Trouble The Water by Rebecca Dwight Bruff

Trouble The Water by Rebecca Dwight Bruff

"Before this decisive night, I'd not fully appreciated the subtle line between inspiration and insanity. But now, with all our lives at risk, I found myself navigating that most perilous edge . . . "

Inspired by the life of an unsung American hero and slave, Trouble the Water navigates the rich tributaries of courage, betrayal, and redemption. In his inspiring journey, Robert Smalls witnesses great privilege and suffering alongside his owner's daughter and the dangerous son of a firebrand secessionist. At the age of twelve, he's sent to work in Charleston, where he loads ships and learns to pilot a cotton steamer. When the Civil War erupts and his cotton steamer becomes a confederate warship, Robert seizes the opportunity to pursue freedom for himself and the people he loves.

"With this stunning debut novel, Rebecca Bruff establishes herself as an exciting new voice in historical fiction." --Cassandra King Conroy, author of Moonrise, and Founding Honorary Chair of the Pat Conroy Literary Center

“Here is a novel that succeeds on every level: its world and characters come alive (my favorite character, aside from the protagonist himself, is “Uncle George”); it entertains and the pages turn easily (I read it in 4 sittings, even though it’s over 300 pages long); it defamiliarizes and causes wonderment (as historical fiction does); it is symmetrical without being overwrought, formally tight without feeling forced (the Russian formalists would say that if you have a gun at the start of the story, it will eventually need to go off. Let’s just say that the prologue and the early chapters in this book “go off” by the end). So if you like that sort of thing in your historical fictions, then Trouble the Water should satisfy your readerly instincts.” The Feathered Quill Book Awards - Trouble the Water was awarded a First Place/ Gold prize for Debut Fiction, and First Place/Gold Prize for Adult Fiction

"I loved returning to the low country, and my God, that writing toward the end about the tides: 'When the tide is out, all the way out, you can smell creation . . .' That passage made me breathless." --Robin Oliveira, author of New York Times bestseller My Name is Mary Suter

"Debut author Rebecca Bruff has made her mark with this exceptional examination of family, freedom, and what it really means to fight for the light." -- Julie Cantrell, New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of Perennials

“Rebecca Bruff has told the remarkable story of the life and times of Robert Smalls. Escaped slave, Civil War combat hero and natural political leader of the Sea Island freedmen. Using all available scholarship, the author has created a believable and sensitive portrait of Smalls and the characters, black and white, who created a true American hero. Trouble the Water may become a Carolina classic.”–Lawrence S. Rowland Distinguished Professor Emeritus, University of South Carolina Beaufort

Rebecca Dwight Bruff is the author of the award-winning debut novel, Trouble the Water, published June 2019, and the non-fiction book, Loving the World with God, published 2014. Bruff earned her Bachelors degree in education at Texas A&M University and Master and Doctorate degrees in theology, both from Southern Methodist University. In 2017, she was a scholarship recipient for the prestigious Key West Literary Seminar. She volunteers at the Pat Conroy Literary Center in Beaufort, South Carolina. She's published non- fiction, plays a little tennis, travels when she can, and loves life in the lowcountry. www.rebeccabruff.com