McFadden, Bernice L. Gathering of Waters. Akashic. Jan. 2012. c.250p.  ISBN 9781617750328. $24.95; pap.   ISBN 9781617750311. $15.95. FNAACP Image Award and Hurston/Wright Legacy Award finalist McFadden (Glorious) here reimagines the summer Emmett Till spent in Mississippi in 1955 and the events leading up to his murder. The story chronicles the young love between Emmett and Tass Hilton, which finally transcends death. Having left Mississippi for Detroit after Emmett dies, Tass returns 40 years later as a widow to reawaken his spirit, trapped in the dank waters of the Tallahatchie River. This story is deeply affecting, but the novel’s greatest triumph is the salacious tale of Tass’s grandmother Doll Hilton, as the spirit of this scorned woman refuses to rest, often returning angry and more vindictive than in her previous life: “They beat the goodness and the sweetness out of her. They beat her into the streets, into back alleys, down into the dirt, into the gutter, onto her knees.” The rich text is shaped by the African American storytelling tradition and layered with significant American histories. VERDICT Recalling the woven spirituality of Toni Morrison’s Beloved, this work will appeal to readers of African American and mystic literature.—Ashanti White, Univ. of North Carolina, Greensboro