Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson

Ebby Freeman goes to stay at her friend's cottage in France after her fiance Henry doesn't turn up for their wedding. Ebby is already carrying the trauma of witnessing her brother's murder 20 years earlier and throughout the story we go back in time to that day and even further back to the history of the Freeman family and the maker of the family heirloom, a vase called Old Mo.

Oh wow, this book is BRILLIANT! I'm in awe of the author's ability to weave a modern day story with generations of family history and such important themes - slavery, trauma, prejudice, loss and grief to name but a few. I loved every minute of it and can't wait to read what the author writes next. Very VERY highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Brilliant storytelling. I was so excited to receive this ARC, as I absolutely loved 'Black Cake'. I certainly wasn't disappointed with the author's second novel.
This book had it all - strong characters, history, romance, family drama and I always love to come away from a much enjoyed novel to have also learnt a little something. In this case, I hadn't realised that slaves were not allowed to learn to read and write, with heavy penalties for those who dared to teach them.
The novel's main character is Ebby and how her life is affected by a family tragedy when she was 10 years old. The author covers the lives of African Americans during the enslaved period and brings it right upto date with Ebby's family.
Highly recommend.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC.

Ebby Freeman never gets over the trauma of her brothers murder when a child and when later she is jilted on her wedding day she escapes to France to start again. When she thinks she has made a new life for herself after a tragic past and is enjoying her life again when her ex turns up with his new girlfriend causing deep emotions to resurface.
The story did hop a lot between time zones so I did get a bit confused with the characters but you can still follow the overall story.

Thanks to NetGalley and The Publisher for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Charmaine Wilkerson proves herself as a master story teller with her second novel Good Dirt. Despite the heartbreaking storyline, the was also page turning compelling read. Part historical Fiction, Mystery, Family Drama and Romance, this book has it all. I especially enjoyed how the story was told from multiple perspectives over changing time line without being confusing - well done!

I loved Black Cake and Good Dirt did not disappoint. Emotive and captivating, I was fully drawn into Ebby's inner world. I would definitely recommend.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review

Wow. This has finished my reading year on a high, in fact, one of the best books I have read in 2024. This is beautifully written, important, informative and touching with real, raw and lovable characters grappling with trauma, love and historical legacies. I can only recommend that everyone reads this book. Ebby was a fantastic character and I also really enjoyed the perspective of Avery, as well as the flashbacks to the origins of Old Mo, a character in its own right. It was fantastically researched and extremely well plotted, I struggled to put it down! 5 stars!

In Good Dirt is a poignant and multi-layered tale of family, grief, and resilience, masterfully weaving together elements of history, romance, and mystery. The story follows Ebby Freeman, who travels to France for a much-needed escape from her complicated life, only to be confronted by her ex-fiancé Henry—unexpectedly accompanied by his new girlfriend. This chance encounter unearths a tidal wave of unresolved emotions and memories tied to her family's devastating past.

Nearly two decades earlier, the Freemans were the only African American family in a wealthy coastal enclave in Connecticut. Their idyllic life was shattered when armed robbers invaded their home, leaving Ebby's brother Baz murdered and the family's cherished stoneware jar—a symbol of their ancestral legacy—destroyed. The murder was never solved, and the loss of both Baz and the jar cast a long shadow over the Freemans' lives.

As Ebby navigates her painful past and the heartbreak of being abandoned at the altar years later, she is forced to confront not only the tragedy that redefined her family but also the hope that the lost jar might still hold the key to reclaiming her future.

Told from multiple perspectives, In Good Dirt provides a richly layered narrative that moves seamlessly between past and present, revealing the Freeman family’s roots, their resilience, and the symbolic importance of the jar that once bound them together. The story deftly explores themes of grief, trauma, and the enduring impact of family history, as well as the complex intersections of race, privilege, and belonging.

Ebby emerges as a deeply relatable and compelling protagonist. Her struggles with love, loss, and self-discovery are beautifully portrayed, and the emotional depth of her journey resonates long after the final page. The author’s exploration of grief is particularly exceptional, presenting it as a multifaceted and deeply personal experience.

This book is a captivating mix of family saga, historical fiction, and contemporary drama. Fans of richly drawn characters and stories that delve into the complexities of heritage and healing will find In Good Dirt a deeply moving and memorable read.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

She's done it again! ,Wilkerson written a book that is captivating and thought-provoking. This time, it's exploring how a personal childhood tragedy shapes a person's identity.

It's clever. Don't miss this book when it comes out in 2025.

So this was a good read. I was a big fan of the authors previous novel Black Cake, so this was a really anticipated read for me.
Ebby has just been jolted at the alter by her fiance. She’s also still very scarred by the murder of her brother many years earlier, which she witnessed, with the crime unsolved. Her brother was killed by two masked men who broke in, and during the tragic events a hugely meaningful old vase was broken.

This vase had been made by the family’s ancestors who had been slaves. And so intertwined with Ebbys current story is the story of the vase, the ancestors and a deep insight into slavery.

