House of Cotton: A Novel
Written by Monica Brashears
Narrated by Jeanette Illidge
3.5/5
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About this audiobook
A stunning, contemporary Black southern gothic novel about what it means to be a poor woman in the God- fearing south. The perfect audiobook if you loved The Other Black Girl and Luster.
“Every page, every scene, every sentence of Monica Brashears’s debut novel House of Cotton dazzles and surprises. An intense, enthralling, and deeply satisfying read!” —Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
"A new, dazzling, and essential American voice." —George Saunders, author of Lincoln in the Bardo
"Narrator Jeanette Illidge gives voice to Magnolia as she tackles racial, religious, and power dynamics with strength while still allowing her tenderness and fragility to show. Brashear weaves an intriguing, if wandering, novel, full of twisty turns and mysteries. The gloomy atmosphere is oppressive, felt strongly through the characters and narration."- Library Journal
Magnolia Brown is nineteen years old, broke, and effectively an orphan. She feels stuck and haunted: by her overdrawn bank account, her predatory landlord, and the ghost of her late grandmother Mama Brown.
One night, while working at her dead-end gas station job, a mysterious, slick stranger named Cotton walks in and offers to turn Magnolia’s luck around with a lucrative “modeling” job at his family’s funeral home. She accepts. But despite things looking up, Magnolia’s problems fatten along with her wallet. When Cotton’s requests become increasingly weird, Magnolia discovers there’s a lot more at stake than just her rent.
Sharp as a belted knife, this sly social commentary cuts straight to the bone. House of Cotton will keep you mesmerized until the very end.
A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.
Editor's Note
‘Affrilachian’…
Broke and afraid, 19-year-old Magnolia Brown accepts a strange job offer at a funeral home, where she helps scam vulnerable customers by dressing as their lost loved ones. Haunted by her own deceased grandmother, Magnolia’s experiences become increasingly more bizarre. Brashears infuses Appalachian folklore into this unsettling but captivating horror story.
Monica Brashears
Monica Brashears is an Affrilachian writer from Tennessee. She is a graduate of Syracuse University's MFA program. Her work has appeared in Nashville Review, Split Lip Magazine, Appalachian Review, The Masters Review, and more. House of Cotton is her first novel.
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Reviews for House of Cotton
39 ratings2 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This just isn't my cup of tea as they say. I'm sure many people do and will enjoy this book. I just am not into all the sex scenes if I wanted that I would have went for one of those steamy romance novels, this one was just not for me.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The whole story is ghetto and who in their right mind! That’s it the review!