Galley Talk: Sweetsmoke by David Fuller

David Fuller's fascinating debut novel, Sweetsmoke [Hyperion, Sept.], is an admirable historical—yet somehow personal—investigation into the horrors of slavery during the American Civil War at a Virginia tobacco plantation called Sweetsmoke. Cassius is a black skilled carpenter slave whose oppressed spirit is shaken by the assassination of his best friend and tutor, propelling him into a desperate search for justice and freedom. When his quest for dignity conflicts with the traditions of a reprimanding society and his own loyalties, Cassius puts his life and the lives of his fellow workers in jeopardy with the estate's patriarch to discover the truth. The plot is a captivating mystery that goes beyond the unmasking of a killer; it evolves into a series of actions that could change the fate of an entire nation. David Fuller makes an astounding debut as a novelist. I have no doubt that readers will find this great novel impossible to forget.