The sinking of a village.

Jordan Elizabeth is a new author to me, but as her main work appears to be fantasy and erotica, that's not really surprising. Delta, however, is an historical fiction novel, centred around the creation of Lake Delta above the nineteenth century village by the same name. The narrative includes a touch of the magical, but magic in terms of people's beliefs at the time.

Lottie is the eldest daughter of the Madison family. She attends the small village school and helps her family with daily chores. Her life seems quite normal until news arrives that the village is to be cleared to open the way for a reservoir. The village is in turmoil but her family seems to be strangely calm.
There are some interesting seeds sewn at the beginning of the novella, when Lottie visits a Medium who predicts water in her future and declares that she is not who she thinks she is.

I was prompted to do a bit of research around the village of Delta, which was flooded in the early 20th Century. What was the Mohawk River, nr Rome in the State of New York, is now the beautiful State Park. Businesses and homes were either raised to the ground, or removed to other locations. People were offered some financial recompense, but finding a farm to buy was challenging. Most seemed to head towards family in other parts of the State.
The flooding was intended to enlarge the canal system in the state, for commercial transport, but sadly, within a few years of these events, the train system took over and the canals became disused.

This was an enjoyable listen but could well have been a much longer novel, rather than a novella; there is plenty to flesh out and add detail to.
Well read by Danae Bianes.

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