore and sip on those delicious cocktails!
Purchase of the book is your ticket to the event.
About the Book
Eric Ross is on the run from a mysterious past with his two daughters in tow. Having left his wife, his house, his whole life behind in Maryland, he’s desperate for money—it’s not easy to find steady, safe work when you can’t provide references, you can’t stay in one place for long, and you’re paranoid that your past is creeping back up on you.
When he comes across the strange ad for the Masson House in Degener, Texas, Eric thinks they may have finally caught a lucky break. The Masson property, notorious for being one of the most haunted places in Texas, needs a caretaker of sorts. The owner is looking for proof of paranormal activity. All they need to do is stay in the house and keep a detailed record of everything that happens there. Provided the house’s horrors don’t drive them all mad, like the caretakers before them.
The job calls to Eric, not just because there’s a huge payout if they can make it through, but because he wants to explore the secrets of the spite house. If it is indeed haunted, maybe it’ll help him understand the uncanny power that clings to his family, driving them from town to town, making them afraid to stop running. A terrifying Gothic thriller about grief and death and the depths of a father’s love, Johnny Compton’s The Spite House is a stunning debut by a horror master in the making.
About the Author
The short stories of Johnny Compton (he/him) have appeared in Pseudopod, Strange Horizons, The No Sleep Podcast and many other markets. He is an HWA member and creator and host of the podcast Healthy Fears, which covers how our fears are explored through horror fiction. The Spite House is his first novel.
Tickets are limited. Purchase your book (and your ticket!) now to secure your spot for an evening of southern gothic goodness!
Looking forward to seeing you there!

The NewSouth Bookstore with the Montgomery City-County Public Library hosts Beto O’Rourke: Thursday, March 7 at 5:30pm at Juliette Hampton Morgan Memorial Library
2024-03-07 17:30 - 19:00 | Juliette Hampton Morgan Memorial Library, 245 High St., Montgomery, AL, 36104, United States
The NewSouth Bookstore in partnership with the Montgomery City-County Public Library welcomes former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke to Montgomery for a talk about We’ve Got to Try: How the Fight for Voting Rights Makes Everything Else Possible. The program will be held on Thursday, March 7 at 5:30pm at the Juliette Hampton Morgan Memorial Library (downtown branch) Global Classroom. The event is free and open to the public. The Washington Post says, “O’Rourke gets an A+ on both the moral frisson of the long fight and the rightness of the cause. Uplifting.” Activist and political leader O’Rourke blends history and sociology to make an inspiring case for how voting rights are essential to a healthy, productive democracy. Come meet and greet O’Rourke and get a signed copy of the book that is at the heart of his vision for our nation and his work. Again, that’s Thursday, March 7 at 5:30pm at the Juliette Hampton Morgan Memorial Library. Call to reserve a signed copy of his book if you’re unable to join us: 334-834-3556. The event is free and open to the public. Registration is required: https://forms.gle/eD41ZrfF3Yk6WvPs8

Ilyon Woo talk with "Master Slave Husband Wife"
2024-03-05 17:30 - 19:00 | The NewSouth Bookstore, 105 S. Court St, Montgomery, 36104, United States
Ilyon Woo is our incredibly special guest on Tuesday, March 5 at 5:30pm for a talk about Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom. The book tells the remarkable true story of Ellen and William Craft, who escaped slavery through daring, determination, and disguise, with Ellen passing as a wealthy, disabled White man and William as his slave. The bestselling work has been named a “Best Book of 2023” by The New Yorker, Time, and NPR; it made the New York Times 10 Best Books of 2023 list. Imani Perry, author of South to America, praises Master Slave Husband Wife saying, “The story will stay with you for a lifetime.”

Read Freely Alabama letter-writing campaign at The NewSouth Bookstore
2024-03-01 16:00 - 19:00 | The NewSouth Bookstore, 105 S. Court St, Montgomery, 36104, United States
Come by The NewSouth Bookstore on Friday, March 1 from 4pm to 7pm when we’ll gather with representatives from Read Freely Alabama for a community letter-writing campaign. We have a ninety-day window in which to communicate with our State of Alabama legislators and help them understand our perspective on challenges to our public libraries, challenges which restrict access to books and hamper the work of our excellent public librarians charged with stewarding this most important of our nation’s public institutions. These challenges impact your rights as tax-paying citizens. Let our legislators hear your voice!

