Histria Books is pleased to announce the release of A Stone from the River Rhine by Rita Welty Bourke. This novel is published by Histria Fiction, an imprint of Histria Books dedicated to outstanding original works of fiction.
A Stone from the River Rhine tracks two migrations separated by centuries but anchored by a single bloodline. In 1750, Johannes Welde leaves his German village to survive a brutal Atlantic crossing and indentured servitude in America. Generations later, his descendant retraces his path in reverse, traveling down the Rhine River to process the impending loss of her brother.
The novel’s real power lies in how Bourke refuses to romanticize the immigrant experience. Instead of treating history as a static set piece, she approaches it as a living weight modern families still carry. The historical chapters are rooted in visceral physical survival, while the contemporary timeline offers a sharp, unsentimental look at adult sibling bonds and the messy reality of grief. Readers right now want stories connecting ancestral trauma with present day healing. Bourke delivers exactly that, showing how the geography we leave behind dictates who we become.
Rita Welty Bourke is the author of Islomanes of Cumberland Island and Kylie’s Ark: The Making of a Veterinarian, which was selected as a Kirkus Best Indie Book of 2017. She has published over forty works of fiction and nonfiction in acclaimed literary journals, including North American Review and Shenandoah. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
