Alternating between the perspectives of a young boy, Michael, and an older man, Harlan, this engrossing narrative documents the deeply-rooted pain that encompasses the lives of these two tragically linked individuals and the ties that ultimately bind them together.

I have had the incredible opportunity to read this author’s previous two books, and with each one he solidifies his voice at the top of the modern literary Western. In much the same way that the previous books centered on the fine line between vengeance and justice, this story also explores that dilemma, yet weaves in the weight of burden when delivered.

The author’s skilled storytelling created an unsettling and suspenseful exploration of good and evil as well as an intense and impressive character study on the effects of personal trauma and morality. There is an understanding of human nature that makes the rawness of these characters come alive. Every emotion resonates off the page and steers the course of so many lives.

The story is filled with a multitude of captivating lines that speak so much truth and metaphors that will have you pondering their meaning long after the final page is turned. I was overwhelmingly struck by the motif of the pelican throughout the story and its connection in crafting this contemporary parable. For all the cruelty and callousness that dominates this devastatingly bleak environment, there is beauty if you choose to see and a peace that will prevail if you only embrace it.

A compelling and affecting read that is deeply moving, hauntingly atmospheric, and entirely unforgettable.

As I read this book, I found myself comparing the author to the likes of Erskine Caldwell or John Steinbeck. It is gripping and gritty. The author shows both the best and worse sides of humans.
The story begins in two different locations and timelines. I was curious to see how the author was going to merge the two, as I saw no relation between them. But he does merge them together to create a fascinating, deeply psychological tale of abuse, hardships, depravity, and murder. A tug of war between good and bad, right and wrong, rages and swirls outside and inside the mind of Harlen LeBlanc. He truly desires to be a good man, to be kind, and do the right thing. He is the mild-mannered groundskeeper of the local high school. Folks think him odd but harmless. And he is.
But circumstances push him and force him to take action, to seek justice.
I love the way the author takes the reader back and forth between the present and the past, weaving together the story of Harlen LeBlanc and young Michael Fischer. There are several characters I enjoyed, but at the top of that list was Remus, the kind man who took a terrified, desperate boy in and cared for him.
The author has a forceful writing style. Line after line stood out to me. I’ll give you just a few examples.

“The night glowed metallic. The moon had been cut in two, and LeBlanc could not say if it was growing or fading or perhaps searching for its counterhalf somewhere in all that outer dark, examining the shine of every star as if to discern which scattered pieces of light might help make it whole.”

“He was gone in the moonlight, a black figure slipping through the blue darkness, loping beside deer and jackrabbits in that selfsame dark and by stars reflecting off the surface of stock ponds like holes shot clean through the world.”

“The streetlights hummed their siren songs and called forth great waves of insects to their death…”

“Plant petals curled and stiffened in the pale daylight, and the country was cold, and the sawgrass and moss-covered trees mantled much of the land. The air was thick and the wind biting, and inside the cabin, the fire roared, but there was little warmth felt by those who gathered around it.”

“His soul was blackened. His fate or that thing which LeBlanc believed nearest to fate, had long been decided.”

The deep psychological twists of this story are raw and disturbingly realistic. The true black souls of men are revealed, turning them into beasts of the earth.
If you are a fan of damaged characters and gritty stories, you will enjoy this one from Mr. Wade. It is the first book I’ve read of his, but it won’t be the last. He is a brilliant wordsmith, creating phrases that belong in frames on walls to be admired.
I highly recommend this book.

Beasts of the Earth by James Wade is very highly recommended literary fiction.

Two timelines are followed in the novel. First, in 1987 Harlen LeBlanc is an employee of the grounds department at Carter Hills High School in Texas. He is a quiet man who keeps to himself and his routines. When his coworker and recent high school graduate, Gene Thomas, is discovered holding the dead body of a former girlfriend, he is charged with her murder. LeBlanc is certain that Gene is not responsible and he sets out to find the guilty party.

In Louisiana in 1965, 12 year-old Michael Fischer tries his best to protect his younger sister and survive with his fanatical mother. He steals from trap lines in the bayou to provide for his family. Then his father, a child rapist and murderer, returns from serving his prison sentence. His father's evil actions eventually result in Michael fleeing and finding help and safety with an older man who is dying, but more importantly is a kind and good man who rescues him. He teaches Michael to be good and care even when the world around you is bad and uncaring.

This is a beautifully written, descriptive novel that skillfully intertwines the two stories in the alternate time lines. The narratives in the two timelines are both tightly plotted and create suspense in events that are surely coming in both story lines. Although crimes and investigations occur, Beasts of the Earth is not a procedural or investigative novel. It is a pensive, thoughtful novel reflecting on what it means to be a truly good person in a world full of wickedness and corruption. Even in the most forlorn and bleak moments, there is still a small measure of hope and, perhaps, redemption for the characters.

Beasts of the Earth is a visceral, disturbing tale that explores polarizing themes, including hate and love, fate and free will, trauma and goodness. It poetically yet starkly confronts how to deal with evil and guilt all while moving steadfastly toward a heartbreaking ending.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Blackstone Publishing via NetGalley.
The review will be published on Barnes & Noble, Google Books, Edelweiss, and Amazon.

When you make a mistake, own it and fix it. It was a mistake not to read James Wade’s first two novels. I’ll have to fix that. Because VISHNU TAKE THE WHEEL.

His third book is *phenomenal.*

BEASTS OF THE EARTH had the oppressively hot energy of crackling brush burning away at a Texas ranch; the haunting prickle of neck-sweat on an airless day in the bayou.

The two locales, Texas and Louisiana, give a bedrock of southern gothic grit for the characters to work upon. Doggone if they don’t flourish in this darkness.

