In Ink Vine and Other Swamp Stories, Elizabeth Broadbent take us on a trip to Lower Congaree. A poverty-stricken South Carolina town surrounded by swamp and sadness. Lucky for me, I was able to read an ARC copy, and meet the inhabitants of Lower Congaree early.

There are 9 stories and one novella in this collection, and it would be worth it for the novella alone. In Ink Vine, we meet Emmy Joiner, an exotic dancer who desperately wants nothing more than to be allowed to be herself and not whoever everyone expects her to be. That one is also a sapphic romance that is achingly beautiful and tragic all at once.

Each of the other 9 stories have that same beauty and ache to them. Southern gothic to the core, and embodies a wistful nostalgia for anyone who may have grown up in that type of small town.

You’ll see recurring characters moving in and out of the stories, each one making you wish you could follow them a little bit longer and get to know them a little bit better.

The only story in here that wasn’t a perfect 5 star from me was To Sing is to See. While it was a perfectly wonderful story of its own (which kept the book as a whole a 5 star read), it just doesn’t have the same feel (to me) as the rest of the tales in this collection.

If you like a good southern gothic style story, I highly recommend you grab this book when it becomes available on March 6, 2026. You will not be disappointed.