What You Leave Behind Book Review
A lot was happening that kept me on the edge of my seat, constantly wondering how it would all come together.
Deena Wood’s life has fallen apart in the aftermath of losing her beloved mother, her marriage, and her prestigious job at an Atlanta law firm. She needs what the Geechee people of coastal Georgia call a “dayclean,” a fresh start.
She returns to her childhood home in Brunswick, Georgia, to heal. But her return is anything but the respite she thought it might be. To make peace with all her loss, she often drives through the city. One day, she unwittingly finds herself on the oceanfront property of a loner widower who is fighting to keep land that has been in his family since the end of the Civil War. He threatens her and warns her to never return. But shortly after, he disappears, and his very expensive property is quickly put up for sale. Curious about what has happened to the man, Deena digs into his disappearance and finds a family legacy at risk. What starts out as a bit of curious snooping, turns into a deadly game of illegal land grabs and property redevelopment in poor and rural communities with dark and powerful forces at work.
Without realizing it, Deena finds herself caught up in a nightmarish scheme that threatens her community and her family. She’ll need help and finds it in a close but unlikely source because she knows she must do whatever it takes to stop the sinister forces at play before she becomes their next target.
The Book Review
While I really enjoyed Wanda M. Morris’s first thriller, her second was a bit of a dud for me. However, What You Leave Behind sounded promising. Sure enough, I ended up enjoying this one quite a bit more. Morris blends social commentary and history impeccably with her mystery plot, keeping me intrigued throughout.
One thing I noticed early on was the great sense of place, with the narrative drawing the reader into the Brunswick, Georgia setting. The story also delves into the history of Black people during Reconstruction, including that of the Geechee-Gullah community specifically, something I was not super informed about. The story also delves into the heirs property system and its impact on Black and brown communities, consolidating the wealth among the few (mostly white) wealthy people.
Deena as a protagonist is sympathetic, even if her life is messy and she’s flawed. She’s returned home after a messy divorce, and her father has speedily remarried after her mother’s death, so Deena has a frosty relationship with her stepmother, and with so much happening to her all at once, it’s like her life is falling apart. But I appreciate that, while she’s going through a lot, she still has guts, and while she doesn’t always make the wisest of decisions, she has spine and stands up for what’s right in the face of injustice.
The plot is engaging, and fairly steadily paced. Between the family drama and the missing person and the land grab plot, there was a lot going on that kept me on the edge of my seat and wondering how it would all come together.
This was a solid return to form for Wanda M. Morris, and I am now once again interested in reading more from her in the future. I’d recommend this to readers who enjoy mystery/thrillers starring Black leads that also bring up relevant social issues.