I saw shades of TRUE DETECTIVE, but the story of Harlan LeBlanc isn’t susceptible to a Season 2 dip. The tale of this high school groundskeeper is written in toto, with prose as lyrical as its contents are sinister.

When LeBlanc’s young coworker is accused of an awful crime, the introverted custodian wills himself to supportive action. But we dwell also in the past. In 1965, young Michael Fischer is terrorized by the coming return of his irredeemable father.

By 1987, a sordid history of cruelty must be reconciled if LeBlanc is to help his friend. It’s the challenge of his life and it makes for an impossibly engaging book, all the way to the astonishing finish.

In James Wade’s Beasts of the Earth, the story follows the lives of two main characters in alternating chapters during different generations.

In small town 1987 Texas, Harlan LeBlanc is a grounds keeper for Carter Hills High School. By outward appearances and behavior, LeBlanc is a refined, gentle man, similar to that of a milquetoast. LeBlanc is most interested in a regular, day-to-day life hoping for the absence of turmoil and drama.

Prone to ridicule and taunting by not only his neighbor but some of his co-workers, LeBlanc becomes friendly with a troubled, young co-worker that soon finds himself accused of a horrible crime. In the belief in the boy’s innocence, LeBlanc interjects himself into the investigation which soon leads others to question his own possible involvement in the crime when inconsistencies regarding LeBlanc come to light.

In the swamps of 1965 Louisiana, young boy Michael Fischer barely exists with his younger sister and cruel mother in a world defined by poverty and hardship. Michael’s mother is devoutly loyal to her thought to be imprisoned and even more cruel husband, Mundy Fischer. With Munday’s unexpected release and return home, it is more like the devil crossing the threshold rather than an absent father.

After more than one traumatic event, Michael flees the home and is soon taken in by a kind older man that slowly instills within Michael the importance of goodness and the meaning of remaining good even in a world where evil walks among us.

Beasts of the Earth is not just a crime novel and more of a contemplative novel of what it takes to be a good person when evil envelopes us and especially if a person may have taken extreme measures to overcome such evil.

The writing in Beasts of the Earth is wonderfully descriptive and rich in detail and form, which may cause many readers to re-read sentences to fully enjoy their lush composition.

Netgalley provided an ARC of Beasts of the Earth upon the promise of a fair review.

Distractingly overwritten, unfortunately, which creates a distance from the narrative and characters.

I received this from Netgalley.com.

"Interweaving stories, exploring themes of time, fate, and free will, to produce a revelatory conclusion that is both beautiful and heartbreaking."

Although an okay read, I didn't find this story very compelling and never connected with the characters.

2.25☆

Beasts of the Earth by James Wade was a well crafted story.
Wade is a remarkable and very gifted author.
This is an impressive and stunning book!
The author's storytelling is one of a kind.
The descriptions were beyond vivid and the characters hooked me immediately.
I enjoyed this story and read it in one day!

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Blackstone,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my blog, platforms, BookBub, B&N, Kobo and Waterstone closer to pub date.

What an absolutely amazing, beautiful and powerful book. James Wade is a lyricist with the written word. I will be thinking about this story for a long time. Some books just seep into your soul and stay with you. This is one of those rare books. A gift to those of us who love to read. Thank you James Wade.

Beasts of the Earth maybe James Wade's best work yet. I have been a fan since his debut novel All Things Left Wild, but his writing talent has matured and this book has a depth that comes from a seasoned author.

This book intertwines two stories happening twenty years apart.

Michael Fischer is a young boy whose never had the opportunity to be a child. His violent father has wreaked havoc on his family and he is left to pick up the pieces of their shattered life. When his father's return from prison threatens his life he runs off to the bayou where he is rescued by a poet.

Twenty years later a murder shocks the small town and Harlen LeBlanc a soft spoken maintenance man can't believe that his co-worker was involved. He goes against the grain, and endangers himself in order to prove who was really behind the atrocious act.

The thing about James Wade writing is it is so decadent. It's the kind of literary voice you either love or you hate but you FEEL to your bones. I for one love the languorous descriptions and the fullness that his voice gives to his books and characters. This book proves beyond a doubt that James Wade is a true voice for the rural American experience.

A high school maintenance man with a dark past tries to clear his coworker of murder. The murder mystery and the mystery of Harlen LeBlanc's past will keep you riveted from page one.

This was my first time reading this author and I really enjoyed this book! GREAT characters, good solid story line. I saw afterwards that he has two more books available and bought them immediately. The synopses of both sounded right up my alley. I have a new author to stalk. Lol.

Wade’s Beasts of the Earth, his forthcoming and latest novel, could be subtitled the Ballad Of Harlan LeBlanc. It is a lyrical haunting descriptive tale that threads the needle between heaven and hell, between good and evil, between penance and guilt. It is one if those stories that is thick and rich and absorbing.

We begin with two separate alternating points of view. One is an odd duck named Harlan LeBlanc who lives a quiet life in an East Texas town where he works as a high school groundskeeper, keeps to himself, makes no small talk, and, if you asked him, he would say his favorite book is Of Mice and Men. He doesn’t bother anyone and just lives a simple life until all hell breaks loose and he finds himself near the center of the maelstrom.

The other narrative balancing against LeBlanc’s world is that of Michael whose father is returning from prison after serving his term for child molestation. Michael’s world is a dark legend of pain and misery in the swamp. He hates his father, but then everyone does. He’s just a kid and he’s trapped.

It’s a fable about two innocents coming face to face with evil and feeling guilt for how they deal with it, guilt that will haunt them all their days. It’s a dark tale, but told with such poetry.