Shannon's USA Road Trip Round 2

USA Road Trip: Starting over from scratch.

Alabama: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Cafe by Fannie Flagg (2025)

Alaska:

Arizona: Dinosaurs by Lydia Millet (2023)

Arkansas:

California:

Colorado: Nowhere Burning by Catriona Ward (2026)

Connecticut: The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker (2024)

Delaware:

Florida: The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton (2023)

Georgia: The House Next Door by Anne Rivers Siddons (2025)

Hawaii:

Idaho:

Illinois:

Indiana:

Iowa: The Houseboat by Dane Bahr (2023)

Kansas: Under the Rainbow by Celia Laskey (2025)

Kentucky:

Louisiana:

Maine: Salem's Lot by Stephen King (2025)

Maryland: Kindred by Octavia Butler (2024)

Massachusetts: The House on Buzzards Bay by Dwyer Murphy (2025)

Michigan: Tom Lake by Ann Patchett (2025)

Minnesota: This Town Sleeps by Dennis E. Staples (2023)

Mississippi: The Trees by Percival Everett (2023)

Missouri: James by Percival Everett (2026)

Montana: Lone Women by Victor LaValle (2023)

Cont. from previous...

Nebraska:

Nevada:

New Hampshire: I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai (2024)

New Jersey:

New Mexico: The Better Liar by Tanen Jones (2024)

New York: Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (2024)

North Carolina:

North Dakota:

Ohio: The End of the Road by Andrew Welsh-Huggins (2023)

Oklahoma:

Oregon:

Pennsylvania: Appointment in Samarra by John O'Hara (2024)

Rhode Island:

South Carolina: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix (2023)

South Dakota:

Tennessee: Now Is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson (2025)

Texas:

Utah:

Vermont:

Virginia: The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff (2026)

Washington: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (2023)

Washington, D.C.: Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian (2024)

West Virginia:

Wisconsin:

Wyoming:

Kudos for starting your second road trip. Do you chose books set in a particular state regardless of where the author is from? I've been trying to choose books both set in the state and with a native author. Hard in these times when people move so much.

>3 labfs39: Yes, it's generally easier to discover the setting for a book than track down an author's home state, unless the author happens to be from my home state and I know that about them. I imagine your method might be easier with older books where the authors are likely more associated with their state.

Oregon: Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff VanderMeer

A hard-boiled detective novel set in a vaguely apocalyptic near future. The setting is only specified as the Pacific Northwest, but from context I can tell a lot of the book is set in Oregon. However, I may trade this one out if I happen to read another book more explicitly set in Oregon.

Massachusetts: No Gods, No Monsters by Cadwell Turnbull

An urban fantasy set mainly around Boston, Massachusetts

Washington: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

A family story with some chapters narrated by an octopus set in a small town called Sowell Bay on Puget Sound

Rhode Island: The Pallbearers' Club by Paul Tremblay

Set partly in Providence and partly in Beverly, Massachusetts

New York: Vladimir by Julia May Jonas

Set at an upstate liberal arts college.

Maine: Gwendy's Magic Feather by Richard Chizmar

Stephen King's famous town of Castle Rock, Maine

South Carolina: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

Set mostly in Charleston, South Carolina

Tennessee: Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

Set in Nashville, Tennessee

Florida: The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton

Set in the fictional town of Rudder, Florida

Idaho: Beulah by Christi Nogle

Set in the fictional small town of Beulah, Idaho

Iowa: The Houseboat by Dane Bahr

Set in the fictional small town of Oscar, Iowa

Ohio: The End of the Road by Andrew Welsh-Huggins

Set in a small town and on a farm in rural Amish country, Ohio

Arizona: Dinosaurs by Lydia Millet

Set outside of Phoenix.

Mississippi: The Trees by Percival Everett

Set in the small town of Money

>16 sturlington:
Excellent read! Took me completely by surprise.

>17 Willoyd: I really enjoyed it. Totally bonkers but also very emotionally effective.

>18 sturlington: Totally agree. Really opened my eyes though to that whole affair - emphasised by the recent film. I've bought a couple of his other books to try - I never cease to be amazed how many American writers who are obviously well know on that side of the pond are virtually unknown here in the UK. My tour is proving a revelation (I read Faulkner - who, of course, is well know here but still not at the same level - for Mississippi, and was blown away - just brilliant).

Montana: Lone Women by Victor LaValle

Set in the frontier town of Big Sandy.

Minnesota: This Town Sleeps by Dennis E. Staples

Set in the small Native American reservation town of Geshig.

North Carolina: Three Graves Full by Jamie Mason

The setting wasn't explicitly named as North Carolina, but the author lives here and the book is tagged North Carolina, and since I'm very familiar with the setting, it definitely could take place here, so I'm counting it.

New Hampshire: I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai.

Set in a boarding school in rural New Hampshire.

California: American Mermaid by Julia Langbein

Set in Hollywood and Los Angeles.

Maryland: Kindred by Octavia Butler.

Set on 19th-century plantation.

Washington DC: Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian

Stand-in for Delaware.

Maine: Looking Glass Sound by Catriona Ward

I replaced my earlier selection because the sense of place is so much stronger in this novel.

Connecticut: The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker

Fictional town of Bellflower Village.

Pennsylvania: Appointment in Samarra by John O'Hara

Fictional small town of Gibbsville.

Kansas: You Like It Darker by Stephen King

Specifically, the story "Danny Coughlin's Bad Dream." A bit of a cheat to count a short story, but it is a long story, and Kansas is a difficult get.

Michigan: Grievers by adrienne maree brown

Set in Detroit and really an elegy for that city.

New Mexico: The Better Liar by Tanen Jones

Set in Albuquerque.

Missouri: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.

Set in the small town of North Carthage. This was a reread.

Nevada: Prophet by Sin Blache and Helen Macdonald

This had several settings but the climax took place on a secret military base in the Nevada desert.

Virginia: All the Sinners Bleed by S. A. Cosby

Set in the fictional Charon County on the coast of Virginia.

I started this thread over. Books read are since 2023. See the list at the top.

Recent additions (2025-2026 reads):
Nowhere Burning - Colorado
James - Missouri
Salem's Lot - Maine
The House on Buzzards Bay - Massachusetts
Kindred - Maryland
The Vaster Wilds - Virginia
Tom Lake - Michigan
Now Is Not the Time to Panic - Tennessee
Under the Rainbow - Kansas
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe - Alabama
The House Next Door - Georgia
Long Island Compromise - New York