Poetry Night! A celebration of THE SOUTHERN POETRY ANTHOLOGY, VOLUME X
2024-02-29 19:00 - 20:00 | Thank You Bookshop, 5502 Crestwood Blvd., Unit B, Birmingham, AL, 35212, United States
Such a special night for poetry! And on a Leap Year!
This series from Texas A & M University Press highlights different regions and their poets: “Alabama is among the most naturally dynamic states in the nation, its ecosystems ranging from Appalachian mountains, through rolling Piedmont, to the vast Gulf Shore.
In this tenth volume of The Southern Poetry Anthology, the editors have achieved a remarkable task; they have revealed another wide variegation that makes Alabama so dynamic: poets in the Yellowhammer State with both established and new voices. They have elucidated the impressive and exciting diversity of poets who consider or have considered Alabama home.”
We’re so thrilled to celebrate this anthology with readings from various local contributors. Join us!
TAYLOR BYAS (she/her) is a Black Chicago native currently living in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she is an Associate Editor for Cincinnati Review and an Assistant Features Editor for The Rumpus. She is the 1st place winner of the 2020 Poetry Super Highway, the 2020 Frontier Poetry Award for New Poets Contests, and the 2021 Adrienne Rich Poetry Prize. She is the author of the chapbooks Bloodwarm and Shutter, and her debut full-length I Done Clicked My Heels three Times is out from Soft Skull Press. She is represented by Rena Rossner of the Deborah Harris Agency.
ADAM VINES is a professor of English and Director of Creative Writing at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he edits Birmingham Poetry Review. He is the author of five collections of poetry, the latest, Lures (LSU Press, 2022). He has published poems in The Southern Review, Kenyon Review, and Poetry, among other journals.

Inception: $500 for Author, Poet, or Artist
2024-02-29 - 2024-03-31 | Online, NC
For Sunspot Lit’s Inception contest, send your best opening (novel, CNF, art collection, photo series, etc.). No restrictions on theme or category. Opens March 1. Closes March 31. Entry fee: $12.50. Prize: $500 cash plus publication. See detailed guidelines at Submittable: https://sunspotlit.submittable.com/submit/280343/inception-2024-500-for-fiction-nonfiction-poetry-graphic-novel-or-art or Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/31171/sunspot-lit-inception-contest.

Kate Bolton Bonnici and Laura Reece Hogan to Read at Pebble Hill in Auburn
2024-02-27 17:00 - 19:00 | Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts and Humanities, 101 S. Debardeleben St., Auburn, AL, 36849-5637, United States
Kate Bolton Bonnici and Laura Reece Hogan, both California residents, will read from their new poetry collections at Pebble Hill (101 S. Debardeleben St.) in Auburn on February 27. The readings will begin at 5 p.m.
Bonnici grew up in Alabama and holds degrees from Harvard, NYU Law (JD), UC Riverside (MFA), and UCLA (PhD). Her debut collection, Night Burial, won the Colorado Prize for Poetry. Her second collection, A True & Just Record, was published by Boiler House Press/Beyond Criticism Editions (2023). She is an Assistant Professor of English at Pepperdine University.
Laura Reece Hogan is the author of Butterfly Nebula (University of Nebraska Press, 2023) and Litany of Flights (Paraclite Press, 2020). She serves on the poetry advisory board of Wildhouse Press and is the Assistant Poetry Editor of Solum Press. She earned a B.A. from Rice University, a J.D. from UCLA School of Law, and an M.A. in theology from St. John’s Seminary in Camarillo, California.
Their books will be available for sale and signing.