The story time hops A LOT and I did lose track of where I was at and who the characters were. However I never lost the heart of this novel. And whilst there are dark themes there is a tremendous amount of love too.

Ebby never got over the murder of her brother. An escape to France, a chance encounter, a rich family heirloom; past and present are intertwined in this very enjoyable book.

Focussing on Ebby Freeman, the trauma left in the wake of her brothers murder and the history of her family, Good Dirt is an ambitious and entertaining read.

Ebby Freeman has never really recovered from the murder of her beloved brother when she was just a child. Now almost 30, a further trauma has seen her leave America for France. It is not as straightforward as she hoped however and she is forced to confront her unresolved feelings that she has held at bay for so long.

Running through Ebbys story is the story of her family, the Freemans. An affluent black family with a proud pedigree, they are still struggling on many levels to live and to be accepted in a white world. The history of the family traces back hundreds of years through to slavery and escape and emancipation and I loveld that Old Moe - a pot was used to tell this story.

All these parts are really cleverly pieced together though sometimes the threads of the story were too brief to engage with so they felt like more of a distraction from the main story than a warranted addition.

All in all though a thoroughly enjoyable read

Emotional, captivating, heartbreaking and twisty, Good Dirt is a stunning read. I loved Ebony, the different stories and perspectives entwined within her own. I was on the edge of my seat as certain secrets were revealed. Five stars.

I enjoyed this book. It's the history of the Freeman family, linked by a piece of pottery handed down between generations. I enjoyed the writing about the contemporary family most, Ebby is appealing, and her parents and grandparents are admirable, and well-written characters. It moved me to tears in parts. Recommended.

I loved Black Cake - the book as well as the TV show - and was really excited to read this new book from Charmaine Wilkerson. Thank you for gifting me this ARC Netgalley!

Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for my e-copy in exchange for a review. Absolutely loved this book. Ebby is getting married to Henry when he calls the wedding off on the actual day of the wedding. She decides to take a trip to France to get away from it all. Also 20 years prior to that a terrible tragedy struck the family and to this day it still heavily effects them. Without giving too much away when in France she doesn't really achieve the goal of getting away from everything. Heavily rooted throughout the book is an old jar made by Ebby's long distance relative who was once held captive as a slave and the history and travels the jar has undertaken which I loved being woven through the story with the narrator changing generations. Topics covered are family, love, race and the ocean also playing a big part. 4.5 stars I will be recommending to others and looking out for future books from this author.

Absolutely brilliant, loved it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me an advance copy, I will definitely be recommending.

There are parts of this book which I really enjoyed - the story of Ebby and how she copes or does not cope with the various traumas in her life. The mystery surrounding her brother's death was compelling - to the extent that I wanted to know more, what happened to the killers? What about the mystery neighbour who 'died in 9/11'?

The slavery back story was interesting but went down too many rabbit holes, with too many characters and too much detail. There were some people who turned up for a few pages and then disappeared, this detracted from the tension building in the modern day timeline.

A thriller with a historical back story running throughout - perhaps I wanted a simple thriller!

Wilkerson is excellent at her craft, and Good Dirt is the exploration of a family with trauma, secrets, miscommunication, grief and ancestors who were enslaved.
It is mainly Ebby’s story, who witnessed something tragic as a child, and after a life changing moment, travels to France.
We go back and forth between different timelines and character stories, all united under the same family’s experiences.
Because of the author’s skill and the themes, I am very curious about her debut, thanks to reading Good Dirt. It has helped me discover the author, and experience her storytelling.
As for Good Dirt, it is more of a 3-star read for me because I found the jumping between multiple plotlines and many characters distracting, and the pacing was not even in my opinion. I do not DNF books unless it is a massive mismatch, and I am glad I persisted with this one, because I found many parts after the first third of the book to be more engaging.
And yet, I admit that this is a matter of personal taste to some extent, and if you are willing to study each member of the Freeman family and timeline and will not lose your flow, this is a 4-5 star read for you.

I read and loved Wilkerson's debut, Black Cake, so I was very excited to be given the chance to read this, her second novel. Wilkerson is strong on structure, weaving multiple stories and timelines to create a richly imagined world for the characters who inhabit her novels. It was one of the things I loved about Black Cake and I loved it here, too.

Ebby Freeman is from a distinguished black family that can trace their roots back four hundred years in what is now, primarily an area established by rich, white families. Ebby's family have suffered trauma, from the death of her brother to the shock collapse of her wedding to the son of a wealthy, white family and the scandal that arises. Ebby runs away to France to try and get some space and quiet from the betrayal of her fiancé but fate has other ideas. Ebby's past rises up to meet her and she must attempt to disentangle the strands of her past from the possibility of her future.

Wilkerson's scope here has been ambitious and I admire her skill for telling stories, but in this book there were times I felt a little distracted by extraneous characters or plot lines I didn't care about, which for me, detracted from both Ebby's and Old Mo's story which were the beating heart of this book. Having said that, this is a great read and I am genuinely excited to follow and read whatever she does next.