Buckeye: One town. Two families. A secret that changes everything by Patrick Ryan | Contemporary Fiction

Experience a luminous and tender 20th-century saga of wounded souls and small-town secrets in Patrick Ryan's acclaimed novel, Buckeye. This big-hearted phenomenon, hailed by readers as their book of the year, weaves a compelling narrative of interconnected lives and buried truths.

The Story: In the quiet town of Bonhomie, Ohio, Cal Jenkins seeks an honest life, while his intuitive wife Becky senses unseen dangers. Across town, Margaret Salt harbors lifelong secrets, and her husband Felix struggles to meet societal expectations. Their lives become irrevocably intertwined on V-E Day through a single, stolen moment. As the world transitions from war to an uneasy peace, the consequences of that fateful day ripple forward, drawing the next generation into its powerful current. In a town where nothing stays hidden, the question remains: how long can the truth remain buried?

Praise for Buckeye:

• "A luminous and tender 20th-century saga of wounded souls and small-town secrets" - The Guardian
• "A thing of wonder" - Chris Whitaker
• "Buckeye is that book, and it soars" - Tom Hanks
• "A glorious sweep of a novel" - Ann Patchett
• "Written in the key of Dickens . it's not just a great Midwestern novel, it's a great novel, period" - Financial Times
• "A poignant, powerful exploration of small-town America" - Independent, Book of the Month

Specifications:

• Author: Patrick Ryan
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Publication Date: September 1, 2026
• Language: English
• Print Length: 480 pages
• Binding: Paperback
• Dimensions: 13.2 x 4.2 x 19.6 cm
• Weight: 332 g
• ISBN-10: 1526689278
• ISBN-13: 978-1526689276
• EAN: 9781526689276
• Release Date: 1 Sep 2026

Buckeye is a masterful exploration of family, secrets, and the enduring impact of the past, making it a must-read for fans of contemporary and literary fiction.