Chris Offutt

Master storyteller Chris Offutt's acclaimed crime series has been praised by Ian Rankin as "righteous Kentucky noir with top notes of Daniel Woodrell and S. A. Cosby," and in this breakneck new novel, sheriff Mick Hardin navigates the treacherous terrain of a town's festering secrets and the violent forces who want to keep them hidden Lauded as a "masterclass in the craft of crime fiction" (CrimeReads), Chris Offutt's beloved and critically acclaimed Mick Hardin series is an atmospheric, tightly crafted testament to Southern noir. The Reluctant Sheriff is a dark, bracing return to the hills of eastern Kentucky where secrets roil beneath the surface, and nothing and no one stays in the past for long. Mick Hardin never wanted to be sheriff. An ex-Army CID officer, he's supposed to be retired--or he was until his sister, Linda, was shot in the line of duty, requiring him to step in as interim sheriff while she recovered. Now he's stuck in Rocksalt, the place he was most hoping to escape. Back in uniform, Mick is chafing at the sudden dissolution of his retirement plans, wearied by the petty squabbles of Rocksalt's townsfolk. It's all business as usual, until the murder of a local bar owner draws an unlikely suspect who threatens to fan the flames of Mick's past. When two more bodies turn up, seemingly unconnected to the first, Mick is forced to reckon with the mysterious circumstances of a case not so open-and-shut as everyone believes. Meanwhile, Linda is slowly healing when a familiar business tycoon with a vested interest in her returning as sheriff makes it difficult for her to remain on the sidelines. Unflinching and devilishly compulsive, The Reluctant Sheriff is an explosive thriller confirming Chris Offutt as a Southern writer of muscular prose and unrivaled talent.

FROM AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR CHRIS OFFUTTA dark and fierce return to the Kentucky hills, where nothing is what it seems.Mick Hardin returns to the trials and tribulations of local sheriff duties, whilst the previous sheriff, his sister Linda, recovers from a gunshot wound sustained in the line of duty.Living in Linda’s house in Rocksalt, Mick finds himself entwined in the trials and tribulations of being a sheriff in the perturbing Kentucky community. Unable to retire from a world of dubiousness and violence, Mick Hardin is back with determination to deliver retribution.

FROM AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR CHRIS OFFUTTA dark and fierce return to the Kentucky hills, where nothing is what it seems.Mick Hardin returns to the trials and tribulations of local sheriff duties, whilst the previous sheriff, his sister Linda, recovers from a gunshot wound sustained in the line of duty.Living in Linda’s house in Rocksalt, Mick finds himself entwined in the trials and tribulations of being a sheriff in the perturbing Kentucky community. Unable to retire from a world of dubiousness and violence, Mick Hardin is back with determination to deliver retribution.

Master storyteller Chris Offutt's acclaimed crime series has been praised by Ian Rankin as "righteous Kentucky noir with top notes of Daniel Woodrell and S. A. Cosby," and in this breakneck new novel, sheriff Mick Hardin navigates the treacherous terrain of a town's festering secrets and the violent forces who want to keep them hiddenLauded as a "masterclass in the craft of crime fiction" (CrimeReads), Chris Offutt's beloved and critically acclaimed Mick Hardin series is an atmospheric, tightly crafted testament to Southern noir. The Reluctant Sheriff is a dark, bracing return to the hills of eastern Kentucky where secrets roil beneath the surface, and nothing and no one stays in the past for long. Mick Hardin never wanted to be sheriff. An ex-Army CID officer, he's supposed to be retired--or he was until his sister, Linda, was shot in the line of duty, requiring him to step in as interim sheriff while she recovered. Now he's stuck in Rocksalt, the place he was most hoping to escape. Back in uniform, Mick is chafing at the sudden dissolution of his retirement plans, wearied by the petty squabbles of Rocksalt's townsfolk. It's all business as usual, until the murder of a local bar owner draws an unlikely suspect who threatens to fan the flames of Mick's past. When two more bodies turn up, seemingly unconnected to the first, Mick is forced to reckon with the mysterious circumstances of a case not so open-and-shut as everyone believes. Meanwhile, Linda is slowly healing when a familiar business tycoon with a vested interest in her returning as sheriff makes it difficult for her to remain on the sidelines. Unflinching and devilishly compulsive, The Reluctant Sheriff is an explosive thriller confirming Chris Offutt as a Southern writer of muscular prose and unrivaled talent.

