Raven Woman's Tavern
by Laura Koerber
Genre: Dystopian, Magical Realism
A backwoods bar run by a shapeshifter.
A road that changes length, direction, and destination.
A young man, lost in the forest and dying, hears the cry of a
raven.
Set in a dystopic near future, Raven Woman’s Tavern is the story of a
collection of survivalists who are squatting in the remains of a dead
timber town in the Northwest. The residents—most of them old, sick, and in
need—help each other by means legal and extralegal under the watchful eye
of Rachel, the tavern keeper. When the peace of the community is disturbed
by the sudden visit of four members of the local militia, the survivalists
are frightened; not all of them are law-abiding and some are not citizens.
But, as Crazy Mary said to Charlie the Poet, “You don't piss Rachel off.
She's got her ways.”
Charlie pushed the
wheelbarrow up the street to the tavern.
He could feel the weight yanking on his elbows and shoulders.
He was like a skeleton, bones clanking and rattling, barely held
together by thinning strings of cartilage. A skeleton covered with
rags of old flesh.
Rachel heard the
wheels squeaking and poked her head out
the door. Her long black hair was unbraided, thick, and would
have been a delight to Charlie’s eye if he’d had the energy to
feel
delight. If he’d been thirty years younger, and if Jimmy hadn’t
been around, he would’ve let himself fall in love with Rachel’s
hair.
“Come for some water?”
she called. Her smile, too, was a
potential delight.
“Yup.” Charlie dropped
the handles of the wheelbarrow and
tried to straighten up.
Laura started off life as an artist. Even in early elementary school she
could draw with near-photo realism. She liked to tell herself stories while
driving, or doing boring tasks such as housework, but never thought of
herself as a writer.
That is, until she got involved in the rescue of an abused dog. Her first
book, a collection of short stories entitled The Dog Thief, made the
Kirkus Review list of one hundred best indy publications and set her on a
course of writing.
With one exception, her subsequent novels are in the genre of fantasy,
though four have themes relating to current events, and three are also
dystopias. Wild Hare, the story of a half/man-half/nature spirit and his
feud with the local civic powers also made the Kirkus Review “best of” list.
The exception, I Once Was Lost But Now Am Found, is the nonfiction
account of the largest dog rescue in the US to succeed without help of local
authorities.
Laura is a retired teacher and lives on an island in Puget Sound with her
husband; her one-eyed cat; and her elderly, disabled and chronically grumpy
shih tzu. She is volunteers at a rescue for unadoptable cats.
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Thank you for hosting my book on your blog. I would love to answer any questions.
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome! :)
Deleteat what point did you know how the book would end?
ReplyDeleteI like the cover. It sets the tone for the book!
ReplyDeleteI have read almost every one of Laura Koerber's books, and I loved them all.
ReplyDelete