Blood Land: A James Pruett Mystery (Volume One) [Kindle Edition]

R.S. Guthrie (Author), Russell Rowland (Editor), Jun Ares (Illustrator)

Book Description

Crime's an ugly constant in the big city. L.A. Chicago. New York. But when a savage murder brutalizes a small town and neighbor turns on neighbor, a tough-as-nails cop is essential to restoring order. Blood Land is a gritty, emotional saga set in the Wyoming badlands with both greed and vengeance at its core.

When billions of dollars in natural gas rights hang in the balance and the town's top law officer's wife is slain by her own blood, a reluctant hero is forced to battle his own demons and ultimately choose between justice, revenge, and duty.

In the tradition of Dennis Lehane, Tony Hillerman and James Lee Burke, Guthrie's sparse, haunting storytelling compliments his talent for creating richly-drawn, unflinching law officers with human frailties and a sense of justice.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Remarkable...Deserving of more than five stars. A hypnotic storyteller and a gifted writer with a flair for intoxicating, gripping prose."
Russell Blake, bestselling author of JET and Silver Justice.

"A starkly beautiful tale of greed and redemption."
Frederick Lee Brooke, bestselling author of Max Vinyl and Zombie Candy.

"R.S. Guthrie has produced a stunning work!"
Alan McDermott, bestselling author of Gray Justice and Gray Redemption.

===================================================

Blood Land has a courtroom battle at the center of it, but also a family feud involving ranchers and the all-powerful BLM (Bureau of Land Management). It's a little like Grisham's A Time to Kill meeting Elmore Leonard: explosive, understated, elegiac.

A highlight of this book is the scintillating dialogue. Pruett describing the man who has been jailed for murder and has pleaded guilty as well: "And for all his ranting and surliness, Ty is a rough package but I'd say he's not too far past half bad." All the way through, people talk to each other in this rough-hewn poetic cadence, like William Faulkner.

Blood Land is a fast one-day read, but deserves to be consumed slowly and appreciated. With this book R.S. Guthrie has penned a starkly beautiful tale of greed, revenge and redemption.

About the Author

R.S. Guthrie grew up in Iowa and Wyoming. He has been writing fiction, essays, short stories, and lyrics since college.

"Black Beast: A Clan of MacAulay Novel" marked Guthrie's first major release and it heralded the first in a series of Detective Bobby Macaulay (Bobby Mac) books. The second in the series (Lost) hit the Kindle shelves December of 2011.

Guthrie's "Blood Land" is the first in the Sheriff James Pruett Mystery/Thriller series and represents a project that is close to his heart: it is set in a fictional town in the same county where he spent much of his childhood and still visits.

Guthrie lives in Colorado with his wife, Amy, three young Australian Shepherds, and a Chihuahua who thinks she is a 40-pound Aussie!

Readers can catch up with what's new with R.S. Guthrie at his official site, rsguthrie.com , or discussions related to writing at his blog, Rob on Writing (robonwriting.com).

Product Details

• File Size: 539 KB
• Print Length: 230 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Blu Pencil Publishing, LLC; 1 edition (July 6, 2012)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B008J4NKA6
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #61,975 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Remarkable August 11, 2012

By Russell Blake

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Blood Land is that rarest of beasts, a novel that works at a number of levels. The characters are richly drawn, the plot compelling, the atmosphere palpable, the writing remarkable for its depth and lucidity, as well as the maturity of the choices the author makes - the restraint and the plain old good taste. There is a marvelous economy to the prose and yet it has tremendous impact. I kept thinking as I read that this is how it should be done. As an author myself, I am hyper-critical of grammar and editing issues, and I'm happy to say Blood Land has none of the usual that afflict a regrettably large number of indie novels. I was asked today for some recommended reading by a fan, and I recommended Blood Land without hesitation. That pretty much says it all. Deserving of more than five stars, this is a remarkable book in an ocean of mediocrity. I sincerely hope it gets the attention it deserves. We should be hearing a lot more from Mr. Guthrie, who is an obvious talent with a prodigious gift.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars And what a steak dinner it was! July 14, 2012

By Unique1

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

First off, I'm not an author. Second I wasn't offered a new hat, or some beef jerky to rate this book. I even paid for it! I'm just Joe Schmoe who loves books and a good steak.

