I was excited to be able to read this historical fiction story. It was engaging and gripping. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Shawntelle Madison's "The Fallen Fruit" unfolds as an expansive family saga interwoven with elements of time travel, spanning two centuries from the 1760s to the 1960s. A standout feature of the novel is its meticulous character development. Each member of the Bridge family, whose journey the reader traverses, is vividly portrayed, fostering a profound emotional bond with the audience. The adept fusion of time travel with the familial narrative sheds light on the enduring nature of racial dynamics, revealing the striking parallels between the experiences of Black individuals in the 1760s and the 1960s. It underscores a pervasive undercurrent of fear stemming from historical and contemporary threats, from enslavers to law enforcement, underscoring a persistent reality in America. Amidst its historical tapestry, the book remains grounded in the personal odyssey of the family, exploring the enduring bonds across generations and the recurring nature of their triumphs and tribulations. The narrative also delves into contemplations of fate and individual agency, probing whether history is predetermined to repeat itself or if personal choices can chart a different course.

However, the novel's ambitious scope presents certain challenges. The frequent shifts between time periods, compounded by the use of nicknames for each character, can at times make the narrative challenging to follow. I found myself occasionally adrift in the labyrinth of lineage and chronology, requiring more effort than anticipated to navigate the unfolding tale. Despite these challenges, I wholeheartedly recommend "The Fallen Fruit" to aficionados of historical fiction, family sagas, and time-travel narratives.

Thank you NetGalley, Harper Collins Publishers, and Shawntelle Madison for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to love this book.... However, the flow of the book was hard for me to follow, and it didn't keep me pulled in like I would have liked. I wish I could have gotten more into it, however, after 3 chapters I could not continue.

3.5 stars

It's 1964, and Cecily Bridge-Davis is an African-American college teacher who lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband Winston and young boys Jason and Lloyd. When Cecily learns she's inherited sixty acres of Bridge family land near Charlottesville, Virginia, Cecily takes a trip to Virginia, with plans to sell the property. Upon arrival at the Bridge land, Cecily finds a compound with a number of homes, an old apple orchard, various outbuildings, animal pastures, and so on.

The original Bridge family house is a dilapidated structure containing decrepit furniture, a few family possessions, and a carefully preserved Bible whose flyleaf contains a family history from the 1760s to the 1920s. The Bible also holds a map of the Bridge property, with X's marked here and there.

Inspired by the family Bible, Cecily decides to research her ancestry using the local library; newspaper archives; and family papers. Cecily also examines the closest spot marked by an X, and there - buried near the bottom of a tree - Cecily finds a tote with necessities for survival: a flint and steel firemaking kit; a compass; mittens; a folding knife; desiccated hardtack (survival food); and a piece of paper listing the Bridge family rules.

The Bridge Family Rules read as follows:

* Never interfere with past events.
* Always carry your freedom papers. (Freedom papers were proof a Black person was free, and not a runaway slave.)
* Search for the survival packs in the orchard.
* Do not speak to strangers unless absolutely necessary.

To cut to the chase, Cecily discovers that the Bridge family has a unique 'curse.' In every family fathered by a Bridge man, one offspring falls back in time at some point, always by the age of twenty-seven. Thus 'survival packs' like the one described above have been stowed around the Bridge property for many decades, to help a time traveler survive the initial 'fall' - which always happens suddenly.

Thus a Bridge person could be sleeping in bed and all at once find herself/himself thrust into the past, laying on a cabin floor. A fallen person remains in the same spot, but at a different time in history.

As Cecily uncovers her family secrets she realizes she'll fall back in time, and since she's twenty-six, it will happen very soon. This means Cecily's husband and children will be left behind, without her.

From here the book goes back and forth between the present and the past, where we meet many Bridge family members. From this point on the reader should pay VERY CAREFUL ATTENTION, because the story gets complicated, with people falling into each other's timelines. My brief summary will be chronological, though this isn't how events are presented in the book. I'm also going to be very circumspect, to avoid spoilers.

