River of Heaven

by: Lee Martin

Published by: Shaye Areheart Books

Reviewed by Carrie Spellman

Sam Brady has hidden from life and merely observed the passing of the world. The world and his past are about to come find him. All because of a silly doghouse.

Sam’s only real companions in recent memory have been his succession of dogs. Sam decides to build Stump, his current hound, a doghouse that looks like a ship. Arthur, his widowed neighbor and an ex-Navy man, feels the need to contribute his expertise. Soon the two are almost friends.

Enter Duncan Hines, a newspaper reporter who does a human interest story on Stump’s ship. Duncan mentions that he’s a relative of Dewey Finn. Dewey Finn who died on the railroad tracks in 1955. Dewey Finn, the only person in the world, besides his brother Cal, that Sam ever really felt close too. Just the mention of that name sets Sam’s present on a collision course with his past.

The more actively Sam participates in his present, the closer the past comes. Between the appearance of Arthur’s granddaughter and the reemergence of old acquaintances, life won’t seem to let Sam slip away unnoticed anymore. When Cal returns for the first time in a very long time, it becomes inevitable that the truth will have to come out about that long-ago day. Truths from then and now will have to be faced, before they destroy everyone.

Sam’s often meandering tale comes out in bits and pieces. The past and the present are woven together in a beautiful way–a way that keeps you curious and anticipating, while easing you into a complete understanding of Sam Brady. By the end of the novel, Sam’s pain, his loss, his torture, and even his hope are all very real.

This is a simple, sweet, tragic story of how hiding from life doesn’t keep you safe, and the evils of the past don’t always like to stay there. It broke my heart and made me smile.

Armchair Interviews says: That’s high praise for a good storyteller.