What Happened in Beulah? by Christy Scott Cashman

 

WHAT HAPPENED IN BEULAH

by Christy Scott Cashman

October 19 - November 13, 2026 Virtual Book Tour

Synopsis:

A teenage girl uncovers the dark secrets of her Smoky Mountain town while searching for a missing classmate in this gripping coming-of-age mystery perfect for fans of Where the Crawdads Sing.

Nestled in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, Beulah has always seemed steady—rooted in tradition, shaped by generations, and slow to change. But in 1986, the ground has shifted, and no one feels that more than fifteen-year-old Barrett Childress Owens. Between her parents’ unraveling marriage and a school full of kids she can’t connect with, she feels invisible in her own hometown.

When Lacy Gunderson, the captivating new girl everyone is curious about, suddenly vanishes, the town’s calm surface fractures. Search parties comb the woods. A police investigation begins. Rumors multiply. Families close ranks. And Barrett begins to sense how much the adults around her choose not to say. As Beulah clings to its usual rituals—including the annual Miss Kudzu pageant, which has shaped local girlhood for decades—Barrett is forced to navigate a community where loss lingers in the air and secrets are carefully kept. Her journey through the uncertainty reshapes her understanding of friendships, family, and the complex place she calls home.

A rich coming-of-age story with a pulse of mystery and a budding romance, What Happened in Beulah explores the fault lines of a small town and the courage it takes to face the truths people would rather bury.

Praise for What Happened in Beluah:

"What Happened in Beluah is a wonderful book—funny, sharp and poignant. It's a story designed for all of us, of all ages, all wisdoms. It points to the necessity of recovery. It's a novel of ghosts present and ghosts past, with alcoholics and dreamers and preachers and small town grifters all coming together in one place—the everywhere of guilt and consequence, the kudzu of our lives."
~ Colum McCann, author of Apeirogon and Twist

"What Happened in Beulah cannot but remind us of what Hemingway said: ‘There is no friend as loyal as a book.’ Here, page after page, Christy Scott Cashman succeeds in making the reader hang onto the story as the drama on Beulah’s seemingly calm surface ruptures like a scene of serene rain that suddenly modulates into a rumbling thunderstorm. I'm sure the book will be a loyal friend to many readers."
~ Patrick Kabanda, author of The Creative Wealth of Nations

My Review:

The first half of the novel is pretty much coming of age. Barrett's parents are divorced and her mother is an alcoholic. Barrett doesn't feel like she fits in at school and struggles for acceptance. And then her best friend is suddenly friends with the newcomer, Lacy. Up to this point the novel seems to be the typical coming of age style. I liked the general exploration of feeling like one does not fit in. There is a twist, however, as later there is the issue of an adult having those same feelings.

Halfway through the novel the atmosphere changes. Lacy is missing and a mystery develops. The novel became more engaging to this mystery lover. I like how Cashman created uncertainty as to what happened to Lacy. There is real concern by Barrett, who hit something with the car while driving the very night of Lacy's disappearance. Barrett faces the possibility she might somehow be responsible for Lacy's demise.

I found this novel held the interest of this senior citizen, even though it is of the young adult genre. The atmosphere of the Tennessee hills in the 1980s is well presented. The youth there are certainly more foul mouthed than where I grew up. It is an entertaining novel of life in the 1980s hills of Tennessee with a little mystery thrown in.

My rating: 4/5 stars. 

Book Details:

Genre: YA Mystery, Coming of Age
Published by: She Writes Press
Publication Date: October 20, 2026
Number of Pages: 288 pages, Paperback
ISBN: 9798896364801
Book Links: Amazon | Kindle | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads | BookBub | She Writes Press

Read an excerpt:

 

Author Bio:

Christy Scott Cashman is a best-selling and award-winning author with multiple national honors. A writer, actress, and producer, she has decades of storytelling experience across film, literature, and the arts. Christy is the founder of YouthINK, a creative arts foundation empowering young people through imagination and expression, and serves on the Board of the Associates of the Boston Public Library. Christy divides her time between Boston, Massachusetts, Martha’s Vineyard, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she enjoys family life with three dogs and four horses.

Catch Up With Christy Scott Cashman:

christycashman.com
Goodreads
Instagram - @cashman.christy
Facebook - @christycashmanauthor

 

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I received a complimentary egalley of this book through Partners in Crime Book Tours. My comments are an independent review.

(My star ratings: 5-An exceptional book, 4-Better than average, relevant and liked by me, 3-It is average, 2-It is below average and not liked by me, 1-It is practically unreadable.)