Nothing But the Bones: A Novel
Description
With lyrical prose and hard-hitting depictions of the hardscrabble life in the rural south, Brian Panowich, author of Bull Mountain, Like Lions, and Hard Cash Valley, delivers a gripping new chapter in his tales of McFalls County in Nothing But the Bones.
In McFalls County, local crime boss Gareth Burroughs runs everything on the mountain. And Nelson “Nails” McKenna has been his enforcer since he was a teenager, though his heart's not really in the dirty work. Then one night in a local roadhouse, Nails goes too far, defending a woman, and even Burroughs’s reach can’t get him out of this one. With a dead body and countless witnesses, Nails and the woman become fugitives on the run, and unlikely partners.
But on the road to Jacksonville, where a possible escape awaits, there’s more than one interested party on the pair’s trail, and the glimpse they had of getting away scot free suddenly seems elusive. In the end, Nails must make one final stand for his freedom—or pay with both of their lives.
Praise for Nothing But the Bones: A Novel
Praise for Brian Panowich and McFalls County
“Jaw-dropping." —Wall Street Journal
“The plotting is skilled, as is the sleuthing, and the landscape is stunning. But it’s the hard-jawed characters, with their tough talk and scarred souls, who really get under your skin.” —The New York Times Book Review on Hard Cash Valley, One of the 10 Best Crime Novels of the Year
"[Panowich] continues to mix crime fiction with a violent family drama, perfectly melding characters with a sense of place.” — Associated Press
“Prose as punchy as rapid-aged whiskey.”—Esquire
“This is country noir with a bite as sharp as a rattler's.” — AARP
"In the vein of Grisham and Burke, Panowich zips readers along with action backed by delightfully rhythmic storytelling.” — Garden and Gun
