PSA: This book contains sexual assault and some gross/gory/disturbing descriptions

This book was not at all what I was expecting when I first picked it up. Right off the bat there were some scenes that made me cringe while reading them and I could tell something was off about the character James right away.
I kept having to remind myself that the story took place in the 90s and that, even then, southern lifestyles were different. I thought a lot of the characters were way too trusting (small town southern living doesn’t make sense to me in that way) because I’ve always been taught to be weary of new people.
Once I started reading this though I didn’t want to put it down. It kept me on my toes as I was reading, always wondering what bizarre thing was going to happen next.
I’ve never read anything by this author before but I’d consider picking something of his up in the future