Book Buzz: The Four Wives and Five Deaths of Richard Milford by Nafissa Thompson-Spires

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1 week ago

“A hot-tempered moonshiner and ne’er-do-well with four “wives,” Rich ascribes his brash, abusive behavior to barometric pressure, the electricity remaining in his body and hands from a lightning strike when he was a child. And it almost works for him, until he crosses all of the women in his life at the wrong time. The novel’s conceit stems in part from my attempt to grapple with my family’s and my own trauma and what constitutes truth. But what interests me most here is the lightning, the actual lightning.”

― Nafissa Thompson-Spires, How a Lightning Strike Affected My Identity and My Main Characters, LitHub

What booksellers are saying about The Four Wives and Five Deaths of Richard Milford

A suspicious death with multiple suspects, motives, and means? This is catnip for me! Each part tells a different perspective on Richard Milford’s death, all from vibrant, distinctive personalities. This is a tightly packed short novel that will appeal to mystery readers and lit fic lovers alike.
― Becca, Bookmarks, Winston-Salem, NC | BUY
I usually don’t like unreliable narrators, but this particular story needed that type of narrator to really solidify it. For a short novel, this packed a punch in a few pages. Perfect read for those who want something to read in one sitting. I also loved the writing style.
― Kala, M Judson, Booksellers, Greenville, SC | BUY
Hilarious, endearing, a little magical, and immensely PETTY! If this book were a warm pie on a window sill, I’d be floating nose-first through the air towards it. I’d dislocate my jaw to eat it in one bite, then regret I didn’t savor the moment because it was just so good. This is one of those books that I wish I could experience for the first time over and over again. Rest in p****, Richard Milford. HA!
― Julie, Flyleaf Books, Chapel Hill, NC | BUY

About Nafissa Thompson-Spires

Nafissa Thompson-Spires is the author of the award-winning, National Book Award longlisted short story collection, Heads of the Colored People. Her short fiction and essays have appeared in T he Paris Review Daily, New York magazine’s “The Cut,” The Root, The White Review, Ploughshares, 400 Souls: A Community History of African America 1619–2019, and The 1619 Project, among other publications. In addition to a debut novel, The Four Wives and Five Deaths of Rich Milford, her young adult debut is forthcoming. She is the recipient of a 2024 United States Artists Grant and a 2019 Whiting Award.

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