In this blistering return to ChrisOffutt's acclaimed crime series, Mick Hardin is tested like never before asfamilial allegiances and old wounds collide, threatening to destroy everythinghe lovesWith his signature crackling prose, literary master Chris Offutt has staked out his own territory in crime fiction, a place of familial allegiances, old wounds, and revenge--the code of the hills. His new book, a sharp, twisty southern noir with echoes of James Sallis and Daniel Woodrell, will force Mick to face up to the way of life he thought he'd escaped.Mick Hardin is supposed to be retired, transitioning to civilian life. Back in the hills of Kentucky after a two-year absence, he'd planned to touch down briefly before heading to France, marking the end of his twenty-year Army career.But in Rocksalt, trouble is brewing. Mick's sister Linda, recently reelected as sheriff, and her deputy Johnny Boy Tolliver are investigating the murder of Pete Lowe, a sought-after mechanic at the local racetrack. Mick doesn't want to get involved--he wants to say his goodbyes and get out of Dodge. But when he reluctantly agrees to intervene in a family dispute requiring a light touch, he uncovers evidence of an illegal cockfighting ring and another body, somehow linked to the first. And then, Linda steps into harm's way, leaving Mick to solve the crimes himself.Code of the Hills is a harrowing novel of family--of what we're willing to do to protect and avenge the ones we love.

FROM AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR CHRIS OFFUTT.'Excellent Kentucky noir — Offutt's third Mick Hardin novel is the best yet.' — KirkusAn explosive return to the mayhem of the Kentucky hills, Code of the Hills is a harrowing novel of family — of what we’re willing to do to protect and avenge the ones we love.Mick Hardin is back in the hills of Kentucky. He’d planned to touch down briefly before heading to France, marking the end to his twenty-year Army career.In Rocksalt, his sister Linda the sheriff is investigating the murder of Pete Lowe, a sought-after mechanic at the local racetrack. After another body is found, Linda and her deputy Johnny Boy Tolliver wonder if the two murders are related.Linda steps into harm’s way just as a third body turns up and Mick ends up being deputised again.The dark, gripping, and propulsive thriller of murder and secrets in Rocksalt, Kentucky where little is as it seems.'This is a marvellous series… These have become must-reads for me and I enjoy every minute of the reading experience' Deadly Pleasures'Beautifully descriptive... Offutt’s Mick Hardin novels are powerful books that feature characters with questionable ethics.' Library Journal'Righteous Kentucky noir... I gulped it down, relishing the burn' — Ian Rankin on Shifty’s Boys

In this blistering return to ChrisOffutt's acclaimed crime series, Mick Hardin is tested like never before asfamilial allegiances and old wounds collide, threatening to destroy everythinghe lovesMaster storyteller and award-winning author Chris Offutt's latest book, Codeof the Hills, is a dark, witty, and propulsive thriller of murder andsecrets in a town where little is as it seems.Mick Hardin is back in the hills of Kentucky. He'd planned to touch downbriefly before heading to France, marking the end to his twenty-year Armycareer. In Rocksalt, his sister Linda the sheriff is investigating the murderof Pete Lowe, a sought-after mechanic at the local racetrack. Afteranother body is found, Linda and her deputy Johnny Boy Tolliver wonder if thetwo murders are related. Linda steps into harm's way just as a third body turnsup and Mick ends up being deputized again, uncovering evidence of illegalcockfighting, and trying to connect all the crimes.An explosive return to the mayhem of the Kentucky hills, Code ofthe Hills is a harrowing novel of family--of what we're willing to doto protect and avenge the ones we love.

Army-CID-officer-cum-unofficial-PI Mick Hardin is up against unforeseen forces who will stop at nothing in this vividly atmospheric thriller from acclaimed novelist Chris Offutt.Chris Offutt isa literary master across genres, and his most recent novel THE KILLING HILLSwas one of his most successful, earning him a new audience and earningpraise from the likes of The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Crime Reads. His latest book, Shifty'sBoys, is a compelling, propulsive thriller of murder and mayhem in thehills of eastern Kentucky.Mick Hardin is home on leave, recovering from an IED attack, when a body is found in the center of town. It'sBarney Kissick, the local heroin dealer, and the city police see it as anoccupational hazard. But when Barney's mother, Shifty, asks Mick to take alook, it seems there's more to the killing than it seems. Mick should berehabbing his leg, signing his divorce papers, and getting out of town--and mostof all, staying out of the way of his sister Linda's reelection as Sheriff--buthe keeps on looking, and suddenly he's getting shot at himself. A dark, pacy crime novel aboutgrief and revenge, and the surprises hidden below the surface, Shifty's Boysis a tour de force that confirms Chris Offutt's Mick Hardin as one of themost appealing new investigators in fiction.

