River Sing Me Home is an excellently well researched historical fiction novel about slavery in the Caribbean in the early 1800s. Rachel is a slave in the 1830s when the end of slavery is announced, but all slaves are forced into apprenticeships essentially continuing their bondage. To her own surprise, Rachel is so dismayed by this news that she decides to run away from her plantation and go searching for the children she has lost to the slave trade. 

Rachel has been the mother to 11 children, five of whom were sold away from her. River Sing Me Home tells us the story of how she finds what happened to each of them and the sweet and bitter reunions she has. I found the character development somewhat lacking, but I do think that must have been a decision to keep the book at an accessible page length and to keep the story moving forward. Still, I found myself bored at time and wishing for more connection to Rachel and those around her. I did love Nobody and his character made the story much richer for me. 

Another criticism I have is the believability here of Rachel to not be found by slave catchers and to find her surviving adult children. I realize we suspend our disbelief frequently as readers, but this was just a bit more than my heart could suspend. I also found the positive outcomes for most of her children very optimistic given the tragedies and horrors of slavery. 

Criticisms aside, the book kept me reading and I loved the descriptions and imagery. I enjoyed learning more about slavery in the Caribbean and I would love to read the next book from Shearer. This was an impressive debut and I do recommend giving it a try if you enjoy historical fiction.