The Gulf

January 1, 2023

In 1970s Gulf-coast Texas, 29-year-old Lou is mourning her brother's death in Vietnam while helping to renovate the crumbling mansion of her older neighbor, Miss Kate. Then Miss Kate is murdered, and no one--including Miss Kate's grasping daughter, who's arrived in town to reclaim the house--seems to care about finding the killer. From Mari Sandoz/Prairie Schooner fiction award winner Cochran; with a 35,000-copy first printing.

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Starred review from July 3, 2023
In Cochran’s triumphant debut, closeted 29-year-old bartender Louisa Ward gets tangled up in a murder investigation in 1970s Texas. After a devastating hurricane, Louisa considers leaving her tiny, religious hometown of Parson, Tex.—a move encouraged by her lover, Heather, who also lives in Parson. Before Louisa can make a final decision, however, her old schoolmate (and first love), Joanna Kerrigan, returns to Parson and dredges up a mystery from the recent past. Joanna hires Louisa to help repair the decrepit mansion owned by her recently deceased mother, Kate, with whom Louisa had formed a close bond in the years since the girls graduated from high school. Eight months earlier, Louisa found Kate’s body in the mansion’s garden, her head bashed in from what the police deemed an accidental fall during a rainstorm. Louisa doubted that conclusion at the time, and now decides to throw herself into investigating Kate’s death wholesale. Slowly, a thicket of small-town secrets come to light and make it crystal clear that the woman’s demise was no accident. Cochran perfectly paces her reveals, keeping readers guessing about who’s hiding secrets and why. Bolstered by true-to-life characterizations and superior prose, this character-driven Southern gothic will enthrall fans of Lou Berney’s The Long and Faraway Gone.

Starred review from May 15, 2023
When a hurricane hits Parson, Texas, in 1970, bartender Louisa Ward's past and present collide as she seeks to build a future. Lou doesn't want to leave the town where she grew up, but her aunt and niece have already relocated to San Antonio, and her partner, Heather--who's also her brother's widow--is getting ready to pull up stakes and join them. Lou's also still reeling from the sudden, violent death of Miss Kate, the owner of an old plantation just outside of town. When Miss Kate's daughter, Joanna, returns, planning to sell the plantation, Lou agrees to help clean up the house. They had been childhood friends but had a falling-out in high school and haven't been in touch since. Joanna's presence draws Lou back into memories of the past--of their complicated friendship; of her brother, Robby, who died in Vietnam; of Joanna's sister, Cass, who died in a mysterious accident. But slowly she begins to realize that the memories she's held as "true" are actually missing vital pieces, most notably Miss Kate's involvement with the Jehovah's Witnesses. There's also a mysterious group of women, led by the charismatic Peg, who live outside of town and have their money bound up in Miss Kate's house. Despite the inherent drama, this novel is a slow burn. The pacing works wonderfully, though, because just when we think we know something--about Lou's past, about Peg's group, about Joanna's motives--Cochran spins in a new perspective or memory or piece of information that completely alters our understanding of plot, characters, even genre. The constant reversal of certainty is masterfully executed and adds tension in unexpected ways. Cochran also uses the time period to draw a deeper reflection on belonging--and to emphasize the danger for those who will always be "outsiders." A thoughtful novel with a hint of mystery. Its still waters run deep.

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