Blackburn Gant and Jacob Hampton have been friends since they were young children. Blackburn’s face is disfigured from polio. It is now 1951 and Blackburn is the caretaker of the cemetery in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. Jacob is the only living child of the town’s wealthiest family. When he elopes with Naomi Clark, his parents are devastated, feeling that she is not good enough for their son. Soon after Naomi learns she is pregnant, Jacob is sent off to Korea. When he comes home wounded, his conniving, unscrupulous parents make the most of this situation.

The Caretaker is a thoroughly enjoyable read. Ron Rash takes a while to set up “the situation,” but once he does, the book takes off. The Caretaker is an easy, exciting, well-plotted read.