Praise and Reviews
A Plume Book
Paperback 2/28
$15.00
Paperback 2/28
$15.00
"A remarkably assured debut novel. Rich and evocative, Lori Roy's voice is a welcome
addition to American fiction."
--Dennis Lehane
--Dennis Lehane
"In her promising debut novel "Bent Road," Lori Roy proves that dark secrets hide even in the most
wide-open places. Set in the beautifully rendered Kansas plains, "Bent Road" is a family story with a
suspenseful Gothic core, one which shows that the past always has a price, whether you're running from it or
back toward it. Crisp, evocative prose, full-blooded characters, and a haunting setting make this debut stand
out."
-- Michael Koryta - Author, So Cold the River
-- Michael Koryta - Author, So Cold the River
“Dropping us in a world of seeming simplicity, in a time of seeming calm, Lori Roy transforms 1960s
small-town Kansas into a haunting memoryscape. Bringing to mind the family horrors of Jane Smiley’s A
Thousand Acres and the dark emotional terrain of Tana French’s In the Woods, Bent Road manages to be
both psychologically acute and breathtakingly suspenseful, burrowing into your brain with a feverish power all
its own.”
--Megan Abbott - Edgar award winning novelist, Queenpin
--Megan Abbott - Edgar award winning novelist, Queenpin
"Roy's suspenseful debut novel presents readers with a rich mix of troubled characters planted against the
backdrop of a small Kansas farming town and the mysterious deaths of two young girls....Roy...writes
sparingly of the bleakness of life and death on a farm. In her hands, the plot twists and turns, but, in the end,
all the pieces fit....This odd, dark and often creepy tale of a dysfunctional community and a family that fits right
in will keep readers wondering right until the last page." Read entire review here
"This rich and haunting family story reminds us that simplicity of landscape does not necessarily mean
simplicity of life. Roy’s exceptional debut novel is full of tension, complex characters, and deftly gothic
overtones. Readers of Tana French’s In the Woods will find this dark and satisfying story a great read. Highly
recommended." Read entire review here
"Set in the mid '60s, Roy's outstanding debut melds strong characters and an engrossing plot with an
evocative sense of place.... Roy couples a vivid view of the isolation and harshness of farm life with a
perceptive look at the emotions that can rage beneath the surface. This Midwestern noir with gothic
undertones is sure to make several 2011 must-read lists." Read entire review here
Kirkus (Starred Review)
Library Journal (Starred Review)
Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
Booklist
"In her debut mystery, Roy excels at creating the kind of ominous mood that is unique to the novel's
small-town setting....Terrifying and touching, the novel is captivating from beginning to end."
"Bent Road...is a winner....its shocking twists and turns will keep you turning page after page..." Read review here
Seattle Post Intelligencer
The Kansas City Star
The St. Petersburg Times
"...an impressive debut...compelling at each turn of the page." Read entire review here
People Magazine (3.5 out of 4 stars)
“Roy is calculated in the way she builds and eases tension...even the simplest scenes crackle with suspense.”
NPR
"Bent Road is a long, winding journey, just like its titular street, where murder comes from love, friendship turns
to ash and family bonds strengthen only through the worst sort of circumstances. But Roy is in full narrative
command, taking her time to point the reader to the next direction, but always certain – even if we are not –
that what comes next is what must happen, not what we hope or wish would transpire."
Read entire review here
Read entire review here
"Bent Road," Lori Roy's debut novel, is haunting and atmospheric, set in a place where 'everyone knows
everything about everybody,' yet acts on misinformation and half-truths, with devastating consequences."
Associated Press
"...One cannot walk away from BENT ROAD without feeling almost certain that the events detailed here
occurred somewhere out in the Midwest...where people keep to themselves and settle their own problems.
Nevertheless, you will want to visit."
Read entire review here
Read entire review here
Bookreporter
"In Lori Roy’s haunting first novel, BENT ROAD, Arthur Scott tries to escape the volatile racial climate of
Detroit in 1967 by moving his wife and three children to the tiny Kansas town he left after the violent death of
his sister 25 years earlier. Writing with a delicate touch but great strength of purpose, Roy creates stark
studies of the prairie landscape and subtle portraits of the Scotts as they struggle to adjust not only to their rural
surroundings but to their troublesome relatives and taciturn neighbors." Read entire review here
The New York Times
"Roy...proves herself to be a new talent to watch in the mystery genre. "Bent Road" is one of the best debuts
of 2011." Oline Cogdill Read review here
Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"[A] mesmerizing debut...deeply evocative..." Read review here
Ventura County Star
"If spine-tingling, dramatic fiction is what you are looking for, look no further than BENT ROAD." Read review here
The Dallas Morning News
"As a mystery novel, Bent Road delivers: The storytelling is taut, suspenseful and compelling."
Mystery Scene Magazine
"...spare and elegant language...an unsettling example of American gothic."