What the Mountains Remember

A Novel

By: Joy Callaway

Narrated by: Brittany Pressley

"Joy Callaway weaves a dramatic, heartfelt story of self-discovery and a hard-won love against the stunning backdrop the 'Eighth Wonder of the World.'" --Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author of Time is a River

At this wondrous resort, secrets can easily be hidden in plain sight when the eye is trained on beauty.

April 1913--Belle Newbold hasn't seen mountains for seven years--since her father died in a mining accident and her mother married oil and gas magnate, Shipley Newbold. But when her stepfather's business acquaintance, Henry Ford, invites the family on one of his famous Vagabonds camping tours, she is forced to face the hills once again--primarily in order to reunite with her future fiancé, owner of the land the Vagabonds are using for their campsite, a man she's only met once before. It is a veritable arranged marriage, but she prefers it that way. Belle isn't interested in love. She only wants a simple life--a family of her own and the stability of a wealthy man's pockets. That's what Worth Delafield has promised to give her and it's worth facing the mountains again, the reminder of the past, and her poverty, to secure her future.

But when the Vagabonds group is invited to tour the unfinished Grove Park Inn and Belle is unexpectedly thrust into a role researching and writing about the building of the inn--a construction the locals are calling The Eighth Wonder of the World--she quickly realizes that these mountains are no different from the ones she once called home. As Belle peels back the facade of Grove Park Inn, of Worth, of the society she's come to claim as her own, and the truth of her heart, she begins to see that perhaps her part in Grove Park's story isn't a coincidence after all. Perhaps it is only by watching a wonder rise from ordinary hands and mountain stone that she can finally find the strength to piece together the long-destroyed path toward who she was meant to be.

International bestselling author Joy Callaway returns with a story of the ordinary people behind extraordinary beauty--and the question of who gets to tell their stories.

Praise for What the Mountains Remember:

"Callaway is back with another insightful rendering of a place and time in history, bringing her trademark attention to detail, warmth, and heart to a story centered around one of the nation's most beautiful and fabled hotels, the Grove Park Inn in Asheville NC."?--Marybeth Mayhew Whalen, author of ten novels and cofounder of The Book Tide

"A stunning portrayal of the building of the Grove Park Inn that reveals not only its grandeur, but also the struggles of the laborers tasked with its construction, Joy Callaway brings the famed Vagabonds to life with immaculate research and rich details in this intriguing, elegantly written historical fiction that readers are going to love!" --Madeline Martin, New York Times bestselling author of The Keeper of Hidden Books

• Perfect for fans of The Only Woman in the Room and A Well-Behaved Woman
• Stand-alone novel

©2024 Joy Callaway (P)2024 Harper Muse

Critic reviews

'An emotionally moving novel, Calloway's, WHAT THE MOUNTAINS REMEMBER takes us down an entertaining path that explores memories from the past with forging a new future, and how the hardships we've endured make us stronger. With cameos from some of Americas motorcar icons, and the builders of the Grove Park Inn, this meticulously researched novel is an adventurous transport through the hills and forests of North Carolina the mountains of West Virginia, with characters you'll root for, and a few you'll love to loathe. This drama-packed page turner will warm your heart, and keep you turning the pages late into the night!'—Eliza Knight, USA Today and international bestselling author of STARRING ADELE ASTAIRE

'Joy Callaway never fails to bring the past to life in brilliant color. This book has it all: the lush mystery of the mountains, the dauntless resolve of a woman at work, and the breathtaking art of building something that will last for generations. I absolutely loved it.'—Amy Jo Burns, author of MERCURY

'WHAT THE MOUNTAINS REMEMBER brings the reader to the lush landscape of the Blue Ridge Mountains with an elegant group of famous society glampers to observe the construction of the fabled Grove Park Inn. A young woman confronts class distinction and the restraints of a woman's place set against the hardscrabble lives of the laborers. Joy Calloway weaves a dramatic, heartfelt story of self-discovery and a hard-won love against the stunning backdrop the 'Eighth Wonder of the World.''—Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author of TIME IS A RIVER

Surprisingly excellent!!

unexpectedly intriguing story that weaves together so many story lines together with historical facets of the early 1900s while tugging on heartstrings. Very well writen and performed.

Fantastic reading. Intriguing story.

The reader does a great job encompassing the characters of the book. The twists and turns of the drama keep you alert and engaged. Historical fiction is always interesting to me.

Everyone has a purpose

Loved listening to how the Grove Park Inn was constructed and thinking about how hard it must have been in that time to build and finish the inn without modern day equipment. Enjoyed Bella’s story and her discovering her gift for writing, finding love, and also giving credit to all the people it took to build the inn, not just the money that paid for it. Wonderfully written.

I live in Asheville. I could feel every ounce of this book.

I could feel every ounce of this book. I wish this was a movie to go along with it.