Alabama State Poetry Society Online Open Mic
2024-02-26 18:30 - 19:30 | Zoom
Join us for online poetry open mics the 4th Monday of each month!
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85693609367
Meeting ID: 856 9360 9367

Verse & Conversation: An Afternoon with Prize-Winning Poets
2024-02-25 14:00 - 16:00 | The Haunted Book Shop, 9 S JOACHIM ST, MOBILE, AL, 36602-2707, United States
Join us for an enchanting event at The Haunted Book Shop in Mobile on February 25, from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM, as we present “Verse & Conversation: An Afternoon with Prize-Winning Poets.” Discover the magic of words as you immerse yourself in poetry from Kate Bonnici & Laura Reece Hogan, both prize-winning poets. The Haunted Book Shop, with its atmospheric charm, will serve as the perfect backdrop for an intimate exploration of their latest works.
Secure your personalized copies of Bonnici’s A TRUE & JUST RECORD and Hogan’s BUTTERFLY NEBULA at The Haunted Book Shop, as Kate and Laura will be signing their newly released books.
Event Details:
Date: February 25
Time: 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Venue: The Haunted Book Shop, 9 S. Joachim St., Mobile, AL
Ticket Information:
Admission is free, but space is limited, so be sure to RSVP early to secure your spot for this enchanting literary evening.
Don’t miss this rare opportunity to delve into the minds of two remarkable poets and witness the magic of poetry come to life. “Verse & Conversation” promises an afternoon of inspiration, connection, and the celebration of language at its most beautiful.

Meet and Greet with Ragsdale Blues author Gary H. Miller
2024-02-23 13:00 - 15:00 | Muscle Shoals Public Library, 1918 Avalon Ave, Muscle Shoals, AL, 35661, United States
Meet and greet Ragsdale Blues author Gary H. Miller.
Miller will host a book signing with a special event pricing,
paperbacks will be $10.00, and $20.00.

Steve Suitts talk on "A War of Sections"
2024-02-22 17:30 - 19:00 | The NewSouth Bookstore, 105 S. Court St, Montgomery, 36104, United States
Our favorite biographer of Justice Hugo Black took a break from working on volume number two to write A War of Sections: How Deep South Political Suppression Shaped Voting Rights in America. Steve Suitts was nothing if not thoughtful in the writing of this new work, which is a sweeping reinterpretation of the history of disfranchisement. His penetrating analysis as presented in A War of Sections will galvanize your understanding of a complex history, including how a century of political conflicts in Alabama came to shape both some of America’s best achievements in voting rights and its continuing struggles with voter suppression. His talk about the work happens on Thursday, February 22 at 5:30pm.

The Clay Reynolds Novella Prize
2024-02-20 08:00 - 2024-03-31 23:59 | TRP: The University Press of SHSU, United States
The Clay Reynolds Novella Prize highlights one book a year that excels in the novella format. Since 2024, the Prize comes with a $1,000 advance, a standard royalty contract, and 10 copies of the published book. Submissions are open now and close March 31st. This year’s judge is Steven Dunn. The submission fee is $20.

The Robert Phillips Chapbook Prize
2024-02-20 08:00 - 2024-03-31 23:30 | TRP: The University Press of SHSU, United States
The Robert Phillips Chapbook Prize highlights one book a year that excels in the chapbook format. Since 2024, the Prize comes with a $1,000 advance, a standard royalty contract, and 10 copies of the published book. Submissions are open now and close March 31st. This year’s judge is Carolyn Hembree. The submission fee is $20.

Auburn's Third Thursday Poetry Series, Featuring Poet Jennifer Grotz
2024-02-15 18:00 - 20:00 | Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts and Humanities, 101 S. Debardeleben St., Auburn, AL, 36849-5637, United States
The next Third Thursday reading by poet Jennifer Grotz, will be at 6:30 p.m. on February 15 at the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts and Humanities on Debardeleben Street in Auburn (Pebble Hill). Open bar and hors d’oeuvres available beginning at 6.
Grotz teaches creative writing at the University of Rochester and the Warren Wilson College MFA Program, and serves as Director of the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference.
The Third Thursday Poetry Series is supported by the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center, the Auburn University Department of English, OLLI at Auburn University, and the Alabama State Council on the Arts.

