Quotes
"Gritty and intense."—O, The Oprah Magazine
"A heart-pounding tale... Riveting and surprising... Kindness helps steer this heartbreaking tale in a heartwarming direction... Rye Curtis keeps us turning pages as Cloris confronts bobcats, hypothermia, starvation, icy inundation, and a strange mountain lion who walks backwards... Predicated on a cataclysmic, life-changing accident, Kingdomtide offers a transportive read... A stirring debut."—Heller McAlpin, NPR
"A startling reversal to the typical survival story... Abounds in homespun sensory detail... Rye Curtis complicates the expected adventure-novel payoff... Cloris's narration grows increasingly vulnerable, surprising, and profound. The wonder of her ordeal has detached her from ordinary cares yet made her ravenously curious about the big, unanswerable questions."—Sam Sacks, Wall Street Journal
"Rye Curtis's debut novel, Kingdomtide, is that rare genre-fluid story that is lovable both because of and despite its surfeit of eccentric, over-the-top characters and moments. Some are gritty and dark, others light and wise; together they create an impressive first book and a highly original tale of adventure and perseverance... Cloris Waldrip is immediately irresistible. Her first-person voice bubbles with a sage vibrancy as well as sometimes laugh-out-loud wit... It's Waldrip who suggests that life stories are shaped by those who live to retell them---something she has done in this narrative with formidable grace... Kingdomtide is a distinctive and inventive story about nonconformity, resilience, and the ways we draw strength from unlikely places."—Janet Kinosian, Los Angeles Times
"Harrowing... In beautiful prose this horrifying and brutal work of art bounces between Cloris's and Debra's narratives. Together, these unforgettable women create a unique literary novel full of suspense and twists... The entire cast of characters is layered and raw... Underneath this gritty and dark tale is the message that sometimes heroism and kindness emerge from those we despise and fear the most."—Tiah Beautement, Sunday Times
"Vivid... an enthralling debut."—The Guardian
"Kingdomtide is a truly spectacular first novel: weird, tender, funny, grotesque--above all, deeply, achingly human. It tugged at my thoughts during the days I spent reading it, and has made for itself a permanent place in my memory."—Jennifer Egan, Pulitzer prize-winning author of Manhattan Beach and A Visit from the Goon Squad
"Rye Curtis's debut novel is an astonishing work. His powerful and convincing characters are at risk in a harsh and beautiful landscape in which the best and worst are revealed, and nothing is as it initially seems. Kingdomtide is at once a page-turner and a meditation on the complexity of the human experience and spirit."—Daniel Woodrell, author of Winter's Bone and The Maid's Version
"An entertaining debut...The characters are appealing (you'll love Cloris) and the story is suspenseful, with a nice touch of humor."—Christina Ianzito, AARP
"An unforgettable experience... The author is an extraordinary writer whose books will surely be eagerly anticipated and welcomed with glee."—C.C. Harrison, New York Journal of Books