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Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here
"A superb 5-star thriller . . . one of the best I've read all year."—READER VIEWS
Up-and-coming journalist Nikki Hightower has almost landed her dream job at the Chicago Tribune when family tragedy calls her back to the last place she wants to Willigsville, her hometown in rural Missouri.
Ten years earlier, on high-school graduation night, Nikki drove one of two cars involved in a bizarre crash that killed the town's "princess" and left Nikki's best friend with permanent brain damage. The townspeople blamed Nikki. Only two people took her her father, owner of the local newspaper, and Sheriff Joe Ransom who always viewed law enforcement as a form of creative expression.
Nikki returns to Willigsville, trapped between conflicting escape the town's condemnation or stay to uncover the truth of the crash. She partners with the unpredictable sheriff amidst the town's greatest crisis, a tsunami of opioid addiction and overdoses fed by a brutal drug cartel and its local operatives. Meanwhile, rumors swirl of the sheriff's corruption.
The past and present collide as Nikki realizes that her survival depends upon whom she chooses to trust.
Up-and-coming journalist Nikki Hightower has almost landed her dream job at the Chicago Tribune when family tragedy calls her back to the last place she wants to Willigsville, her hometown in rural Missouri.
Ten years earlier, on high-school graduation night, Nikki drove one of two cars involved in a bizarre crash that killed the town's "princess" and left Nikki's best friend with permanent brain damage. The townspeople blamed Nikki. Only two people took her her father, owner of the local newspaper, and Sheriff Joe Ransom who always viewed law enforcement as a form of creative expression.
Nikki returns to Willigsville, trapped between conflicting escape the town's condemnation or stay to uncover the truth of the crash. She partners with the unpredictable sheriff amidst the town's greatest crisis, a tsunami of opioid addiction and overdoses fed by a brutal drug cartel and its local operatives. Meanwhile, rumors swirl of the sheriff's corruption.
The past and present collide as Nikki realizes that her survival depends upon whom she chooses to trust.
345 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 10, 2022
5 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Gordon MacKinney
6 books7 followersGordon MacKinney's first novel, Follow Me Down, was published in 2017 and won the Literary Titan Gold Award. His second novel, Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here, was published in 2022.
Gordon lives and writes in the foothills of Northern Colorado. He was a columnist for The Coloradoan for more than a decade and has written guest columns for the Denver Post. He has co-owned a successful marketing communications agency, Lightsource Creative Communications, Inc., for more than 20 years.
He and his wife, Dr. Kristy Dowers, have five children and one big brown dog — Tulio.
Gordon lives and writes in the foothills of Northern Colorado. He was a columnist for The Coloradoan for more than a decade and has written guest columns for the Denver Post. He has co-owned a successful marketing communications agency, Lightsource Creative Communications, Inc., for more than 20 years.
He and his wife, Dr. Kristy Dowers, have five children and one big brown dog — Tulio.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 8, 2022
“Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here,” is the latest thriller by Gordon MacKinney. This full-throttle page-turner is a chilling journey through a small-town riddled with secrets and cover-ups, mysterious deaths, corruption, and opioid addiction—in short, a narrative guaranteed to entertain.
A popular adage adopted from the title of a Thomas Wolfe novel maintains, “You can never go home again.” Such is the case with budding journalist, Nikki Hightower. On the brink of landing her dream job as a features writer at the Chicago Tribune, Nikki must return to Willigsville, Missouri, when family tragedy strikes.
Nikki successfully avoided Willigsville for the last decade after a fatal accident left the prom queen dead, and Nikki’s best friend with permanent brain damage. As the driver of one vehicle involved, Nikki received the full brunt of the town’s wrath, despite evidence stating it wasn’t her fault. Or was it? The only two people holding unwavering conviction of Nikki’s innocence were her father, the owner of the local newspaper and the Sherriff, Joe Ransom. Now, 10 years later, it’s clear the townsfolk have long memories and grudges run deep. Nikki also struggles with the future of her inheritance, the local newspaper, The Beacon. With her father gone and rumors of corruption within local law enforcement, Nikki doesn’t know who to trust. One thing’s for sure, she better figure it out soon because her very life depends on it.