*****

⌛ 1758

In 1758, free Blacks live in Pocahontas Island, Virginia, the oldest free Black residential community in the United States. A modern woman called Emily Bridge, who's studying to be a doctor, falls back to Pocahontas Island in 1758.

Emily has a rough go at first, but in time she's apprenticed to an elderly Black midwife, who functions as a 'doctor' in the Pocahontas Island community. Emily's circumstances in 1758 are much different than her former life. "Six months ago, Emily had left Miner Hall [Dormitory] every morning to hurry across campus to her Embryology and Physiology lectures. Now she rose from a pallet on the dirt floor in front of a fireplace, her back stiff from sleeping on an unforgiving surface."

Emily eventually becomes a respected member of the Pocahontas Island community, and due to circumstances, she's a linchpin in the Bridge family saga.

*****

⌛ 1780

In 1780, a prospective bridegroom vanishes.

Sabrina Humbles (17) and her sister Addison (16) were 'adopted' into the Bridge family when they were little girls, and they became best friends with young Luke Bridge. Now that the trio is approaching maturity, romance rears its head and a wedding is planned.

The bride's dress is being made, the wedding ceremony is being planned, and the nuptials are to take place in a few days. Then, as Sabrina and Addison are chatting with Luke, he suddenly vanishes. Luke's family is distraught, and his fiancée is crushed. No one has any idea what happened to Luke, and everyone looks high and low for him. Meanwhile, we follow Luke into the past, where he becomes a slave; is freed; fights in the Revolutionary War; meets some of his uncles in the army (who don't recognize him); and has other odd time travel experiences.

After 22 years, Luke gets back to his family. The thing is, Luke is 22 years older, but for the family, it's been only a few days since Luke disappeared. (You can imagine the skeptical response of the family.)

*****

⌛ 1817

In 1817, several Bridges vanish in close succession.

Rebecca Raley-Bridge and Herbert Bridge have three children and are expecting a fourth. Rebecca is the teacher for children living on the Bridge compound, and her pupils include her son Jimmy, her daughter Annie, and various cousins, including two boys called Pete and Nelson.

Rebecca is giving a math lesson one day when Pete suddenly vanishes. Soon afterwards Nelson disappears, and then two more Bridges vanish. The extended Bridge family is aghast, grief-stricken, angry, suspicious, etc, and many family members blame Rebecca.....and even search her property.

One Bridge grandfather knows what's happening, but he keeps mum. However, Rebecca senses Grandpa knows something and she confronts him. Grandpa admits he fell and so did his mother, and he recalls, "Mama told me we must never forget the stories. Folks won't believe us, but we must never forget those who fell from time and those left behind to remember. She also said the Bridges will come to learn one child in EACH FAMILY will be lost if they are born from a Bridge man. After the child falls, their brothers and sisters'll be safe."

*****

⌛ 1919

In 1919, two Bridge family members are prepared for the curse.

Amelia Bridge (16) and her brother Isaiah (23) know one of them will fall and they ALWAYS carry a pack with supplies and their freedom papers. Each sibling knows they'll be safe if the other vanishes first, and they tussle over who should disappear.....though it's not in their control.

The siblings don't know it yet, but both of them will fall back in time, for reasons to be revealed.

*****

⌛ 1924

In 1924, Cecily Bridge-Davis (who lived in 1964 at the beginning of the book) has fallen back to this time period. In a roundabout way, Cecily may be able to tweak Bridge family history and prevent a massacre. The terrible incident occurs in 1938, when a time traveler called Owen Bridge kills twelve Bridge family members and kidnaps a child. A slight change in history (though HIGHLY frowned upon) might derail this tragedy.

****

As the main protagonists go through their lives, we learn something about the ambiance of different time periods. For instance in 1964, Cecily Bridge-Davis's pastor talks about the Supreme Court ruling that bans separate but equal public schools; the pastor also encourages his congregants to protest the Jim Crow laws. Later, Cecily celebrates the 1964 signing of the Civil Rights Act.

