Stinger

by Tanya Nichols

“A lively, engaging, and deeply knowledgeable romp through business and family intrigue in the Central Valley. Both Nichols and McEwen are talented, accomplished writers on their own, but in Stinger, they make a great and seamless team. —Liza Wieland, author of Paris, 7 A.M. -------- “Highway 99 runs right through the San Joaquin Valley’s heart — which is where you’ll find Stinger. This is a letter of crazy stupid love to California’s most intriguing region, a literal land of milk and honey. It’s also a page-turning caper about the things that really life, liberty, and the pursuit of water.” —Joe Mathews, author and Connecting California columnist ------------- “Stinger is taut and colorful, a tale well-told by Nichols and McEwen, both of whom know every corner of the Valley and every secret hidden there. The landscape and the characters who inhabit it come alive in these pages.” —Steve Yarbrough, author of The Unmade World -------------- Stinger takes readers on a caper full of entertaining twists and turns, failed intentions and human foibles. Navigating a rich landscape of crops and characters, Nichols and McEwen offer a tantalizing tale that reminds us of the possibilities of sweet revenge for the little guy who dares to dream. Meet Tex Rainwater, a truck driver, who runs a bottled water hustle. With the help of college students and social media, he fools a public thirsty for any magic elixir to buy his Rain Water as fast as he can swap labels. Meet Allie Boyd, a beekeeper with a promising career teaching at the university, searching for an answer to the dwindling bee population. Her head is full of dreams to create her own brand of honey, one that delivers more than a little sweetness. Meet Roland and Lisa Gold, owners of the Gold-N Corporation, a giant ag company gobbling up small farms and ranches in California’s vast Central Valley. They are fabulously rich living a luxurious life in Bel-Air, away from the dirt and dust of their farms. Allie, her sister, Heather, and Tex are lifelong friends bound by a love for one another, the land, and seething contempt for the Gold-N Corporation. When Allie is offered a high paying job at Gold-N, she remembers how King Mithridates defeated the Roman Army by placing chunks of mad honeycomb along the soldiers’ path, making them intoxicated and easy prey for slaughter. With the legend of Mithridates fueling her on, she accepts the job and enlists the help of Tex, Heather, and Doc, Heather’s boyfriend, to find a way to bring down the Gold-N empire. Join this motley crew on their quest for revenge with a fast-paced, wild ride through the Central Valley, shattering dreams, tarnishing reputations, and finding fortune along the way. --------------- Tanya Nichols is the author of three works of Stinger, co-written with Bill McEwen, The Circle Game, and The Barber’s Wife. As a child, Tanya’s family moved often throughout California, fueling her love for stories as constant companions. Nichols received her MFA in fiction writing from Fresno State University where she now teaches writing and literature. She is also a mandolin player, naturally drawn to music with lyrics that tell a tale. ----------- Award-winning journalist Bill McEwen has chronicled life and politics in California’s San Joaquin Valley for more than 40 years as a reporter and columnist. He lives in Fresno with his wife, Karen, and their two rambunctious herding dogs. Bill became news director/columnist for GV Wire in 2017 after 37 years with The Fresno Bee.

288 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 18, 2019

Reviews

[Leslie Nack · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed Stinger and the politics of the Central Valley which is depicted so well in this novel. I thought about Billie Bob Thornton's Season 2 of Goliath with the politics of water in the Central Valley and knowing there are a few families controlling everything. The book was well written and interesting. I recommend it for sure!

[Jon Latham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good read with excellent character development, page turning suspense and a dramatic twist at the end. This is a great read-in-bed type novel.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

It has potential. But the four protagonists are all doing things that are illegal. They win in the end. They are all likeable, but I didn’t like how they got rich. They really had no more integrity than the big, evil conglomerate they triumphed against. I enjoyed the local color. But the whole thing was tainted for me when I realized one of the editors is devin nunes’s wife. I couldn’t finish it. It’s going in the Goodwill box tonite.