Wow. Reading this novel was pure enjoyment. For starters, the writing is perfection. Gordon MacKinney reveals his storytelling prowess and command of the English language. He is a true wordsmith, and I marveled as much at the construct of his sentences as I did the meaning behind each word to propel his story forward. Sentence after sentence of vivid imagery plants the reader directly into the story, and I actually I highlighted sentences throughout the reading just so I could go back and admire the artistry. MacKinney elicits descriptions one would never imagine, and yet, when you’re reading, there is a conscious appreciation in knowing there couldn’t possibly be a better way to connect any given set of words. It’s not flowery, though it is exquisite and one gets the feeling he weighed every word for its ability to contribute to the story. Oh my, it sounds like I’m gushing, doesn’t it? What can I say—I’m MacKinney’s newest number one fan and this work is a study in how to write.
The characters are fully fleshed out, each major player with a clear arc and qualities enticing to the reader, be that through protagonists you love to love, antagonists you love to despise and those that crisscross the thresholds of good and evil to keep you guessing. I admire an author proficient in portraying the opposite sex and MacKinney does an exemplary job with Nikki Hightower, who struggles to balance her fears with her self-confidence, making her flawed yet fierce. I also loved Sheriff Joe and his unique interpretation of the law, and found Oscar Hightower’s wisdom inspirational, shining a light on the type of person everyone needs in their lives. The minor characters are memorable as well, fulfilling their roles in supporting the key players with timely agendas to lead readers down an unsuspecting path, or planting seeds of possibilities down the road.
The plot is engaging and full of twists, incorporating themes of hope and despair, love and betrayal, and good vs. evil, among others, while also integrating relevant ongoing social issues such as the drug epidemic and corruption in law enforcement. MacKinney doesn’t shy away from difficult topics, including that of losing a child and the depths of hell that come with that experience. The story progresses at a fitting accelerated pace: fast, furious, and intense. The grit, the conflict, and the sophistication will keep you reading well into the night and leave you more than a little sad to say goodbye at the end.
“Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here,” is a superb 5-star thriller by Gordon MacKinney, one of the best I’ve read all year and I wholeheartedly recommend. Well done.
A popular adage adopted from the title of a Thomas Wolfe novel maintains, “You can never go home again.” Such is the case with budding journalist, Nikki Hightower. On the brink of landing her dream job as a features writer at the Chicago Tribune, Nikki must return to Willigsville, Missouri, when family tragedy strikes.
Nikki successfully avoided Willigsville for the last decade after a fatal accident left the prom queen dead, and Nikki’s best friend with permanent brain damage. As the driver of one vehicle involved, Nikki received the full brunt of the town’s wrath, despite evidence stating it wasn’t her fault. Or was it? The only two people holding unwavering conviction of Nikki’s innocence were her father, the owner of the local newspaper and the Sherriff, Joe Ransom. Now, 10 years later, it’s clear the townsfolk have long memories and grudges run deep. Nikki also struggles with the future of her inheritance, the local newspaper, The Beacon. With her father gone and rumors of corruption within local law enforcement, Nikki doesn’t know who to trust. One thing’s for sure, she better figure it out soon because her very life depends on it.
Wow. Reading this novel was pure enjoyment. For starters, the writing is perfection. Gordon MacKinney reveals his storytelling prowess and command of the English language. He is a true wordsmith, and I marveled as much at the construct of his sentences as I did the meaning behind each word to propel his story forward. Sentence after sentence of vivid imagery plants the reader directly into the story, and I actually I highlighted sentences throughout the reading just so I could go back and admire the artistry. MacKinney elicits descriptions one would never imagine, and yet, when you’re reading, there is a conscious appreciation in knowing there couldn’t possibly be a better way to connect any given set of words. It’s not flowery, though it is exquisite and one gets the feeling he weighed every word for its ability to contribute to the story. Oh my, it sounds like I’m gushing, doesn’t it? What can I say—I’m MacKinney’s newest number one fan and this work is a study in how to write.