All this changes drastically when Cecily is thrust back to 1924, when Black rights weren't even on the radar.

In the century before, in the 1800s, prosperous Blacks looked down on Black slaves and on dark-skinned Blacks who worked in their homes. In fact, well-off Blacks would look the other way when passing slaves in the street, not even offering a nod - perhaps because it pained them to see people treated as chattel.

Like many families, the Bridge clan clashed at times, but helped each other when there was a need, bringing food, chopping wood, fetching water, watching each other's children, etc. And Bridge individuals 'in the know' were helpful when they encountered a bewildered time traveler who suddenly arrived in their midst.

I found the novel a little confusing because of the abundance of characters, and the jumping around in time. However, the protagonists are s0 well crafted and the story is so engaging, I enjoyed the book anyway and would recommend it.

Thanks to Netgalley, Shawntelle Madison, and Amistad for a copy of the novel.

I was hoping for a bit more from this book based on the blurb - there wasn't as much resolution to the plot as was implied, and overall I agree with other reviewers who have commented on how it was tricky to follow the plot and characters, and how it felt like an "info dump" at times. Ultimately it left more questions than answers for me - questions that the blurb implied might be answered or at least discussed in more detail - which is my biggest criticism of the book. It's pretty good - but not as good as it could have been.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amistad for this e-ARC!

Check out my full review on Goodreads.

TLDR: An unexpectedly warm hug of time travel, with satisfying POV switches.

Multiple PoVs can be really frustrating for me to read - you get into one, just in time for it to switch to another, and then by the time you've gotten used to that new one, it'll switch back. This book was not that. While it checked back in with a particular character a few times, every other point of view was wrapped up with just enough information. No particular story dragged on, no particular character over or under stayed their welcome.

Each pov character was surprisingly well developed, their struggles and feelings relatable. While not always happy per day, there was something oddly cozy about the whole thing.

4.5/5, very solid.

Excellently crafted tale about a family's repeated tragedy that weaves together multiple voices. Journey back to multiple centuries through various narrators to learn more about the Bridge family curse. Will they find a cure?

Combining history and fantasy, a sweeping multi-generational epic in the vein of Kindred and The Time Traveler's Wife about a woman who travels through time to end a family curse that has plagued her ancestors for generations.

On a rainy day in May 1964, history professor Cecily Bridge-Davis begins to search for the sixty-five acres of land she inherited from her father’s family. The quest leads her to uncover a dark secret: In every generation, one offspring from each Bridge family unit vanishes—and is mysteriously whisked back in time. Rules have been established that must be followed to prevent dire consequences:

Never interfere with past events.

Always carry your free Negro papers.

Search for the survival family packs in the orchard and surrounding forest. The ribbon on the pack designates the decade the pack was made to orient you in time.

Do not speak to strangers unless absolutely necessary.

With only a family Bible and a map marked with the locations of mysterious containers to aid her, Cecily heads to the library, hoping to discover the truth of how this curse began, and how it might be ended. As she moves through time, she encounters a circle of ancestors, including Sabrina Humbles, a free Black woman who must find the courage to seize an opportunity—or lose her heart; Luke Bridge, who traverses battlefields, slavery, and time itself to reunite with his family; Rebecca Bridge, a mother tested by an ominous threat; and Amelia Bridge, a young woman burdened with survivor's guilt who will face the challenge of a lifetime—and change Cecily's life forever. It is a race through time and against the clock to find the answers that will free her family forever.

Shawntelle Madison’s historical fiction debut is an enthralling, page-turning family saga about the inevitability of fate, the invincibility of love, and the indelible bonds of family.

My Take:
This book put me in the mind of Octavia E. Butler's "Kindred" and the HBO adaptation of "Lovecraft Country." I love time travel, but it is always a tense experience when traveling as a Black person and a woman: one never knows what type of misogynoir awaits thee, Further, this book also walks the line of what happens when one purposely tries to change history. I do not want to give too much away, but the synopsis expresses what one will encounter whist reading this book. All told, this is a journey through time that I enjoyed.

