Ragged Point

by James Kelty

In his remote Big Sur ranch house, Daniel Tallweather wakes to a disturbing SOS - cries in some half-remembered language and a terrible gnashing, like the sound of dogs tearing at a kill. Sounds that have shattered his sleep before. Sounds that his brother-in-law Vernon Callis knows, too. But the last member of the clan that took this chunk of California from the Indians 250 years ago isn't going to explain. Before night falls, Tallweather finds him dead, an implausible suicide. The ranch goes to Tallweather, along with the burden of defending it. Wouldn't this rugged, canyon-riven landscape dam up into a nice lake? Some drought-stricken locals seem to think so. Meanwhile the local newspaper serializes old mission records detailing a massacre of the Indians who once inhabited Callis Ranch. Is Tallweather, a descendant of those people, exacting a late revenge? With more unlikely deaths up in the hills, they wonder if everyone wouldn't be better off with Tallweather on death row and his land under 300 feet of water. In a race to uncover the past before the present overtakes him, Tallweather becomes both hunter and hunted.

452 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 26, 2014

About the author

James C. Kelty is a writer and filmmaker, with awards in journalism, broadcast television, screenwriting, and museum design. After 7 years in Europe as a journalist based in Paris, he studied filmmaking in Los Angeles. He and his wife Laurelle, an actress, live on the coast of Central California, which inspired his first novel, "Ragged Point."

Reviews

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I really loved this book. I had a hard time putting it down. The world building and character development was great. I really could picture everything in my head, which is what I hope for in a book.

As an Oregonian by birth, I understand all these crazy development bros. It was a great bad guy setup for the book. I appreciated that the book spent so much time playing in the nuances of land rights, issues concerning native people, and the lengths people go to when greed is involved.

I also loved that this book ended with a final chapter telling us what happened to everyone. I like knowing a little more when so many weird things have happened. The only downside of the book for me was that it was a little long, and some parts seemed a bit repetitive.

This is definitely a good book for people who like things a little spooky!

[Ms Nay · Rating 5 out of 5]

FANTASTIC READ!

This novel was so well written and very descriptive. There were several different characters with each a different story. There were several twists and subplots and it was hard to put the book down. Highly recommended.

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book.

[Tenasha Gummybear_smutbookreder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely great book 📚