Smith’s Desperation Road is a story in the tradition of Southern writers who have gone before him such as Larry Brown. In that vein, it is neither quite a full on noir or completely literary, but straddles the two things sumptuously. It is a novel of poetic brilliance that goes down as smooth as the finest bourbon, which is definitely not what any of the characters are drinking.

Russell Gaines returns home after 11 years in prison only to be met by kin of the victim of his drink driving who proceed to beat the shit out of him before Gaines looks to regain some semblance of normality in a world that has passed him by. On the other side of town, Maben and her young daughter trek through the heat of the day with little more than the clothes on their back. Maben sets them up with a motel room for the night, but it means the well is running close to dry and she is soon picked up by a cop for solicitation of the sexual kind, but instead of bringing her in, he finds a secluded spot and uses Maben for his own ends. When he calls his buddies to come out too, Maben takes extreme measures to ensure she returns to her daughter.

It’s taken me a time to get round to reading Farris Smith and I’m dumbfounded as to why I ever delayed as he shows why he is one of the premier Southern writers of his generation with just his second novel. Thankfully there is plenty more for me to catch up on.