Mick Hardin is an Army CID officer home on leave, recovering from an IED attack, when a body is found in the centre of town. It's Barney Kissick, the local heroin dealer, and the city police see his death as an occupational hazard. But when Barney's mother, Shifty, asks Mick to take a look, it seems there's more to the killing than it appears. Mick should be rehabbing his leg, signing his divorce papers and getting out of town - and most of all, staying out of the way of his sister Linda's reelection as Sheriff - but he keeps on looking, and suddenly he's getting shot at himself. A dark, pacy crime novel about grief and revenge, with surprises hidden below the surface, Shifty's Boys is a tour de force that confirms Chris Offutt's Mick Hardin as one of the most appealing new investigators in fiction.

Army-CID-officer-cum-unofficial-PI Mick Hardin is up against unforeseen forces who will stop at nothing in this vividly atmospheric thriller from acclaimed novelist Chris Offutt.Chris Offutt isa literary master across genres, and his most recent novel THE KILLING HILLSwas one of his most successful, earning him a new audience and earningpraise from the likes of The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Crime Reads. His latest book, Shifty'sBoys, is a compelling, propulsive thriller of murder and mayhem in thehills of eastern Kentucky.Mick Hardin is home on leave, recovering from an IED attack, when a body is found in the center of town. It'sBarney Kissick, the local heroin dealer, and the city police see it as anoccupational hazard. But when Barney's mother, Shifty, asks Mick to take alook, it seems there's more to the killing than it seems. Mick should berehabbing his leg, signing his divorce papers, and getting out of town--and mostof all, staying out of the way of his sister Linda's reelection as Sheriff--buthe keeps on looking, and suddenly he's getting shot at himself. A dark, pacy crime novel aboutgrief and revenge, and the surprises hidden below the surface, Shifty's Boysis a tour de force that confirms Chris Offutt's Mick Hardin as one of themost appealing new investigators in fiction.

A literary master across genres, award-winning author Chris Offutt's latest novel, The Killing Hills, is a compelling, propulsive thriller in which a suspicious death exposes the loyalties and rivalries of a deep-rooted and fiercely private community in the Kentucky backwoods. Mick Hardin, a combat veteran now working as an Army CID agent, is home on a leave that is almost done. His wife is about to give birth, but they aren't getting along. His sister, newly risen to sheriff, has just landed her first murder case, and local politicians are pushing for city police or the FBI to take the case. Are they convinced she can't handle it, or is there something else at work? She calls on Mick who, with his homicide investigation experience and familiarity with the terrain, is well-suited to staying under the radar. As he delves into the investigation, he dodges his commanding officer's increasingly urgent calls while attempting to head off further murders. And he needs to talk to his wife. The Killing Hills is a novel of betrayal--sexual, personal, within and between the clans that populate the hollers--and the way it so often shades into violence. Chris Offutt has delivered a dark, witty, and absolutely compelling novel of murder and honor, with an investigator-hero unlike any in fiction.

** LONGLISTED FOR THE CWA GOLD DAGGER ** Mick Hardin, a combat veteran now working as an Army CID agent, is home on a leave that is almost done. His wife is about to give birth, but they aren't getting along. His sister, newly risen to sheriff, has just landed her first murder case, and local politicians are pushing for city police or the FBI to take the case. Are they convinced she can't handle it, or is there something else at work? She calls on Mick who, with his homicide investigation experience and familiarity with the terrain, is well-suited to staying under the radar. As he delves into the investigation, he dodges his commanding officer's increasingly urgent calls while attempting to head off further murders. And he needs to talk to his wife. The Killing Hills is a novel of betrayal - sexual, personal, within and between the clans that populate the hollers - and the way it so often shades into violence. Chris Offutt has delivered a dark, witty, and absolutely compelling novel of murder and honor, with an investigator-hero unlike any in fiction.

