Book review: 3.75/5 ⭐️
Genre: historical fiction/mystery
Themes: family secrets, depression, stolen child
📖 Read if you like: The Four Winds, Surviving Savannah, Five Rivers Met on a Wooded Plain

To the rivers that hold a world’s worth of memories. This is a haunting story of memory in a novel that is somewhere between historical fiction and mystery. While reading I had an unsettling feeling of fear knowing that a most beloved child was stolen, but how she ended up in her new family remains a mystery. In a family full of secrets, it is hard to know who the villain could be. It was slow paced, but the story really drew me in with a lyrical quality of writing and a heartbreaking outcome.

From riverside ghost towns to brothels, post war nightclubs to the Mississippi this is a dual timeline story of loss, hardship and perseverance. In 1971, a forty-two year old Nell can’t let go of the vague memories of childhood she has. Memories which her cagey mother Hazel refuses to acknowledge, let alone discuss. This is on top of a long held secret that Nell’s sister Evie has a different mother, a stranger named Becca Chambers. A childhood promise hidden in the pages of Jane Eyre, but one that Nell can no longer ignore. As she searches to unravel an eerie past shrouded in secrecy, she must confront an uncomfortable possibility that her mother is not quite who she seems to be.

This hunt is told in tandem with a young Becca in the 1930s. This young mother and new widow must navigate the trials of living independently in a depression era landscape where jobs are nearly impossible to find and a woman is ripe to be taken advantage of.

This is my first novel by this author and it certainly won’t be my last. It was beautifully written with complex characters and ended in a graceful way I was not expecting. The lines of blame and betrayal blurred under the true meaning of family and love. Each of the female characters struggles with their own vulnerabilities and truths, and I liked how real and raw they were. It was on the slower side in terms of pace, but it was easy to follow and not overly complicated. I found myself wanting an ending on vindication and healing, which I got, but not in the way I suspected. This story of redemption and resilience had some unexpected twists with a mystery that wove in and out with a messy family discovering how they can navigate their new relationships alongside the truth.

Thank you to Sourcebooks and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

The River Knows Your Name by Kelly Mustian is one of my favorite reads of 2025. I enjoyed Mustian's first novel, The Girls in the Stilt House, and this new book is every bit as powerful. Both have storylines that made me root for the main characters from the first page to the last.

Same as this author's previous novel, the setting is delivered artistically with gentle brushstrokes yet also with authority that makes me feel as though I have been there with the characters.

This novel is a dual-timeline historical novel, one timeline set in the 1930s and the other in the 1970s. I am not always a fan of dual timeline stories, but here it works. I cannot imagine how the story would resolve without the second, later timeline. No spoilers, but the payoff for this happens at the end.

Overall, I would recommend this book to readers of historical fiction, women's fiction, or simply for any readers would would enjoy an escape for a few hours into a story that is told well.

I requested this book in electronic format because I was moderating a discussion of it on BookBrowse.com. While many of our members seemed to love it, I actually thought it was pretty weak. I felt the characters were too similar, too many unanswered questions remained, and I didn't find some of the plot points logical. Several characters weren't well-developed. It just never clicked with me.

I loved The Girls in the Stilt House by this author! This one wasn’t as good for me, but it was still a good story where one daughter’s quest to learn about their mother’s past leads to family secrets revealed. The timelines and POV alternate between 1934 and 1971. The themes most present are about the love between Mothers and Daughters and found family.

Beautifully written novel about women, and family, and memories. The settings were as colorful and distinct as the characters. I found myself lulled by the words, almost becoming numb to the harshness of some of the events and situations.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was an emotional read and I really enjoyed the dual timelines and dual narratives.

The descriptive elements were atmospheric and beautiful.

I liked the sisters and their love and connection.

A little ‘saga’ ish and soap opera in parts but I still enjoyed.

This author is a master at creating a sense of time and place and has the ability to draw you into this story of love and loss . Another winner by an excellent author
Thanks for sharing this story with me Netgalley and the publisher

Thank you so much to Sourcebooks for the gifted book!

