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The Man Behind the Screen's avatar

A deputy in a small, snowy Montana town learns of the possible disappearance of a young woman at the hands of a man no one seems to know or remember. And within a single chapter we get a sense of dark mystery, an isolated Western setting, a brisk pace, and a pulpy atmosphere supported by two brothers who're hinted at having seen their share of horrors?

There is no doubt. This was written just for people like me. Looks like I know what I'm reading on my Monday mornings!

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The Chronicler's avatar

Ah! What a compliment! It's always motivating to read something like this. Thank you so much, I'm glad that you found it entertaining :)

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The Man Behind the Screen's avatar

You're hitting on a lot of what I enjoy and writing it well to boot. Spooky small town Western mystery? Sign me the hell up! Only way I'd have been more hooked is if you went full Weird West with it.

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Cole Noble's avatar

Love the atmosphere of the town you're building! Excited to read more!

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The Chronicler's avatar

Thank you, Cole!

I'm learning as I go on this platform, so let's hope this more organized approach serves me well :)

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Jennifer Handy's avatar

I love this. I’m a big fan of the serial read.

(aka I’m old as hell😵‍💫) I enjoy the slow build and anticipation.

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T. D. Wolf's avatar

Well done. You hooked this fish.🎣

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Stephanie Loomis's avatar

I’m in! And the Suff is here, too

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Bridget Riley's avatar

This is so delightful! The descriptions of morning snow are making me miss my old hometown in Idaho! I definitely agree with one of the earlier comments that a neo-Western mystery in an isolated small town with a good-hearted but troubled hero is exactly calibrated to be a favorite of mine! I also love the way you depicted his family, who seem so lovely and close-knit. I can’t wait to read more!

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Leigh Parrish's avatar

This is off to a good start! Looking forward to the next installment.

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Jeff Kinnard's avatar

Loving it so far! I really enjoy the setting and characters. Luke has a depth to him that I can't wait to find out more of!

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The Chronicler's avatar

Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed 🙏 This has been an interesting experiment for me so far.

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Michael S. Atkinson's avatar

Heh; Rebecca's disdain for Twilight made me laugh, and I've seen the movies. (Just the once; Dracula's better).

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Jon T's avatar

Finally had a chance to read this. So good! Very cool vibe ♥️♥️

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Joseph L. Wiess's avatar

Nice.

“Our Grace is responsible,” insisted Ainsley. “In the last month, she’s quit her job—her dream job, broke her lease, sold her car, and cut all contact with us.”

Sounds cultish to me.

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Linda Cardillo's avatar

Great start looking forward to reading more.

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Nicole Paton's avatar

This is awesome - I absolutely love the atmosphere of the place. And I really liked your interesting use of formatting when Luke was chopping wood - it was really clever and quite literally forced my reading pace to slow when I got there (in the best possible way). I tend to get quite excited when reading thrillers and suspense stories, so I found this a really great way of being present with Luke, right at that moment.

Luke is a really great character and extremely intriguing - I can't wait to read more about him!

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