Review: The Blackwater Saga by Michael McDowell

The Blackwater Saga is a southern gothic story originally released as six novellas but now you can read in one collection.

The story opens with a woman, Elinor, stranded in a hotel room in Perdido, Alabama. The town was flooded when the Blackwater ran over the banks in a storm. There’s an immediate mystery surrounding Elinor. Where did she come from? What’s she doing in town? She stays in Perdido and eventually marries into a wealthy family, the Caskeys. The book follows Elinor and the Caskey family from 1919 to around 1965. It has a diverse cast of characters that feel real. Each character has a distinct personality with their own desires and struggles.

Southern Gothic: 60%

Blackwater is at its heart a Southern Gothic book. It’s main focus are the conflicts between the characters. There isn’t a fight scene in the book. That’s not to say there isn’t physical conflict but nothing that would be considered a “fight”. One of the major plot points is the conflict between Elinor and her mother in law, Mary-Love Caskey as they battle for power and control in the family and the town of Perdido.

Fantasy: 20%

All of the fantasy elements of the book revolve around Elinor. She is some kind of river monster. Through most of the book this really doesn’t come up but its always in the back ground. Anything weird that happens you know Elinor is behind it but there is no explanation of how she’s doing it. I’m okay with that. There are some scenes when we get to see Elinor in action in all her river monster glory but for that we need to talk about…

Horror: 20%

I struggled with what horror rating to give this book. There are maybe four scenes that qualify but they hit hard. The horror elements are really well done. Most are Elinor being true to her river monster potential but there is one scene that has nothing to do with her.

Conclusion

I’m left with one question about Elinor and the story as a whole, after finishing the book. Is Elinor a sympathetic character? She murders a few people, good, bad or somewhere in between, throughout the story. There are never any consequences for her actions. Everything goes Elinor’s way. At the end it looks like she might pay for at least some of what she’s done but she gets away with it. It’s interesting that the main character of the book would be presented positively while simultaneously being the most evil character in the book. What do you think?

123-456-7890