This one sounded so good to me and the cover looks right up my alley!

It gave me major Kristin Hannah vibes at times which is a huge compliment!

While it was overall enjoyable, it did seem to drag for me at certain points and struggle to hold my attention.

I still think this will be a huge hit for many!

I really enjoyed this novel, which beautifully captures themes of family, identity, and the secrets that shape us. The setting was one of the standout elements for me it felt so vivid and atmospheric that it almost became a character itself. The plot moved slowly at times, but the emotional depth of the characters kept me hooked.

I found the characters incredibly well-developed, each with their own complexities and struggles. Their relationships felt real and evolved naturally, which made me care about what happened to them. While there were a few moments where the pacing slowed down a bit, the writing was so rich and the emotional payoff so satisfying that it made up for it.

Overall, I’d give it 4 stars moving, immersive, and full of heart.

(Rounded up from 4.5 stars)

A beautifully haunting and emotional story of love, loss and family secrets. I loved this book! The dual timelines and multiple POVs really drew me into the story, and I found myself theorizing throughout about how the characters may be related. Secrets and betrayal are the driving force behind the plot, and they definitely add to the family drama. I’m very impressed with how Mustian was able to navigate fraught relationships and create such an emotional ending. My only gripe, if you can even call it that, is I would have loved to find out what happened to Lucy and Rose.

This is the best book I have read so far this year. I read the author's previous debut book and was so impressed with it I couldn't wait to get my hands on this one and it did not disappoint. There is a lot to keep up with but the story is so intricately woven and the characters so likable I couldn't put it down. I particularly like stories set in the south and I especially like family sagas as well as dual timeliness so this one was perfect. I will be talking about this one for a while. I highly recommend. I don't find many five star stories but this is definitely one!
Thanks to Net Galley for allowing me to read this fabulous ARC.

I loved Mustian's first book, so I was excited to be able to read her latest. I loved how the story line was weaved within the two timelines and how it all came together in the end.

I received an arc from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

This was a dual timeline story set between the 1930’s and the 1970’s. A found birth certificate and many emotions surrounding it entail this book. While I liked the storyline, it was hard for me to get into this one.

I definitely would try more by this author though.

The River Knows Your Name by Kelly Mustian ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1/2

Sourcebooks Landmark
Pub Date: 4-1-25

Thank you @netgalley, @bookmarked, and @kellymustianauthor for the opportunity to read this eARC

Motherhood, family, secrets, friendship, love—these themes drew me completely into the world of Nell, Hazel, Becca, and Evie. What strong, resilient women, particularly Hazel and Becca.

"As she drove, time seemed a fluid thing, prone to slipping out of sequence in this state where her life had begun. She was a woman and a little girl, was forging her own path and being taking along for a ride, uncertain of where she was going or where she had been."

". . . those memories that adults hold of their earliest years only because of the stories told and retold to them so often that the stories become memories ingrained."

This was a truly haunting story with all the southern imagery. It made for quite an atmospheric read. I loved the character development and the dual timelines that drove the narrative. This was heartfelt and moving. I enjoyed it.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

The River Knows Your Name is a beautifully written story by Kelly Mustain. It’s about dedication, perseverance, betrayal, unimaginable heartbreak and new beginnings.

The book is told in duel timelines from the POVs of Nell, Becca and Hazel.

Nell is searching for answers questions about her childhood and Becca is trying provide for herself and her child during the Great Depression.

Thank you to NetGalley & SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for letting me read this ARC.

We have two timelines here 1930s the Mississippi area and then 1971 North Carolina. Nell and Evie very young children, and Hazel their mother. Always the two timelines makes for an interesting story when you compare lifestyles, attitudes and especially how far women have come in thirty years.

