Swift River is a combination of a coming of age story, a bit of mystery, and historical fiction.
Diamond Newberry is turning 18 in the summer of 1987 . She has grown up in the town of Swift River her entire life. The town hasn't really been a haven for her, she has never felt especially part of it's fabric. That summer, her father has been gone for 7 years and her mother is finally going to have him legally declared dead. After her father's disappearance Diamond was the only black person still living in Swift River. One of her Aunts on her father's starts to share letters with her, explaining their family history and the strength of the women that came before her. She learned about the shadowy day when all of the black people fled the town her people her people had called home for over a hundred years and how she and her father came to live there.
The reader definitely hopes Diamond finds the future she deserves and learns to thrive.

Thanks the NetGalley, Simon & Schuster and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for and honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this coming of age story of a biracial teenage girl growing up as the only black girl in a small town not known for its racial tolerance. Told from multiple perspectives over several timelines, this family drama is well written with fully developed characters. Strongly recommended

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an advanced reader copy

The overall book was good but didn’t keep me engaged with so many narrators at different times of their lives. The need to pause my reading and do something else was constant throughout. In my opinion, this made the it feel choppy and difficult to enjoy the story author was trying to tell. The ending was disappointing.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book!

Swift River is a heartbreaking coming of age story of young girl named Diamond who lives with her parents in a small town in Massachusetts. Diamond’s dad goes missing under suspicious circumstances and Diamond spends years trying to locate him. After her dad’s disappearance, she is raised by her emotionally stunted mom shunned by family and the small town. Diamond’s codependent relationship with her mom pushes her to figure out a way to escape the only home she knows. I was rooting for Diamond as she reached a huge milestone that gave her the skills to leave it all behind. It would have been great to get some closure on Diamond’s dad but such is life.

I was excited to note that this book is a family saga as I am partial to those. This is a very wordy but extremely well written book. It took me a while to get into it and I had to try a couple of times but once I did it was spellbinding. I would recommend this book.

I didn’t enjoy the writing too much, it was was difficult for me to get through the book unfortunately. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher gifting me this arc.

Diamond Newberry is the child of a white mother and a Black father. In the town of Swift River? Summer of 1987 Diamond was 16 years old, the only black person in swift river since her daddy mysteriously disappeared 7 years ago leaving her and her mother to struggle. This book is an extremely slow burn.

This is a beautiful debut of a novel. I am so thoroughly impressed and am excited to see this all over bookstagram, book tok and book tube. It is such a complex character study of Diamond, biracial Black teen girl in a small town (and is surrounded by white folks). Essie Chambers’ writing is moving, raw, and layered. What a fantastic exploration of identity through Diamond, a character I deeply rooted for.

Excellent coming of age novel with memorable characters and a solid look at the effects of the Jim Crow laws .

Swift River is a debut novel that follows a young black teenage girl in Maine. She’s the only black in the entire town. Her parents were a biracial couple and her father disappeared 7 years ago. Her story takes place in the 1980s, going back and forth between her present and the time her father was still around. She’s bullied not just because of her skin color but also her obesity. She begins to receive letters from one of her father’s southern relatives which gives her the family’s history as the relative also sends her letters that date to 1915, written by her father’s grandmother who was a midwife and also the only black in town after something called The Leaving.
The story is totally character driven, with very little action. I felt for Diamond as she feels torn between wanting her freedom and feeling tied to her mom. She secretly takes driving lessons so she can make an escape.
The other two storylines were decent but didn’t tie into Diamond’s story in a meaningful way. Overall, I just felt mildly dissatisfied with the story. The concept was strong but the execution was haphazard.
Thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an advance copy of this book.

Diamond Newberry is the child of a white mother and a Black father. In the town of Swift River, her Pop was the only Black whose family’s history stretched back to the time before “The Leaving”. Through Diamond’s narrative and the letters she receives from an estranged aunt who was once close to her father, we see a multi-generational view of the poverty, prejudice, and abandonment that torments her family.

As a bi-racial and overweight teen in a town noted for its intolerance, Diamond struggles. I kept hoping that Diamond could find a friend and a place to be herself, that her mother could find peace, and that the worst people in Swift River would turn to dirt.

I suspect this book will end up categorized as YA. I don’t mean that as a negative comment, but I think it deserves a wider readership because it looks so carefully at how our histories shape each of us.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

Diamond Newberry is 16 years old in the summer of 1987, and it's just her and her mother navigating their way through life ever since her father disappeared seven years ago. They are extremely tight on cash and hitchhike to travel everywhere. Although Diamond is a smart and talented teenage girl, she is bullied for her weight and is one of the only Black people in the town of Swift River.

Diamond's mother has filed a claim to declare her father legally dead to collect the insurance money and get their affairs together so that they can move on with their life. However, Diamond finds letters from her aunt and other women in her family that were pivotal in her father's childhood. These letters hold many secrets that Diamond never knew, and how these women were feeling the same way as Diamond: lonely, full of love, and affected by the racism in their towns.

This book grew on me as time progressed. I will say it took over 50% of the book to finally gauge my interest. I thought that Diamond was an extremely giving person, almost to a fault, to have dealt with such a volatile mother in her life. I wanted so much more for Diamond and wondered the whole time if she would realize how great she really is. Her mother got on my nerves after a while, partly because she was holding her back. The scenes involving her friends were much more refreshing because you could see how Diamond was growing as a person.

