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Family Line
Wesley has accepted his self-imposed solitude on the edge of a small Oklahoma town. Though he was never sure if he stayed alone to protect others from the truth about the dreams he’d had since childhood, or to protect himself from witnessing the death of another person he cared about. His guard falls as the one woman he ever loved comes back to town, but everything unravels as he encounters his most vivid dream. He makes a choice to become someone else, something else. A killer
326 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 20, 2018
13 people are currently reading
15 people want to read
About the author
John H. Matthews
8 books18 followersJohn H. Matthews is a writer, designer and independent publishing consultant living in the suburbs of Washington, DC, with his wife and son. He was born in New York City, grew up in Arkansas and has lived all across the country, from New York to San Francisco to Dallas.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 21, 2019
Caveat: I read this for the Reader Harder tasks #9 and #23 -- and also, I read everything by my friend John Matthews. He's an excellent writer. He has a new book out called Hangfire (in the Eddie Holland series) coming out soon!
By far the best book I've read by this author, Family Line is deep pontification on death and consequence. Grief as a gift or curse. As someone who experienced traumatic death, specifically the death of my brother, I found the writing to capture some of the hardest moments around grief. I was extremely moved by the first 100 pages of this book in a way that even the most celebrated authors of our time have not achieved. Kudos. But also, ugly cry.
So why only four stars? Because just like when I ruined The Sixth Sense for about 15 people in the movie theater (yes, this is an in-joke spoiler), I figured out the end wayyyyy too early. No one reads these reviews, so let me just reiterate: I will always take a star for predictable plot. But the writing is good enough that with an expansion of a few scenes and some lengthening of a certain time line, some narrative obstacles are available.
The characters are compelling, particularly the central character of Wes Hudson, who is carefully crafted and an excellent through-line narrator. Although the relationships between the Hudson family matter most, the only other area where this story could use expansion is the relationship with Benton and Colleen. Instead of telling us about hours spent at the diner or on a walk, Matthews is gifted dialogue - give me some more scenes to make me trust these characters as much as Grandpa Hudson.
**spoiler**
For instance, no one trusts a bully. Sure, you wanna think that Benton reforms, but I read too much to know better. Obviously, if he is noted as a character in text, he's the endgame. And once Wes mentions drugs and Benton demurs, I literally said out loud: "Dirty cop."
When Colleen comes back into Wes' life, there is little explanation of her job. She's a lawyer? Shouldn't she have legal advice for Wes on his gift? Her heart is on the page, but not her mind. As a woman, that feels incomplete. If she loved him, if she came back for him, she would use all her resources to help him.
But even that aside, I whole-heartedly ENJOYED reading this story. It is memorable in all the right ways. Thank you, John!
By far the best book I've read by this author, Family Line is deep pontification on death and consequence. Grief as a gift or curse. As someone who experienced traumatic death, specifically the death of my brother, I found the writing to capture some of the hardest moments around grief. I was extremely moved by the first 100 pages of this book in a way that even the most celebrated authors of our time have not achieved. Kudos. But also, ugly cry.
So why only four stars? Because just like when I ruined The Sixth Sense for about 15 people in the movie theater (yes, this is an in-joke spoiler), I figured out the end wayyyyy too early. No one reads these reviews, so let me just reiterate: I will always take a star for predictable plot. But the writing is good enough that with an expansion of a few scenes and some lengthening of a certain time line, some narrative obstacles are available.
The characters are compelling, particularly the central character of Wes Hudson, who is carefully crafted and an excellent through-line narrator. Although the relationships between the Hudson family matter most, the only other area where this story could use expansion is the relationship with Benton and Colleen. Instead of telling us about hours spent at the diner or on a walk, Matthews is gifted dialogue - give me some more scenes to make me trust these characters as much as Grandpa Hudson.
**spoiler**
For instance, no one trusts a bully. Sure, you wanna think that Benton reforms, but I read too much to know better. Obviously, if he is noted as a character in text, he's the endgame. And once Wes mentions drugs and Benton demurs, I literally said out loud: "Dirty cop."
When Colleen comes back into Wes' life, there is little explanation of her job. She's a lawyer? Shouldn't she have legal advice for Wes on his gift? Her heart is on the page, but not her mind. As a woman, that feels incomplete. If she loved him, if she came back for him, she would use all her resources to help him.
But even that aside, I whole-heartedly ENJOYED reading this story. It is memorable in all the right ways. Thank you, John!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 22, 2019
A poignant coming-of-age set in a small town, with a dark twist. Matthews admirably spans the lifetime of one lonesome, misunderstood man which proves an emotional, dark trek at times, but absolutely worth the journey. Though the writing style was sometimes a little rough, “Family line” was an entertaining read that was hard to put down. I generally don’t gravitate toward darker themed books, but I’m glad I picked this one up, and I definitely recommend it.
August 5, 2018
Really, really good
Very compelling read. The author created a delicate balance between a sparse midwestern setting and rich, deep characters. The essential goodness of the main character as he confronts evil evokes a faint scent of Stephen King’s early work.
Very compelling read. The author created a delicate balance between a sparse midwestern setting and rich, deep characters. The essential goodness of the main character as he confronts evil evokes a faint scent of Stephen King’s early work.
July 5, 2025
I absolutely love this author. His writing had me engulfed for 5 hours, I could not put this book down. I had all the feels certainly but it was like I could see everything he spoke of. Fantastic read!!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews