The Appalachian Echo-August 2026

"A beautiful tribute to a fading piece of unique Americana. This is a novel for book clubs to savor.” — Pamela Klinger-Horn, Valley Bookseller, Literature Lovers’ Night Out

The Creek, the Crone, and the Crow

On a warm June day at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva, North Carolina, afternoon sunlight streams through the windows as author Leah Weiss discusses darkness and grit. She imbues her characters with these qualities because, quite simply, complicated characters make for more interesting stories. “These are the characters readers enjoy most,” she says, explaining that every story needs a balance between light and dark.

The newest installment in her Appalachian tales certainly reflects that spirit. After publishing her first two novels, featuring complex characters that force readers to question everything they thought they knew, “everyone kept asking what happened to them,” she explains. The Creek, the Crone, and the Crow answers those questions and a lot more.

C3, as Weiss affectionately calls it, continues the story of fan-favorite characters from previous novels. In the summer of 1980,  teacher Kate Shaw prepares to leave town as the last one-room schoolhouse in North Carolina is slated to close. The skeptical Kate rejects Appalachian folklore and superstition, much to the disappointment of reclusive local witch and keeper of secrets, Birdie Rocas. The tale takes a surprising turn when a sudden death, a shocking request, and a centuries-old legacy throw Kate into a new world and send her on a journey of discovery.

She meets Lydia Brown, a psychic with a curious birthmark who has arrived in town seeking answers to her own questions. After her visions stopped when she needed them most, the grief-stricken Lydia travels to Baines Creek in search of guidance… and Birdie. As the characters collide, they uncover a secret sisterhood of empowerment that unlocks their spiritual healing.

In a tale described as having a “strong sense of place and steeped in Appalachian lore” (Amy Dance, The Snail on the Wall), Weiss infuses the story with her own imaginings of real North Carolina history.

A page from an illuminated manuscript, too old to have originated in the colonies, has long generated intrigue among scholars. Weiss pulls the artifact into her tale, offering a creative yet entirely plausible explanation that spans continents and generations.

“When you see these historical moments or facts mentioned in my books, Google them. They’re real,” Weiss reveals. The result is a touching, wildly imaginative journey through Appalachia, blending history, superstition, and strong female characters in trademark Weiss style.

About the Author

Leah Weiss is an acclaimed Southern author, born in North Carolina and living in Virginia. In her late fifties, she began writing memoirs about her mother’s humble life on a tobacco farm in North Carolina. Those and other short stories have appeared in Deep South Magazine, Serving House Journal, and A Simple Life Magazine. In 2015, Leah retired from a 24-year career as the Headmaster’s Assistant at Virginia Episcopal School, signed with a New York agent, and began her writing career.

Subsequently, Weiss has published three books in her 70s: If the Creek Don’t Rise, All the Little Hopes, and The Creek, the Crone and the Crow. Her books have been honored as LibraryReads; Indie Next; and a SIBA Okra Pick; selected as finalists for the Library of Virginia’s Literary Awards, and nominated for the Southern Book Prize. Her third novel is a return to Appalachia and Baines Creek and is told by beloved characters from the first two books. Weiss’s novels have sold more than 250,000 copies.