As a good Texas girl, I love books set in Texas! I’m so happy one of my favorite debut reads this year happened to be set in Texas!
Shadows of Pecan Hollow is set in 1970-90s Texas, and is a wonderful story about a fierce woman and the partner-in-crime she can’t escape. This historical fiction/ thriller story jumps between POVs and follows Kit as a runaway through her mid thirties. Kit is a fascinating character, motivated by rage and loneliness. She 100% reminds me of Ruth Langmore from Ozarks.
Honestly everything about this book is wonderful. The writing is stellar, especially for a debut. The plot is well structured and engaging. The characterizations are strong and I really enjoyed watching the growth of all our characters.
I really enjoyed the dual timelines, with narration switching between Kit’s past with Manny when she was her daughters age, and the present day (1990) in Pecan Hollow. Switching between the two timelines was seamless and gave us such an initiate look into Kit’s life, her mental state, and the circumstances surroundingher choices.
It’s being compared to Where the Crawdads Sing & Valentine. While I normally disagree with comparisons, I definitely felt the Valentine vibes in this book. This is a fabulous debut, and while it’s a page turner, it’s not neccesarily an ‘easy’ read. This will definitely be one of my favorites for 2022 and I can’t wait for more from Frost.
TW: some animal abuse, mentions of sexual abuse.
Shadows of Pecan Hollow is out now! Huge thank you to William Morrow for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof.books.