A literary master across genres, award-winning author Chris Offutt's latest novel, The Killing Hills, is a compelling, propulsive thriller in which a suspicious death exposes the loyalties and rivalries of a deep-rooted and fiercely private community in the Kentucky backwoods. Mick Hardin, a combat veteran now working as an Army CID agent, is home on a leave that is almost done. His wife is about to give birth, but they aren't getting along. His sister, newly risen to sheriff, has just landed her first murder case, and local politicians are pushing for city police or the FBI to take the case. Are they convinced she can't handle it, or is there something else at work? She calls on Mick who, with his homicide investigation experience and familiarity with the terrain, is well-suited to staying under the radar. As he delves into the investigation, he dodges his commanding officer's increasingly urgent calls while attempting to head off further murders. And he needs to talk to his wife. The Killing Hills is a novel of betrayal--sexual, personal, within and between the clans that populate the hollers--and the way it so often shades into violence. Chris Offutt has delivered a dark, witty, and absolutely compelling novel of murder and honor, with an investigator-hero unlike any in fiction.

Chris Offutt is an outstanding literary talent, whose work has been called "lean and brilliant" (New York Times Book Review) and compared by reviewers to Tobias Wolff, Ernest Hemingway, and Raymond Carver. He's been awarded the Whiting Writers Award for Fiction/Nonfiction and the American Academy of Arts and Letters Fiction Award, among numerous other honors. His first work of fiction in nearly two decades, Country Dark is a taut, compelling novel set in rural Kentucky from the Korean War to 1970. Tucker, a young veteran, returns from war to work for a bootlegger. He falls in love and starts a family, and while the Tuckers don't have much, they have the love of their home and each other. But when his family is threatened, Tucker is pushed into violence, which changes everything. The story of people living off the land and by their wits in a backwoods Kentucky world of shine-runners and laborers whose social codes are every bit as nuanced as the British aristocracy, Country Dark is a novel that blends the best of Larry Brown and James M. Cain, with a noose tightening evermore around a man who just wants to protect those he loves. It reintroduces the vital and absolutely distinct voice of Chris Offutt, a voice we've been missing for years.

In turbulent times, what we need is possibility, and in this rich gathering of diverse voices, Watts and Smith give us just that. A girl molds clay against her deaf brother�s ears to heal him. A gay man finds his Appalachian clan in a dark world. These are stories and essays about the blues, about poverty, about families lost and made. Unbroken Circle is about broken and unbroken lives, and ultimately, hope. �Karen Salyer McElmurray, author of Surrendered Child..................... One of the goals of Unbroken Circle is to subvert stereotypes�to show that Southern people are not simply shoeless, rural white people. We are a people as varied as the Southern landscape, from the mountains of Appalachia to the deltas of Mississippi to the skyscrapers of Atlanta. We are black, white, Latino, Native American, Middle Eastern, Asian, and multiracial. We are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Wiccan, atheist and agnostic. We are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, straight, and questioning. We are urban and rural, old and young, poor and rich, and all points in between. We are all these things, plus more that don�t fit into neat categories. The voices in this collection represent some of the diverse voices of our region, just a few spoonfuls from the giant pot of gumbo that makes up our region. �Julia Watts (Introduction)

The Writer's Notebook compiles the best craft seminars in the history of the Tin House Summer Writers Workshop, along with a variety of craft essays from some of Tin House's favorite writers. The cast of deeply respected poets and prose writers explore topics that vary from writing dialogue to the dos and don'ts of writing about sex. With how-tos, close readings, and personal anecdotes, The Writer's Notebook offers aspiring scribes advice and inspiration to hone their own craft.

Seven years ago, Chris Offutt made his literary debut with Kentucky Straight, a fiercely original collection that earned him not only critical praise but many prestigious awards. The eight new stories in Out of the Woods mark Offutt's return to the form in which he first displayed his astonishing talent. Offutt, who draws landscape and constructs dialogue with the eyes and ears of a native son (The Miami Herald), is on strong home turf here, capturing those who have left the Kentucky hills and long to return. These are stories of gravediggers and drifters, gamblers and truck drivers a long way from home, tales that are so full of hard edges they can't help but tell some hard truth

Virgil, a soft-spoken Kentucky boy, must choose between the unwritten code of the hills and his own sense of morals when his hell-raising oldest brother Boyd is killed