This is what I would rate as an excellent read, and I would like to say to the author what my father would tell me when I did well, "nice job son." The writer said this book is the culmination of many years of toiling behind a keyboard. Well worth every second Mr Guthrie. I'd almost go so far as to say, stop now. This book was so well written I'd be afraid to try and write anything as well as this, ever again. If you did stop*, I'd say you finished on top.

Did I mention I love to read? I've read so many books I can't even put a number to how many I've read. Many terrible, lots are good, some great, and a few excellent. This one hits the 5 Star Excellent category.

Why?

Plot so thick you can taste it, twists and turns galore! Most books I can figure out the plot within a few pages. Not this one. Kinda frustrated me at times because when I thought I had it figured out, WHAMMO! Side-step, left turn Clyde. Yeah, we're over here now, didn't see this one coming, did you???

I love that in a book. And the twists and turns took you to places you didn't expect.

Depth of characters. You know these people, they are your friends and neighbors. You love some, and wish others would just die... just wait!

Action in a book is a MUST have for me. Unless it's on cooking. Then it needs meat. But this book is almost non-stop action. Pistols, rifles, knives and bombs, "Plan B, there is always plan B!". Did I mention history lessons too? Native Americans, racism, bourbon, hot sex and inner demons that strive to win out in non-stop battles. So many of lifes lessons in one big book.

Do yourself a favor, pick up this book and read it. I finished it last night on my deck, with a thick slab of beef, roasted quickly over a very hot fire. A nice glass of Kentucky Bourbon, and some fresh salad. I ended my week with my two best friends. A book I hated to see end, and one hell of a steak dinner. Charlie Sheen knows nothing of winning.

I win.

Thank you Mr. Guthrie. *And please don't stop. This might be your best ever, (who am I kidding, it IS!) but I am hoping there are more where this one came from.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book October 16, 2012

By dog poo

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I had no idea what to expect when I was perusing Blood Land page here on Amazon because it was tagged mostly as western, thriller, and mystery. I don't think I've read many western if at all. The word "western" only reminds me of Indians, and Clint Eastwood back in the days when he hadn't yet picked up the habit of talking to empty chairs. And frankly, I was skeptical - I wasn't in love with the cover (yes, I know, judging a book by its cover and all that. Judge me if you will). But Blood Land had been recommended to me by somebody who threatened me that my brain cells would melt and bad incidents involving clowns would happen to me if I didn't read it. I was confident my vicious dogs could easily take down the clowns, chew them up and spit them out, but the thought of losing all or any of the three cells in my brain terrified me. And so it was that I was introduced to the wonderful words of Mr. Guthrie.

And how masterfully woven those words are! If I have to choose one word to describe the book, it would be "beautiful." I wonder why nobody tagged it as literary fiction? A great storyteller can make an average story good, and a good story great. Mr. Guthrie started with a great story and made it colossal - intriguing plots and characters, yes, but what sucked me in was how beautifully it was told without any pretensions or arrogance, and how masterfully the plots are arranged. Oh I loved the way the big revelation about the sheriff was made. That was so good, it about killed me. And let's not forget about my new favorite expression, scrotum-head.

I'm so glad I read this book because not only I get to keep my three brain cells, for now, but also because I've discovered another favorite book which is now included in my must-read-again-and-again-and-again list.

More About the Author

R.S. Guthrie grew up in Iowa and Wyoming. He has been writing fiction, essays, short stories, and lyrics since college.

"Black Beast: A Clan of MacAulay Novel" marked Guthrie's first major release and it heralded the first in a series of Detective Bobby Macaulay (Bobby Mac) books. The second in the series (Lost) hit the Kindle shelves December of 2011. Reckoning closes out the trilogy. For now...

Guthrie's "Blood Land" is the first in the Sheriff James Pruett Mystery/Thriller series and represents a project that is close to his heart: it is set in a fictional town in the same county where he spent much of his childhood and still visits. The sequel, Money Land, hit the shelves Christmas Day, 2012. Honor Land, the third in the bestselling James Pruett Mystery/Thriller series is due out in May of 2013.

Guthrie lives in Colorado with his wife, Amy, three young Australian Shepherds, and a Chihuahua who thinks she is a 40-pound Aussie!

Readers can catch up with what's new with R.S. Guthrie at his official site, http://www.rsguthrie.com , or discussions related to writing at his blog, Rob on Writing (http://robonwriting.com).