Book Launch: The Mystic Memoir: A New Book from the Mystic Order of East Alabama Fiction Writers
2024-02-15 17:00 - 19:00 | Opelika Art Haus, 500 N Railroad Ave, Opelika, AL, 36801, United States
Book launch event for The Mystic Memoir. A new book from the Mystic Order of East Alabama Fiction Writers.

Reading of "They Must Be Women Now!" by Nora's Salon Playhouse South
2024-02-12 19:00 - 21:00 | The NewSouth Bookstore, 105 S. Court St, Montgomery, 36104, United States
The NewSouth Bookstore and Nora’s Salon Playhouse South are pleased to co-host a reading of They Must Be Women Now! by Nedra Pezold Roberts, directed by Jacqueline Allen Trimble, on Monday, February 12 at 7pm. Join us for this special event. The program is free but space is limited, so please RSVP to reservations@norasplayhouse.org indicating the number of people in your party.
Nedra Pezold Roberts is an Atlanta-based dramatist. After several decades teaching English and drama she took early retirement to write her own plays rather than teach those of others. Her plays have had production runs and staged readings coast to coast and have won numerous awards.
They Must Be Women Now! is a contemporary take on Euripides’ Antigone. In the play, a family of Southern women struggles to discern what needs to be buried, to understand the difference between the impulse to hide from pain and the strength to lay that pain to rest. These women are shaped by their time, their culture, and their individual journeys. It falls to them to discover themselves — and become women now.

Dr. Kirk Curnutt presents on the works of Zora Neale Hurston
2024-02-08 17:30 - 19:00 | The NewSouth Bookstore, 105 S. Court St, Montgomery, 36104, United States
February gives us the chance to welcome Kirk Curnutt to The NewSouth Bookstore for a program we’re calling “10 Things Alabamians Should Know About Zora Neale Hurston.” Join the chair of Troy University’s English department for a countdown of the Top 10 Alabama-adjacent facts every literature lover should know about Zora Neale Hurston (1891—1960). You probably know ZNH as the author of Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937), but there’s a lot more to this multidimensional writer, folklorist, journalist, and anthropologist — including her deep ties to our very own state. Dr. Curnutt’s scholarship in the area guarantees his will be a rich and illuminating talk.

"Glory-The Struggle for Yards" Book signing and free refreshments
2024-02-08 16:00 - 18:30 | Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, 2150 Richard Arrington Jr Blvd N,, Birmingham, Alabama, 35203, United States
Book Signing announced for “Glory – The Struggle for Yards, Inspiration from Turn of the Century African-American Unsung Heroes,” February 8th, 2024, 4-6:30 p.m. Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, BJCC, Birmingham
Former NFL veteran Gary Burley, children’s author Ralph Brooks, and award-winning journalist Donna Francavilla are planning a book-signing at the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame for their new book, “Glory – The Struggle for Yards, Inspiration from Turn of the Century African-American Unsung Heroes,” which highlights 5 forgotten first Black NFL players who broke the color barrier around the turn of the 20th century.
The book is available at various booksellers and at iUniverse.com at Glory, The Struggle For Yards. Despite facing segregation, racism, and other challenges, these remarkable men played the sport with dedication and perseverance, achieving many firsts and proving themselves as players of equal strength, ability, and talent as their non-colored counterparts.
Glory – The Struggle for Yards” focuses on:
Hall of Famer Burl Toler
“The Black Cyclone” Charles Follis
“Motorcycle McDonald” Henry McDonald
“The Warrior of his Time” Gideon Smith
“The Human Torpedo” Fritz Pollard
In addition to the compelling narratives and rarely-seen photographs, the book includes a timeline of featured players, extensive author biographies, and a guidebook for parents and student-athletes from an ACT Certified Educator of Schools/Cleared programs Schools CEO Valencia Belle.

