Review: Anywhere You Run – Wanda M. Morris

I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

From the award-winning author of All Her Little Secrets comes yet another gripping, suspenseful novel where, after the murder of a white man in Jim Crow Mississippi, two Black sisters run away to different parts of the country . . . but can they escape the secrets they left behind?

It’s the summer of 1964 and three innocent men are brutally murdered for trying to help Black Mississippians secure the right to vote. Against this backdrop, twenty-one year old Violet Richards finds herself in more trouble than she’s ever been in her life. Suffering a brutal attack of her own, she kills the man responsible. But with the color of Violet’s skin, there is no way she can escape Jim Crow justice in Jackson, Mississippi. Before anyone can find the body or finger her as the killer, she decides to run. With the help of her white beau, Violet escapes. But desperation and fear leads her to hide out in the small rural town of Chillicothe, Georgia, unaware that danger may be closer than she thinks.

Back in Jackson, Marigold, Violet’s older sister, has dreams of attending law school. Working for the Mississippi Summer Project, she has been trying to use her smarts to further the cause of the Black vote. But Marigold is in a different kind of trouble: she’s pregnant and unmarried. After news of the murder brings the police to her door, Marigold sees no choice but to flee Jackson too. She heads North seeking the promise of a better life and no more segregation. But has she made a terrible choice that threatens her life and that of her unborn child?

Two sisters on the run—one from the law, the other from social shame. What they don’t realize is that there’s a man hot on their trail. This man has his own brand of dark secrets and a disturbing motive for finding the sisters that is unknown to everyone but him . . .

From the prologue to the last page, I was so vested in this story that I read it in one sitting.

Anywhere You Run is set in the 60s, and we meet folks that live in Jackson, Mississippi. Three men are brutally murdered, which sets off a chain of events that will forever impact the lives of not only the residents of Miss. but two women, Violet and Marigold. Violet deals with a man who commits a violent crime, and Marigold has a life-changing pregnancy in more ways than one, and they both decide to leave Mississippi. What they endure is what makes this the most compelling read and why I highly recommend it.

Ms. Morris is an excellent writer who ensures you have empathy for most of the characters she brings to life on these pages and a strong dislike for those who need it. This book was so good I plan to reread it. The writing is tight, has well-developed characters, and the timeline is on point. She deals with race, murder, and many issues, yet none are overdone to fill the pages.

I look forward to many more books from her. This book is a book club must-read!

Reviewed by: Linda C.

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