This is a beautiful historical fiction surrounding generations of one family as they deal with with life altering happenings. One large extended family lives on a giant plot of land once they have their freedom from slavery in Charlottesville, VA. Starting with Luke Bridge, family members start falling through time where there's no rhyme or reason to when it happens.
This beguiling story is made more mesmerizing when you learn it's loosely based around Shawntelle Madison's own family. I haven't read a book so riveting that I didn't want to read it to prevent it from ending in such a long time. I am DEVISTATED that it's over.
The only thing I didn't love about this book is that the ending felt like it was a tad abrupt compared to the flow of the rest of it. However, I would have been shattering no matter the ending simply because it ended. Those are my favorite books.
Madison has a mastery about her for braiding individual plots together to make one sensational story. The bouncing back and forth of the narratives seems like it should not have worked as well as it did, but jeez does it flourish.
I cannot wait to give this a second read, though it will probably be listening, when it comes out. As amazing as it was as a digital book, I feel like this will be a phenomenal audio as long as the right narrators are chosen.

Thank you NetGalley for a e-ARC!

A strong 3 stars from me. This book is time-travel, historical fiction and Black history. The author, Shawntelle Madison, did a wonderful job incorporating all elements together for the Bridge family and their generational experiences.

I did enjoy Cecily Bridge's character, as she began to unearth the mysteries of the farm she had inherited. I enjoyed the beginning of the book, how she began to discover her families past, and how one decision can change the course of history for the rest of the family.

My biggest critique with this book is the pacing and info-dumps. I found myself having to re-read sections to make sure I understood fully what was happening, who had time-traveled, etc. It did get confusing at some points because I feel the pacing was just too slow and caused a lull in the story. I had to force myself through a good portion of the middle of the book as I felt it was the slowest. The ending was unsatisfying, I still felt I had unanswered questions, which was a disappointment.

The Fallen Fruit is a behemoth of a story across generations and hundreds of years. The author slowly introduces us to members, across 200 years or more, of the Bridge family - who are afflicted by a time=travel curse, stealing many of their youngest members to the past. Overall, the story was engaging and artfully crafted to show the connections between future and past - versions of ourself and others, and that destiny is always watching. I did find myself having many unanswered questions at the end - which was the only frustrating part of this book. I would recommend for fans of slow burns, historical fiction with a touch of fantasy. Overall 3.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you to Netgalley, Shawntelle Madison, and Harper Collins for the eARC of The Fallen Fruit in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Fallen Fruit is a rich tale founded in history with a splash of science fiction. I love a multigenerational story and I was interested to see how the Bridge family fared throughout. This book is heavy, emotional, and beautifully written. It did take me a while to get through as there are so many different characters (with different/changed names!) and story lines throughout. I did enjoy the romance aspect at the end and the suspense of not knowing where the story would turn.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me a free copy.

The fact that this novel was compared to Kindred by Octavia E. Butler was what largely captured my attention. However, unlike Kindred, I found my attention to be straying as I read on. Perhaps it was because I took a long break in the middle of the novel and came back to a plot I couldn’t keep track of, or the incredibly slow and tedious writing style, or the fact that there were so many characters where none of them felt distinct enough to me.

Though, I will say, this novel’s themes center around family and grief, about fighting against a power we seemingly have no control over, if those are right up your alley. These are themes I can get behind as well as, of course, time travel and a story that doesn’t center around white people.

I really can’t say much about this book because I decided to DNF at 19%. I’m generally not a fan of multiple timelines and multiple POVs which this story has. That’s just my personal preference, and in no way am I saying this creative decision makes the book bad. Ultimately, I stopped reading because I found myself skimming which means I was bored.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amistad for an advanced eARC.

