Center Street and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Flood. I voluntarily chose to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Laura Brooks left her hometown of Hannibal, Missouri, ten years ago after a historic flood and personal circumstances made it impossible to stay. Now she is back, and the Mississippi is starting to rise again. Will Laura stay or will the same issues from the past creep up?

I honestly just could not get into the story or the characters. I never felt invested in any of the characters, though the struggles that they face did seem mainly realistic. Life in a flood zone leads to a lot of uncertainty and the stress of that is pretty well documented in the book. Laura's life decisions are nothing new and the fact that she was not all that likable affects the pacing of the novel. By the end of the book, I had learned nothing but a little bit about Mark Twain and the Mississippi flooding issues. For the reasons listed above, I would not recommend Flood to other readers.

Young's novel explorers what it means to come home, and all the messiness that returning can bring. Young does a masterful job of weaving the history of Mark Twain- Samuel Clemens- into that of Laura Brooks, and the juxtaposition of the town then and now brings a layer to the book that readers appreciate. Laura's crisis of character- trying to find herself, loving her hometown yet desperately wanting to leave- endears her to readers, who come to care for her by the end of the book. Laura Brooks is everyone who ever left home, only to return later wondering who they are and where they belong.

FLOOD is multi-layered in the stories it tells. First, there is the story of Laura's homecoming, but underneath is the backstory of why she left in the first place. Both of those stories involve the annual flooding that happens in Hannibal. The flooding is almost another character, and has a major impact on the story and its characters. There is also the layer of Mark Twain's connection with Hannibal and how the town has been shaped by the influence of him and his books. Here are just a few of the things I enjoyed about FLOOD:

The story of Laura's return to Hannibal. Having grown up in a small town, I resonated with so many of her experiences in going home.
The interspersed chapters about Mark Twain. I learned things I never knew before about the author and the area of Hannibal.
Related to that, I enjoyed the secondary story of Laura's best friend's son's involvement in the annual Tom and Becky contest.
Laura's relationships, their complexities, and the way they evolve throughout the story.

The writing is engaging and real, and the story will resonate with anyone who has gone home again after a time away.

Can I just say that I love the setting of this book? I enjoyed learning more about Mark Twain's boyhood home in a modern setting.

What in the world...I think I might be missing the ending...Did Laura stay did she run again and did Sammy go with her..What the heck.. One thing is for sure I learned a whole lot about Mark Twain and Huckleberry cause some of that stuff I did not know.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This novel immediately appealed to me simply because of its setting in Hannibal, Missouri. We took a trip to Hannibal when I was a young girl and I always remember that trip fondly. The author did a great job of detailing the city itself and the history behind the area.

I really wanted to love this book, but I struggled to become engaged with the characters and the various plot lines. I felt that about half way through the book, the main character of Laura Brooks had a change of heart in her plans but I couldn't really attribute that change to any particular event. The ending wasn't satisfying to me. I did feel that the author portrayed a vivid picture of life that many struggle with around our state.

I enjoyed the segments between chapters that tied in information about Mark Twain and the Hannibal area. I also enjoyed the character of Bobby and his journey through the contest to be named the local Tom Sawyer.

I received this book courtesy of Center Street through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book. The writing was good. It was especially interesting to learn more about Hannibal Missouri and the Mississippi River and what effect it has on people's daily lives that live there.

I was given a free ecopy of this book by the publisher, Center Street and Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. I regret that I am unable to give a review on this book as I didn't read it. I began reading it, in good faith, and it just wasn't the genre that I thought when requesting permission to read it. So, I am unable to continue reading. So sorry.

This book had its ups and downs for me. It was interesting learning about the struggles living in the Mississipi River flood zones and how the inhabitants lives revolved around the weather report, the water level and the levees. I also enjoyed the historical inserts about Mark Twain and the famous town Hannibal, where Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn made their debut.

The weak link for me was Laura's homecoming story. Maybe it was just too "real" for me without enough redeeming moments. I found it depressing and I just wanted to shake some sense into most of the characters. But all in all, I'm glad I read it. You could really feel the pride the author has for her home town and the history surrounding it. And I am totally inspired to pick up Tom Sawyer and reacquaint myself with Mark Twain's writing.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

A very well written debut novel. Flood has a great plot, characters and setting. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

I liked this book but it took me awhile to read it. Once i got a chance to sit down and read it i really liked it.

Beautifully written....looking forward to reading more of Ms Young's work.

The book is extremely well written and you find yourself caring about it after you have finally put it down. It's a wonderful read and you'll find yourself up late at night in a hurry to finish it but not really it wanting to end. I loved this book and can't wait to read more by this author

It’s been a decade since Laura Brookes has been home, but now she’s returned to Hannibal, Missouri, ostensibly to attend her high school class reunion, but there’s a little more to it than that. She left her town behind because she felt suffocated in a small town that seemed interested in only celebrating the past (and their most famous “son”, Mark Twain). Now that she’s back, she’s caught up in her godson’s desire to be a real life Tom Sawyer, her best friend Rosie’s acrimonious divorce and all the other small town gossip and secrets. She’s even brought face to face with the man she thought she’d spend the rest of her life with. While the pull to stay is strong, there are many reasons to leave, including the racial and economic tensions. Can Laura find a future in a place that seems to only symbolize the past?