If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O

By: Sharyn McCrumb

Narrated by: Sally Darling

Length: 11 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

Written in grease pencil on a tourist postcard, the lyrics are winsome and innocent. But for famous folk singer Peggy Muryan, who has moved recently to the rural community of Hamelin, Tennessee, they are a chilling reminder of a troubled moment in her past.

©1990 Sharyn McCrumb (P)1993 Recorded Books

great book kept me interested to the very end. Sharyn McCrumb is one of my favorites.

Another Narrator Issue

As a fan of Sharyn McCrumb's Ballad Series I was nonplussed when I noticed that the reader was Sally Darling. I had listened to her come close to ruining my two favorite books in the series and it made my choice to purchase this one more difficult than it should have been. So once the audiobook began I realized I'd been right to worry. The setting for this book is less than a hundred miles from I grew up and still live, so I know hillbilly's and the way they talk. Sally Darling sounds as though she should be reading Jane Eyre not the ballad series. I managed to endure her and get through She Walks These Hills and The Rosewood Casket but I gave up on this one a few hours in when the story couldn't overcome the nerve jangling narrator anymore. Do yourself a favor on this one and get the print version.

An Intriguing Mystery

Intriguing mystery set against the backdrop of Appalachia and memories of the Vietnam war. The twining of folk songs and mountain legends and letters from a Vietnam soldier brings this tale of mystery and suspense to a poignant conclusion of self understanding.

I loved this book!

I loved the story, characters, and narrator. My dad is a Vietnam vet that would never discuss his experience, except with my uncle who was over at the same time as my dad. I do know he was an 18 year old kid sent into full combat, exposed to Agent Orange his entire tour. The experience shaped his early psychological life and has stolen his physical and psychological health in his later years. I felt closer to my dad hearing the experiences of the men and the people that loved them. A conversation between LaDunn (sp?) and Martha really resonated with me. LaDunn described (more eloquently than my description here 😂) how for an entire year they (the soldiers) were never able to relax, scared all of the time, never able to fully sleep, always on alert. Then they are abruptly pulled out and placed back in society to return to the person they were before they left. The author spoke to bravery, respect and tolerance in this one conversation. Bottom line, this is definitely one of my favorites.

A thoughtfully written suspense novel

"There's always a new dead girl to sing about. Always a dead girl."

3.5 stars

The characters and themes in this suspense novel were enough to keep me listening despite the weaknesses of plot. The killer was easy to guess and their motives not well-fleshed out. But the author skillfully populated her fictional Tennessee town with unique characters, using their regrets, resentments and petty revenge to explore compelling topics - casual sexism and mistreatment of women, the struggles of war veterans and the private, unsettling inner lives of ordinary people.

Awful, awful narrator

I love Sharyn McCrumb's work. But am finding the narrator's southern accent (fake!!!) terribly difficult to hear. She is using a Deep South accent not one from East Tennessee. As a native of southwestern Virginia and a citizen in TN for 40 years, I know the difference.

A solid start to the series

A little mystery with interesting characters that might be found in any small southern town. Interesting characters, a tie to events 20 years old, a class reunion, and small town crimes. A good read.

The female characters could be better created, but the main male characters are interesting. The narrative is set in the mid 1980s but refers to events of the mid 1960s and the Vietnam War.

I listened to it on audible. The narrator was pretty good. This is the first in a popular series that has at least ten books.

compelling view of history

I love the entire series, and Sally Darling is the perfect narrator. It’s a good start to a great series

Excellent reader!

Sally Darling reads with a warm, down-home inflection, and I found her singing both lovely and very helpful, as I was unfamiliar with most of the ballads McCrumb referenced. Altogether , a very satisfying read.
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