The Cutting Season

A Novel

By: Attica Locke

Narrated by: Quincy Tyler Bernstine

Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

In Black Water Rising, Attica Locke delivered one of the most stunning and sure-handed fiction debuts in recent memory, garnering effusive critical praise, several award nominations, and passionate reader response. Now Locke returns with The Cutting Season, a riveting thriller that intertwines two murders separated across more than a century.

Caren Gray manages Belle Vie, a sprawling antebellum plantation that sits between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, where the past and the present coexist uneasily. The estate's owners have turned the place into an eerie tourist attraction, complete with full-dress re-enactments and carefully restored slave quarters. Outside the gates, a corporation with ambitious plans has been busy snapping up land from struggling families who have been growing sugar cane for generations, and now replacing local employees with illegal laborers. Tensions mount when the body of a female migrant worker is found in a shallow grave on the edge of the property, her throat cut clean.

As the investigation gets under way, the list of suspects grows. But when fresh evidence comes to light and the sheriff's department zeros in on a person of interest, Caren has a bad feeling that the police are chasing the wrong leads. Putting herself at risk, she ventures into dangerous territory as she unearths startling new facts about a very old mystery - the long-ago disappearance of a former slave - that has unsettling ties to the current murder. In pursuit of the truth about Belle Vie's history and her own, Caren discovers secrets about both cases - ones that an increasingly desperate killer will stop at nothing to keep buried.

Taut, hauntingly resonant, and beautifully written, The Cutting Season is at once a thoughtful meditation on how America reckons its past with its future, and a high-octane pause resister that unfolds with tremendous skill and vision. With her rare gift for depicting human nature in all its complexities, Attica Locke demonstrates once again that she is "destined for literary stardom" (Dallas Morning News).

©2012 Attica Locke (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers

Kept me guessing

Any additional comments?

This is a great "who done it" by a relatively unknown author. The Cutting Season was so good I'm already reading Black Water Rising by the same author.

Talented Author & Narrator, But Missing Something

I’d Recommend to: Nola Céspedes (Joy Castro’s Hell or High Water), Lavinia (Kathleen Grissom’s The Kitchen House)

My Review:
I was more than a little disappointed with The Cutting Season. The description sounded like something I would love, and I really enjoyed The Kitchen House last year; I was expecting something a little more in that vein. The “secrets of its [Belle Vie's] past” seemed secondary to the mystery. The focal point was certainly on the murder, but I was hoping for more of a focus on a past historical mystery. It seemed to take a backseat and arose only when it would “dramatically” relate to current events. If it were going to be a subtle thread, I wished it had been used in a more delicate, less heavy-handed anvil of a way.

My other concern with the book was that Caren was just unlikeable. She came across as highly intelligent but completely selfish and socially inept. I’m sure this is my own interpretation of her and her choices, and I’m sure others read her as being complex instead. This is no fault of the narrator, who did an excellent reading to help build tension. The scenes in which Caren traverses Belle Vie are some of the most tense, even in daylight.

I enjoyed the overall sense of mystery, and Locke is a talented author – but personally, there were elements with which I did not connect.

The Bottom Line:
I could certainly see readers enjoying The Cutting Season, I just wasn’t one of them.

wonderful

great mystery(s), one in the present and one from 1872. I loved the setting and the characters, it made me feel Louisiana. But the narration!!!! It was perfect for this story, especially the way she voiced the 9 yr old girl, making her vulnerable but not babyish. The southern accents are melodious without being overdone. All loose ends tie up and it was marvelous.

Great Listen

If you could sum up The Cutting Season in three words, what would they be?

Authenic, gripping, well performed.

Any additional comments?

The story begins a little slow, but the listener is well rewarded for sticking with the story. One of the best audio books that I have listened to this year.

A MUST read

Full of suspense and history!
A clear picture is painted of the plantation by author.

Entertaining

Rambled some but it was okay. I’ve didn’t think it was much of a mystery.

Fabulous mystery, Excellent narrator

Can’t recommend this mystery by Attica Locke strongly enough. And the narrator is superb! A+++++

Listen while you work!

What made the experience of listening to The Cutting Season the most enjoyable?

I was able to download the novel on my phone and listen to it while at work and in the car.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Absolutely! Ms. Locke's words painted vivid pictures that I could see.

Which scene was your favorite?

There were so many, I can't pick just one.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. I really enjoyed listening to it while I worked.

Any additional comments?

I cannot wait for the movie verison of this book to be made!

Excellent story, great characters!

This wasn't a book that I would have chosen on my own, but I let myself be guided by C. Telfair's review and I'm glad I did. The book was so good that I was sad when it ended. I hope that I forget enough of the book to listen to it again soon. At first I didn't think the narrator would be strong enough, but she surprised me. She gave each character a distinct voice, and she brought out the funny twists in the characters and story. Thanks C. Telfair!

Finally!

After reading Gone Girl all the mysteries I've listened to have fallen flat - until this one. I loved everything about this book. A telling sign for me is I rarely needed to use the rewind feature because I was so engrossed. Highly recommend this book.