The fates of five people are forever linked as they navigate love, loss and the cost of buried secrets amid the strife and turmoil of an unimaginable civil war.
In 1854, on the lawless western edge of Virginia, Elizabeth Young stands among the throngs and watches as her beloved uncle is hanged for murder. There is more to this spectacle than meets the eye, she can tell, and she vows then and there she’ll get to the bottom, she’ll uncover truths, then she’ll leave these godforsaken mountains what with their hidey-holes and caverns, their secret places for all that secret-keeping. She’ll go where the land is flat, where life is in the open, where dreams have room to roam.
But fate has another idea. Into her life come three strangers with dreams and secrets of their own: Patrick Hagan, Irish Catholic immigrant and a bright young attorney with a dogged determination to do good and make good; Mary Lenore Kitchens, the sophisticated teacher who’s come to Virginia’s hinterlands, who knows why; handsome Ben Grubb, local boy, banjo prodigy, a mischievous sort who wants only to play. Soon their lives become inextricably linked, and in marches the Civil War.
Punctuated by class and the realities of a devasting conflict, That Which Binds Us is a broad work of historical fiction with a soul that is really much more: a study in lineage and loyalty, and values instilled by generations; the heat when these rub together amid extraordinary circumstances; what happens when seemingly opposing cultures find more common ground than they’d imagined? That Which Binds Us is a novel that celebrates our best and explores our worst, that serves to remind us that across continents and cultures and generations, love holds the greatest power of all.
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What folks are saying
The liveliest, most interesting and compulsively readable historical novel I have seen in many a year—I love this book! Of course I’m a Virginian too….but these themes are universal and the writing is wonderful.
— Lee Smith, award-winning author of Oral History and Dimestore
That Which Binds Us is an Appalachian love story with glorious twists and turns, longing and grief and resplendent redemption. Elizabeth is an original character of strength and purpose. You won’t be able to put it down!
— Adriana Trigiani, bestselling author of The Good Left Undone
Rigg has written a historical novel of exquisite storytelling, with an ear tuned to the voices of mountain people.
— Amy D. Clark, co-author/editor of Talking Appalachian: Voice, Identity, and Community and host of the Talking Appalachian Podcast
That Which Binds Us is a superior work of Southern Appalachian fiction, marking the debut of a gifted writer to watch. Mining the rich literary terrain of authors like Lee Smith and Adriana Trigiani, while breaking new ground of her own, Cathy Rigg has written a heartfelt historical tale of a people and their place that resonates long after the last page is turned.
— Amy Greene, bestselling author of Bloodroot
Cathy Rigg’s That Which Binds Us is historical fiction at its best, showing us exactly what it meant to survive the Civil War as it impacted the old ways in Appalachia. Rigg’s novel is a fine-tuned ballad made of strong women, lost love, and family secrets. The characters are ones I recognize via my own ancestors, and its setting—from Cumberland Gap to Pound—is a place I know and love. This is a novel I will long remember.
— Karen Salyer McElmurray, author of Wanting Radiance and I Could Name God in Twelve Ways
Cathy Rigg’s ability to evoke place is special. While reading her captivating debut novel, That Which Binds Us, one feels the mountains of Southwest Virginia beneath one’s feet. The ridges and seasons fill the reader’s eyes, nose, and ears—a literary feat made more astonishing by the equally dizzying ease with which Rigg transports her reader to a world nearly two centuries gone. Research and imagination meld with crack storytelling skills to make That Which Binds Us a brilliant depiction of the Civil War years in the Appalachian mountains and one humdinger of a read.
— Robert Gipe, author of Trampoline, Weedeater, and Pop
Even a close-knit, isolated mountain community in southwest Virginia cannot escape the terrors of the American Civil War in this multi-voiced story told cleverly by Cathy Rigg. That Which Binds Us is unforgettable historical fiction about the saga and secrets of tenacious Elizabeth Young, her family, and neighbors whose realities are brought to life through Rigg’s scrupulous attention to one small corner of Appalachia, documenting place, culture, and language with loving kindness.
— Marianne Worthington, author of The Girl Singer
Cathy Rigg’s debut novel offers a rich patchwork of voices, all deeply rooted—and fiercely loyal to—the mountains of Southwest Virginia, and who will, in one way or another, be forever changed by the Civil War. That Which Binds Us is a heartfelt, hard won tale of devotion, endurance, and the inexhaustible resilience of those who call Appalachia home.
— Allison Alsup, author of Foreign Seed
In That Which Binds Us, Cathy Rigg weaves a story rich in history, authentic voices, and a strong sense of place. The characters in this historical fiction are poignantly crafted, and the southern Appalachian landscape is captured in lyrical description. Like the mountains themselves, the storytelling lingers in the heart and imagination.
— Jayne Moore Waldrop, author of Drowned Town
Rigg’s love for the mountains of southwest Virginia resonates on every page, while her decades-long research immerses readers in the mid-nineteenth century through characters that are so well-drawn, they climb off the page and sit alongside you as their story unfolds
—Patricia L. Hudson, author of Traces
Cathy Rigg’s That Which Binds Us is the best sort of historical fiction, bringing real people to life to tell their stories. Every page lives and breathes, and the Civil War itself, in all its horror and loss, comes alive like the people. By letting the characters tell their own story in their own words, we are drawn like moths to a flame. We endure terrible times with them, but we’re ultimately redeemed, as are they, by their love, strength, humanity, and reverence for the land and community they call home.
— Rita Sims Quillen, author of Wayland, Hiding Ezra, and Some Notes You Hold
Cathy Rigg, with her historical novel That Which Binds Us, has laid firm claim to Virginia’s Appalachian Civil War era. And to my heart. This is a story of loss, yes, but also of love — and that’s what bound itself to me.
— Bren McClain, author of One Good Mama Bone
Rigg deposits us in an Appalachia we’ve all read about, but Elizabeth Young’s journey through the Civil War provides a searing, personal exploration of the era. That Which Binds Us compels readers from the first page to the last.
— Laura Leigh Morris, author of The Stone Catchers