Nell and Evie discovered a birth certificate thirty years ago in a copy of Jane Eyre. Evie's mother was not Hazel. The two girls vowed never to talk about this. How this discovery would have impacted and changed their lives if brought to Hazels notice is so huge, that it was only realized thirty years later.

The story winds around secrets of Evie’s arrival in Nell’s home, how Hazel became secretive, disconnected from her children and that distance was maintained almost to the end. The reasons of course unraveled and it showed Hazel in a totally different light, protective to the end.

Very atmospheric, with tragic/dark overtones, plenty of history intertwined within the story covering the Depression era. Most importantly very strong women figures in this story.

This is my first book by this author. I did go get a copy of her previous one, The Girls In The Stilt House, after reading this one though.

Main characters: Nell, Evie, Hazel and Becca. There are a few more that play a big part in this story but these four will steal your heart by the end of this book.

This book is at the top of my favorites list. It will definitely be in my top twelve at the end of the year. I highly recommend this book. It's heartbreaking, beautiful, loving, hold your breath good. It will immerse you into a world of a mother's love. Another mother's need for control. And another mother's survival while allowing her child to live. To survive. To be free. It's just one you truly will not forget and will not want to put down.

This book had be just a bit confused at first. Trying to see where it was headed. Trying to figure out what each part was about. How they would come together. They came together in a way that had me in tears. Some happy tears and just a few sad tears. This author knows how to capture your heart. How to make you feel what a true mother's love is...

Told in two timelines and different POVs throughout. You get to know each character and what they go through. How they feel about each other. The fears they have. The love of sisters who are not true blood sisters but sisters of the heart. Of mother's. Mothers in ways that only a true mother knows. Even if not by blood. How they survive and keep each other safe.

There are a few characters in this story and it's fairly easy to keep them separate. To know who is who and what each has going on. How friends help even without knowing it sometimes. To be there for someone when it truly counts. The loss of a child. Not in death but in life. How a mother can go on knowing she did what was best. Even after she has lost everything else. Not knowing if she will ever see her baby again. Proof that your child is always your baby even when they are all grown and have their own family. In some cases anyway.

This is one of those books that you don't want to say a lot about what happened because you certainly don't want to give anything away. But it also is one that shows how much you have to trust people sometimes. How the most desperate of times make you do things you never thought you could. Or would.

A masterpiece in my opinion. A book with such depth and feeling. Do not miss this one.

Thank you #NetGalley, #SourcebooksLandmark, for this ARC.

This book is about lost family with a dual timeline - one in the 1930's and in the 1970's. I really like southern historical fiction. However, this one I had a few issues with. I had a hard time keeping up with the characters - apart from Becca I felt some of them weren't well defined to me so while reading I had a hard time following at first.

I loved Becca and found her storyline the most interesting. It's a 3 star read for me. I liked it, but I didn't love it.

I loved Kelly Mustian's debut novel, The Girls in the Stilt House , so it was a no-brainer to request this from NetGalley. The book is deeply emotional and weaves two tales that take the reader on a journey from the Depression-era American South to the 1970s. Southern historical fiction is my favourite genre, so it's no surprise that I absolutely loved this one.

Dual timelines are a favourite format for me, and as usual, I loved the older timeline, BUT with the second being far back in the 1970s, I found that a plus. They're both complex storylines but are skillfully interwoven and seamlessly reveal the connection between the characters and their shared history.

The setting is atmospheric and took me to the Mississippi Delta and the North Carolina mountains in my head. I can't forget to mention the river of the title, as it is a character in and of itself and is a big part of the characters' lives. The characters are complex, and so are their backgrounds; each has their struggles and vulnerabilities to deal with. I liked how the author showed how family secrets from the past can affect the present and even the future. The women in these two timelines are strong and resilient and do whatever they can to protect those they love and survive. I enjoyed being on this journey with Nell, Becca, Evie and Hazel and their search for the truth.

Overall, this book was compelling and beautifully written and will be enjoyed by anyone who loves historical fiction with strong female leads and detailed, complex storytelling. All. The. Stars.