Howell Raines talk on "Silent Cavalry: How Union Soldiers from Alabama Helped Sherman Burn Atlanta – and THen Got Written Out of History"
2024-02-04 15:00 - 17:00 | The NewSouth Bookstore, 105 S. Court St, Montgomery, 36104, United States
We are thrilled to welcome Howell Raines to our store for a program about his newest book, Silent Cavalry: How Union Soldiers from Alabama Helped Sherman Burn Atlanta — and Then Got Written Out of History. Pulitzer Prize-winning Raines, a born journalist and storyteller, comes through with a whale of a tale, one that shows how the writers of history do sometimes bend that history to their own biases. The book is epic. Michael Eric Dyson calls it “honest and brilliant storytelling at its best.” Mark your calendars for this exciting event on Sunday, February 4 at 3pm.

The Survivors of the Clotilda: In-conversation with author Hannah Durkin
2024-02-04 11:30 - 13:30 | The Haunted Book Shop, 9 S JOACHIM ST, MOBILE, AL, 36602-2707, United States
Learn the stories of the Clotilda from historian Hannah Durkin. Her work, The Survivors of the Clotilda, details the harrowing tale of the last slave ship, it’s illegal Atlantic crossing, and the 110 captives aboard, from their kidnappings in what is modern-day Nigeria through their terrifying 45-day journey. Durkin will be joined in conversation by members of the Clotilda Descendants Association. This is a conversation no Mobilian will want to miss. Join us on Sunday, February 4, 2024 at 11:30AM at The Haunted Book Shop at 9 S. Joachim Street as we welcome Hannah Durkin and her incredible work to Mobile. Seating is limited, so make your reservation now. A book signing will be held following the conversation.

Third Thursday Poetry Series to Feature Poet & Non-fiction Writer Molly McCully Brown
2024-02-01 18:00 - 20:00 | Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts and Humanities, 101 S. Debardeleben St., Auburn, AL, 36849-5637, United States
Molly McCully Brown, poet and nonfiction writer, will read from her creative nonfiction on Thursday, February 1, at Pebble Hill in Auburn. Reception and book sales will begin at 6 p.m. The reading will follow at 6:30. Brown is currently Director of Creative Writing at the University of Wyoming.
The Third Thursday Poetry Series is supported by the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center, the Auburn University Department of English, OLLI at Auburn University, and the Alabama State Council on the Arts

Social Justice, Music & Poetry by Radical Reversal
2024-02-01 11:00 - 13:00 | 1521 Harris Way Montgomery, AL 36106, 1521 Harris Way, Montgomery, AL, 36106, United States

Rigel 2024: $500 for Prose, Poetry, Art, or Graphic Novel
2024-01-31 - 2024-02-29 | Online, NC
Literary or genre works accepted. Winner receives $500 plus publication, while runners-up and finalists are offered publication. No restrictions on theme or category. Closes: February 29. Entry fee: $12.50. Enter as many times as you like through Submittable: https://sunspotlit.submittable.com/submit/280342/rigel-2024-500-for-fiction-nonfiction-poetry-art-or-graphic-novel or Duotrope: https://duotrope.com/listing/32395/sunspot-lit-rigel-contest.

A Reading by Percival Everett
2024-01-30 18:00 - 19:30 | University of South Alabama, Student Center Ballroom, 350 Alumni Drive, Mobile, AL, 36608, United States
“There are two kinds of readers in America: those who are reading Percival Everett, and those who are missing out.”
–National Book Critics Circle Judges Citation
On Tuesday, January 30 at 6:00p the Stokes Center for Creative Writing continues its 2023-24 visiting writers series with a reading by Pulitzer-Prize Finalist Percival Everett in the University of South Alabama’s Student Center Ballroom.
The author of more than thirty books, Everett is one of the most prolific and provocative writers working in contemporary fiction. His soon-to-be released novel *James* is a brilliant and heartfelt reimagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn told from the enslaved character Jim’s perspective. Everett’s work has received almost every notable recognition in American letters, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, and has been called “genre-defying” by The New York Times. Everett grew up in Columbia, South Carolina and now serves as a Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Southern California.
This free, public reading, which is co-sponsored by African American Studies and made possible by a grant from the Alabama State Council on the Arts, will feature a reception and a book signing at its conclusion. Please make plans to join us, and bring along your book-ish friends!
For more information on the Stokes Center for Creative Writing, follow us on Facebook (facebook.com/stokescenterforcreativewriting) and Instagram (@stokescenterforcreativewriting). You can also subscribe to our YouTube channel where craft talks and readings are shared. If you would like to be added to our email list, please email Mary Ricciardi at: mricciardi@southalabama.edu.

