Yvonne Osborne

If you’ve ever wondered what would happen if Where the Crawdads Sing sat down for a drink with a William Faulkner novel and a touch of Romeo and Juliet, BLACK RIVER is roughly the result.

Romance, deception, and murder erupt when the use of modern-day practices pits one farmer who has faith in the ancient wisdom of husbandry against another who uses chemicals and exploits farm workers, while the son of the first and the daughter of the last try to rise above the war that engulfs them. BLACK RIVER is a gripping tale of love, survival, and the heavy price of silence in a place where secrets flow as deep and dark as the water itself.  

ADVANCE  PRAISE 

I couldn’t put Black River down! Part climate fiction, part mystery, part romance, all tied together with Yvonne Osborne’s tender and gorgeous prose.  A fantastic beach read, and an even better ‘cabin read.’ Get cozy!                – Megan Okonsky, author of the Barefoot Followers of Sweet Potato Grace

Yvonne  Osborne’s second novel, Black River, is an engrossing North Country love story, as fast-paced, unpredictable, and turbulent as the wild waterway of its title. This novel refuses to be contained by any single genre, overflowing the banks of romance, suspense, action, and social commentary as the current of its narrative rushes to its irresistible conclusion.     –   Dave Essinger, editor of the Slippery Elm Literary Magazine

The river of Yvonne Osborne’s title flows through this compulsively readable novel and kept me turning its pages late into the night. The gorgeous writing is an added bonus.  –  M.J. Werthman White, author of Invitation to the Party

Black River by Yvonne Osborne, is a literary rural noir set in the lowlands of Michigan farm country. If you’ve ever wondered what would happen if Where the Crawdads Sing sat down for a drink with a William Faulkner novel and a touch of Romeo and Juliet, this is roughly the result. It’s a book whose influences you can clearly trace, but it never feels derivative. The author pulls them through her own voice, until the result feels distinctly her own.

All in all, this is a beautifully written, subtly moving rural noir that earns its comparisons. The prose is gorgeous without ever being showy, the pacing is genuinely excellent thanks to the short cinematic chapters, the dialogue lands, and the central love story has a tenderness and tension that stays with you long after the final page.                       – Maria Ashford, BookShelfie Reviews