Virginia family entangled with thugs

S.A. Cosby’s thriller King of Ashes (Flatiron Books, 352 pages, $26) might be his best novel, which is a big deal if you know Cosby’s books, because his other ones (Razorblade Tears, for example, a brilliant tale of revenge) are magnificent… like Elmore Leonard-level magnificent.

Cosby writes about the people of rural Virginia, where he was born and still lives. His books feature abundantly human characters in exquisitely rendered settings, the dialogue is pitch perfect and the stories are morally complex.

Here, Cosby introduces us to Roman Carruthers, who made it out of the dying town of Jefferson Run only to be forced to return after his father is critically injured in an automobile accident. He finds his family tangled up with gangsters and in shambles — and there might be no easy way to keep it all from falling completely apart. A splendidly conceived and executed novel.

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All Jack Reacher wanted to do in Baltimore was listen to some good live music. He wasn’t expecting to rescue an elderly couple from a con artist, and he certainly wasn’t counting on getting mixed up with a stranger in some serious danger.

But that’s Jack: if someone’s in trouble and he can help them, then he will. No matter what the risks.

Lee Child and Andrew Child’s Exit Strategy (Bantam, 336 pages, $29), is the 30th Reacher novel. That’s an impressive number, and it’s worth noting that the series shows no signs of slowing down: the authors — originally Lee Child writing solo, and now with his brother, Andrew — keep finding new things for Reacher to do, new villains for him to face.

The villain here is an exceptionally nasty one, too, a retired military contractor with no conscience and a taste for violence, and there are moments when, even though we know he will triumph, we fear for Reacher’s life.

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Bree Winter can’t believe it’s been a decade since her daughter, Melanie, was murdered. The wound is still so raw that, in dark moments, it feels like it just happened. But somehow Bree has managed to rebuild her life and find some manner of happiness.

And then this happens: the man who was convicted of killing Melanie confesses to several murders — but not to her daughter’s. Bree is determined to find out the truth about Melanie’s death, but she’s not prepared for the terrible things she discovers.

Kate White’s I Came Back For You (Thomas & Mercer, 299 pages, $26) is the best kind of psychological thriller: a deeply compelling story with a lead character who absolutely commands our attention and our sympathy, and enough twists to keep even the most experienced reader guessing. Outstanding.

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Have you met Twilly Spree? He’s an independently wealthy, rather eccentric part-time eco-warrior who appeared in Carl Hiaasen’s terrific novels Sick Puppy and Scat. He appears here, too, which all by itself is enough to recommend the book (he really is a delightful character).

But there’s also Dale Figgo, who got kicked out of the far-right wing Proud Boys because he was too nuts for them. He’s got a plan to make a big political statement, but he doesn’t realize he’s being manipulated by a couple of crazy philanthropists.

There’s a serious story to be told about right-wing conspiracists, but this certainly isn’t it. Fever Beach (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard, 384 pages, $26, Hiaasen’s latest novel, is hilarious — comic fiction at its finest, full of wordplay, laugh-out-loud moments of sheer idiocy and a large cast of wondrously loopy characters.

If you’ve never read Carl Hiaasen, you’ve really been missing out.

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Halifax freelancer David Pitt’s column appears the first weekend of every month. You can follow him on Bluesky at @bookman.bsky.social.