I also liked how this book touched on the racism that still existed in this town even in the post-Civil Rights era while also touching on other universal themes, like familial love, adolescence, and finding oneself in the midst of it. Part of me wishes that this book were released a couple of weeks prior to its actual release date (June 4th) because I think it would make a beautiful story for many mothers and daughters to read together.

I think the themes in this book were what made me like it more than the actual story. Great messaging, but the story could have been slightly more intriguing.

Swift River takes place in a time when racism was an accepted way of life. Young Diamond Newberry is the main character in this story. She is an overweight teen who was born into a dysfunctional family. Her mother is white and her father is black. During this time an interracial marriage was rare and not accepted well in her community. Her life is filled with sadness and bullying. This is a story of her struggles and her eventual release from her depressing circumstances. Unfortunately for me this book did not hold my interest and it took me a bit too long to finish.

I loved this powerful tale that spans generations. The novel delves into prejudice, ,abandonment, love, and devotion. The writing is tender, and irreverently funny capturing the bonds of family and the resiliency of the humanspirit. Family history shapes us into the person we are.
Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

What a slow burn of a novel! I was so excited to receive an advance copy of this one, especially after reading Ann Napolitano’s glowing review. It took a very long time for me to get into this book, but the last few chapters were so marvelously done it feels like a secret I shouldn’t know. This book will break you in all the right ways then put you back together with loving grace. A book more of us need. Well done.

Thank you @simonandschuster #partner for the free book and eARC!

I am always in for a solid family drama and was very pleasantly impressed with this debut written by Essie Chambers! I am always so in awe of debut books that are full of emotion, beautifully written and will absolutely stick in my brain! Swift River will sweep you away into a small mill town in the 80s where Diamond is trying to make her way. She is the only black person, overweight, her father has disappeared and she feels a bit like she’s on an island by herself. Her mother finally makes the decision to declare Diamonds father dead so they can collect insurance money and try to rebuild their lives. She receives a letter from a family member she’s never met and that opens her eyes to her family history, her heritage and details she’s been missing about her father and other generations history. It’s not all been a walk in the park and in learning these details she gains the power to change her future.

All in all, this book is a heart breaking and heart warming family drama all wrapped in one. This feel good story will leave you wanting to make sure you spend time with your loved ones AND let bygones be bygone! As I said before I am shocked this is a debut as it is written with such presence and is exquisitely composed. I loved Diamonds character so much. She was charming, delightful and loved her grit and determination to not let society dictate her direction in life. I found myself wanting to be friends with her! 💓 This book had very powerful themes and really ended up being quite the thought provoking tale which unexpected for me! I highly recommend this one!

Coming of Age tale surrounding the only black young adult in a New England town, told alternately through her childhood eyes and her 16 year old self. Generations of trauma come through as she begins a correspondence with an Auntie she had never known, but who grew up with her now missing father.

Swift River tells the story of Diamond, who is the only Black person in her small town. When I say only, I mean only. The Black community never replenished in her area after their forced expulsion in the early 1900s. Fast forward to the 1980s. Diamond's father, a Black man, disappears when she is 7 years old. Before Diamond and her mother can declare him legally deceased, they must wait 7 years, and that time passes like a chaotic adventure for her. Diamond's mother can't hold a job, can't drive, and takes opiates to treat her chronic pain from a car accident. Her mother vows to never get behind the wheel of a car again, and they hitchhike everywhere. When Diamond turns 16, she decides to get her license, knowing it's her ticket to freedom even if it upsets her mother.

As someone who was raised in a chaotic household without stability, Swift River spoke to me. The story is a conversation about overcoming adversity, coming-of-age, protecting heritage, and defining family. The context Essie Chambers created in the history of Diamond's town was remarkable and unique. Chambers shifted between the past and present so beautifully throughout the book, creating a deeply layered story. Swift River was so well done and I can't wait to see what else Chambers writes.

For me this was something of a mixed bag. Yes, a powerful story of discrimination with a long historical tale. A strong mother/daughter narrative. A plausible portrait of small town life, often but not always mean. And the author has a refreshing voice, unpredictable, funny, plangent. And yet I found the story baggy, short on dynamic. Yes, thankfully it dodged the obvious solutions and easy fixes. But otherwise it could feel circular and repetitive.
But overall, it’s an impressive debut and suggests the author is one to watch.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of Swift River in exchange for my review.

Swift River follows Diamond, daughter to a Black father and white mother living as the only biracial/dark-skinned inhabitant in Swift River. Diamond’s father has disappeared and her mother is unable to hold down a steady job. Diamond is on the verge of adulthood and trying to understand her own cultural and biological heritage, which her mother is fundamentally unable to understand or assist her with, when a letter from her father’s family arrives and starts to fill in some gaps that help Diamond understand the town and the family’s history.

This was a patient story that unfolded bit by bit. I enjoyed it, but for me it was ultimately not terribly memorable. I do think that it could help people who aren't typically able to find themselves in books feel seen, and I'm glad that it exists for that reason.