Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
My first thought–which turned out to be widely shared among early readers, and even perhaps the author–was that this was half As I Lay Dying (southern gothic road trip) and half Beloved (literal ghosts here to address racial injustice). Not surprisingly to anyone who knows me, I liked the road trip part and could honestly do without the ghosts. It’s just not to my taste. But the language is lovely and lyrical. The characters are vivid. I think she hit what she was heading for.
Amy P. Knight 