Fiction reading and book signing by award-winning author Percival Everett
2024-01-30 18:00 - 19:30 | University of South Alabama, Student Center Ballroom, 350 Alumni Drive, Mobile, AL, 36608, United States
Award-winning author Percival Everett will give a fiction reading followed by a book signing and reception on Tuesday, January 30, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. in the University of South Alabama’s Student Center Ballroom. Everett has published more than thirty books, including Dr. NO, The Trees, Telephone, So Much Blue, I Am Not Sidney Poitier, and Erasure. Among his awards are the Ivan Sandrof Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Book Critics Circle, the Dos Passos Prize, the PEN Center USA Award for Fiction, the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award, and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for Fiction. In their remarks on Everett’s fiction, reviewers often cite his satirical brilliance and genre-defying work, work that expands our culture’s ways of thinking. The recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, Everett is currently Distinguished Professor of English at University of Southern California. This event is free and open to the public.

The Haunted Book Shop welcomes Kate Alice Marshall!
2024-01-29 17:30 - 20:00 | The Haunted Book Shop, 9 S JOACHIM ST, MOBILE, AL, 36602-2707, United States
Attention thriller fans! Bestseller KATE ALICE MARSHALL is coming to Mobile! The Haunted Book Shop at 9 S Joachim Street will welcome Marshall on January 29, 2024, 5:30-8:30pm, for an in-conversation with bestselling mystery author Carolyn Haines, and signing of her upcoming release NO ONE CAN KNOW. Seating is limited, so claim your spot now. You don’t want to miss this chat about creating the thrills we love, the plot twists that surprise us, and this novel about three sisters, two murders, and too many secrets to count! Time and location subject to change.
ABOUT THE BOOK
The author of What Lies in the Woods returns with a novel about three sisters, two murders, and too many secrets to count.
Emma hasn’t told her husband much about her past. He knows her parents are dead and she hasn’t spoken to her sisters in years. Then they lose their apartment, her husband gets laid off, and Emma discovers she’s pregnant—right as the bank account slips into the red.
That’s when Emma confesses that she has one more asset: her parents’ house, which she owns jointly with her estranged sisters. They can’t sell it, but they can live in it. But returning home means that Emma is forced to reveal her secrets to her husband: that the house is not a run-down farmhouse but a stately mansion, and that her parents died there.
Were murdered.
And that some people say Emma did it.
Emma and her sisters have never spoken about what really happened that night. Now, her return to the house may lure her sisters back, but it will also crack open family and small-town secrets lots of people don’t want revealed. As Emma struggles to reconnect with her old family and hold together her new one, she begins to realize that the things that have been left unspoken all these years are the ones that put them in danger again.
ABOUT KATE ALICE MARSHALL
Kate Alice Marshall is the author of young adult and middle grade novels, including I AM STILL ALIVE, RULES FOR VANISHING, and THIRTEENS. NO ONE CAN KNOW is her first adult thriller novel.
She lives outside of Seattle with her husband, two dogs, Vonnegut and Octavia, and two kids. They all conspire to keep her on her toes.

Yaa Gyasi, Homegoing, and the Power of Knowing Our Roots
2024-01-27 08:00 - 17:00 | Pratt City Branch, Birmingham Public Library
Explore how we’re all connected to (and separated from) each other in ways that go further back than most of us imagine. The sort of ways that Huntsville native Yaa Gyasi examined to craft her vital and epic novel, Homegoing.
With Zanice Bond, Apart Dwivedi, Anamaria Santiago, and Francine Taylor.