I am not a fan of most time travel media. I find it confusing and hard to keep up with. I chose this book simply for the historical fiction aspect and was willing to look past the time travel. While there were points where I got a bit confused, overall, it wasn’t too difficult to keep up. HOWEVER! What?!?! I have so many questions about the end of this book. Unless I missed some major detail, this was a big letdown! Like, I truly feel like there was no point! If the time travel part were left out, it could have been a great generational story. Adding time travel and not giving any kind of conclusion just seems wasteful. I genuinely hope I’m wrong and maybe I missed something because I don’t understand what just happened.

I absolutely adored this book. The story is broken up into multiple parts, each part dedicated to a different Bridge family member and each in a different time period. The historical fiction aspect of this work was captivating, as one member of the Bridge family is sent back in time every generation. Rules are established so that they can stay safe, and prevent any (un)foreseen consequences that every time traveler must occupy themselves in counteracting.

I have read some other time-travel fictions and it can be difficult to get right in a way that doesn’t leave the reader confused and lost – The Fallen Fruit is an excellent example of time travel in books done well.

My sincerest thanks to NetGalley, Amistad, and Shawntelle Madison for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. The Fallen Fruit will be published September 3, 2024.

This book was a little slow to start but once it got going I found it hard to put down. I enjoyed the tale of the Bridge family, a family with the curse of falling through time. I enjoyed reading this book and thought the characters well written.

As with any book with time travel and frequent character changes, at times things could get confusing. One thing that did not help was that characters often were introduced with a full name and then later would be called by a nickname - not usually the most common one associated with that name, and the characters who moved through time often changed their name. I found this quite confusing at times and felt it could have been made simpler for the reader somehow.
Next was just keeping track of where in time you were - this probably would have been easier reading a physical book where you could flip back and easily see the chapter headings.

The biggest issue I had with this book was the ending. For me, I just felt the book ended with us understanding the origin of the curse or how things would play out after the last character made their last decisions. I just felt things were not explained fully enough and was left wanting a bit more understanding. But I still greatly enjoyed the book and definitely would make a good book club read with lots to discuss.

The Fallen Fruit is a story about time travel and a curse on a family with a romance as well. This book is very captivating and holds your attention as the story unfolds. The time travel was a little confusing at times as I didn’t quite always pick up where we were in time at some points in the book. The character development is the best part of the book and the well rounded characters really shine throughout the book. Although I found some of the storyline difficult to follow, this book was a really good read and I would recommend it to people who enjoy time travel with a bit of history and fantasy elements as well.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me with this ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amistad Books for this ARC.

When "The Fallen Fruit" opens, we find that Cecily Bridge has inherited a family farm. As she unearths her family's mysterious history, she discovers a family curse that causes one child from each Bridge man to be thrust back in time.

I've read a few time travel books before, but none have combined Black history with the concept of time travel, and it certainly makes for a unique premise. Reading a multi-generational story allowed me to really understand the dynamics of this specific family and see how each time period came with unique challenges for free Black people in Virginia. Shawntelle Madison did an incredible job of naturally incorporating historical information into the narrative.

I also loved that this book shows that sometimes you cannot change history. You follow several key characters, and the narrative shows how their choices impact future generations.

Overall the pacing is extremely slow. A lot of information is presented to the reader, and I found myself re-reading certain passages to ensure that I fully understood what was happening.

My only hangup was the ending of this book. I felt like there were still A LOT of unanswered questions and I just wanted more of the story. However, this book does paint a very detailed picture of life in Virginia for free African Americans at the time, and the characters, while flawed, were endearing and memorable.

I absolutely LOVED The Fallen Fruit. Really interesting take on the time travel concept in books, kind of similar in a sense to the Time Travelers Wife. Obviously fiction and yet it still didn't read as very far fetched.
Cecily has recently inherited her ancestral land in Virginia, and while preparing to sell it, she begins researching the family she knows so little about. What she learns seems preposterous, in the Bridge family, one child will always "fall" back in time suddenly. The book spans centuries, telling the stories of the Bridge family, both the fallen and the ones who remain. I loved the stories and the characters, however at times it could be a bit confusing simply because its a lot of characters, time periods, names and name changes, but all in all an excellent read.
4.5 stars but rounding up to 5.
Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for access to this ARC.