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A review by judithdcollins
Distant Sons by Tim Johnston
5.0
Master storyteller Tim Johnston returns following The Decent and The Current (both 5 stars) with his sixth novel, DISTANT SONS—an absorbing riveting crime novel/literary fiction set in a small rural Wisconsin town haunted by the unsolved disappearance of three boys in the 1970s with thought-provoking what ifs.
Once again, the author skillfully takes us into rural, blue-collar America with loss, struggles, and ultimately, hope with this gritty suspense novel about how the most random connection of lives can have tragic and beautiful consequences.
The novel opens in 1976 when we learn about the three missing boys. Teddy Felt, Duane Milner, and Billy Ross.
Flash forward to 2018 with Sean Courtland, age 26, making his way through town on the other side of Wisconsin from a job in Montana and on his way home. He passed a few exits and began smelling the engine on the outskirts of town.
A breakdown. Sean will have to get a job in construction to make up for the cash he will ultimately spend on repairs for his Chevy truck.
Then Sean gets involved in a domestic dispute at a bar trying to protect a woman, Denise (bartender), and accidentally hits her. Then, they later become friends, and he gets closer to her and her dad.
We also meet Detective Corrine Viegas (a hoot), a big part of the novel. Sean also meets Dan Young, another outsider down on his luck at the diner who has plumbing skills, and he wants Dan to help him finish the job at Marion Devereaux's house.
He is busy working for the old man. There are rumors about the man on the bluffs who may have been involved in the disappearance of the three boys in the 70s. Also, rumors that it could have been the Devereaux uncle from the war.
Strange things happen at the house and the basement, but Sean keeps his head down and does not get involved since he needs to finish and be on his way.
The paths collide as Detective Corinne Viegas, a woman whose drive to seek justice comes from her father's failure to find those boys and the violence once done to her sister. Soon, events happen with violence, tragic deaths, and long-buried dark secrets, and she is center stage. What is behind those walls?
"Our wills and fates do so contrary run, that our devices still are overthrown. Our thoughts are ours, their ends non of our own."
—Shakespeare
Masterfully written in Johnston's signature classic style that we love —brilliantly blending two timelines and stories will keep you on the edge of your seat. Genre crossing—a mix of literary, crime, suspense, small town, mystery, friendship, and police procedural.
Fans of the author will enjoy characters from previous books—Dan Young and Sean Courtland, whom we met in Descent and The Current.
A slow burn, intricate, and immersive, DISTANT SONS is for fans of authors Allen Eskens, Ron Rash, William Kent Krueger, and Dennis Lehane. I'm a huge fan—I highly recommend all his books.
My Reviews:
The Current
The Descent
Thanks to Algonquin Books and Netgalley for an early reading copy for an honest review.
Blog Review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Oct 17, 2023
My Rating: 5 Stars
Oct 2023 Books
Oct Newsletter
Once again, the author skillfully takes us into rural, blue-collar America with loss, struggles, and ultimately, hope with this gritty suspense novel about how the most random connection of lives can have tragic and beautiful consequences.
The novel opens in 1976 when we learn about the three missing boys. Teddy Felt, Duane Milner, and Billy Ross.
Flash forward to 2018 with Sean Courtland, age 26, making his way through town on the other side of Wisconsin from a job in Montana and on his way home. He passed a few exits and began smelling the engine on the outskirts of town.
A breakdown. Sean will have to get a job in construction to make up for the cash he will ultimately spend on repairs for his Chevy truck.
Then Sean gets involved in a domestic dispute at a bar trying to protect a woman, Denise (bartender), and accidentally hits her. Then, they later become friends, and he gets closer to her and her dad.
We also meet Detective Corrine Viegas (a hoot), a big part of the novel. Sean also meets Dan Young, another outsider down on his luck at the diner who has plumbing skills, and he wants Dan to help him finish the job at Marion Devereaux's house.
He is busy working for the old man. There are rumors about the man on the bluffs who may have been involved in the disappearance of the three boys in the 70s. Also, rumors that it could have been the Devereaux uncle from the war.
Strange things happen at the house and the basement, but Sean keeps his head down and does not get involved since he needs to finish and be on his way.
The paths collide as Detective Corinne Viegas, a woman whose drive to seek justice comes from her father's failure to find those boys and the violence once done to her sister. Soon, events happen with violence, tragic deaths, and long-buried dark secrets, and she is center stage. What is behind those walls?
"Our wills and fates do so contrary run, that our devices still are overthrown. Our thoughts are ours, their ends non of our own."
—Shakespeare
Masterfully written in Johnston's signature classic style that we love —brilliantly blending two timelines and stories will keep you on the edge of your seat. Genre crossing—a mix of literary, crime, suspense, small town, mystery, friendship, and police procedural.
Fans of the author will enjoy characters from previous books—Dan Young and Sean Courtland, whom we met in Descent and The Current.
A slow burn, intricate, and immersive, DISTANT SONS is for fans of authors Allen Eskens, Ron Rash, William Kent Krueger, and Dennis Lehane. I'm a huge fan—I highly recommend all his books.
My Reviews:
The Current
The Descent
Thanks to Algonquin Books and Netgalley for an early reading copy for an honest review.
Blog Review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Oct 17, 2023
My Rating: 5 Stars
Oct 2023 Books
Oct Newsletter