The characters are fully fleshed out, each major player with a clear arc and qualities enticing to the reader, be that through protagonists you love to love, antagonists you love to despise and those that crisscross the thresholds of good and evil to keep you guessing. I admire an author proficient in portraying the opposite sex and MacKinney does an exemplary job with Nikki Hightower, who struggles to balance her fears with her self-confidence, making her flawed yet fierce. I also loved Sheriff Joe and his unique interpretation of the law, and found Oscar Hightower’s wisdom inspirational, shining a light on the type of person everyone needs in their lives. The minor characters are memorable as well, fulfilling their roles in supporting the key players with timely agendas to lead readers down an unsuspecting path, or planting seeds of possibilities down the road.
The plot is engaging and full of twists, incorporating themes of hope and despair, love and betrayal, and good vs. evil, among others, while also integrating relevant ongoing social issues such as the drug epidemic and corruption in law enforcement. MacKinney doesn’t shy away from difficult topics, including that of losing a child and the depths of hell that come with that experience. The story progresses at a fitting accelerated pace: fast, furious, and intense. The grit, the conflict, and the sophistication will keep you reading well into the night and leave you more than a little sad to say goodbye at the end.
“Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here,” is a superb 5-star thriller by Gordon MacKinney, one of the best I’ve read all year and I wholeheartedly recommend. Well done.
December 20, 2022
Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here follows a promising young writer living in Chicago, Nikki, who is given the opportunity to get her dream job as a feature writer, all she has to do is come up with the idea for a career making story. However, things start to go wrong when she receives a call from her hometown Sheriff, telling her that her father passed away. Not only must she return home and hold a memorial for him, but when she does the news of her arrival spreads like wildfire through the locals, due to the fact that when she was younger she was involved in a terrible accident where someone was killed. Luckily, she reconnects with the Sheriff, who has played a significant role in her life, only now he needs her help with a drug related case, could this be her big story?
From the very opening line, ‘Nikki slowed her pace for the revolving door of Chicago Tribune Tower’, the author plunges readers straight into the action and starts to build the readers curiosity. The story has an excellent pace to it, with each chapter adding a little more background information and leaving the reader wanting to know more about the protagonists past as well as what is going to happen next.
Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here is a unique story about an ambitious woman who wants to live her dream, but she must first face her past. The way the author has shown the contrast between Chicago and her hometown is done well. The story moves quickly, but I really enjoyed how the sharp dialogue was used to move the story along, while also keeping readers in the know. There is a wonderful balance between the descriptive language and the dialogue, allowing the reader to visualize every scenario.
This is a riveting crime thriller containing a mystery that readers will lose themselves in. With a compelling protagonist that readers will enjoy following, this is a book that will keep you entertained to the last page.
From the very opening line, ‘Nikki slowed her pace for the revolving door of Chicago Tribune Tower’, the author plunges readers straight into the action and starts to build the readers curiosity. The story has an excellent pace to it, with each chapter adding a little more background information and leaving the reader wanting to know more about the protagonists past as well as what is going to happen next.
Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here is a unique story about an ambitious woman who wants to live her dream, but she must first face her past. The way the author has shown the contrast between Chicago and her hometown is done well. The story moves quickly, but I really enjoyed how the sharp dialogue was used to move the story along, while also keeping readers in the know. There is a wonderful balance between the descriptive language and the dialogue, allowing the reader to visualize every scenario.
This is a riveting crime thriller containing a mystery that readers will lose themselves in. With a compelling protagonist that readers will enjoy following, this is a book that will keep you entertained to the last page.
March 30, 2023
I just finished reading Gordon MacKinney's new Novel, "Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here." Like the Author's first Novel, this thriller also is a very engaging read. What makes it stand out for me is that it brings a real societal issue to life - the opioid crisis. When I checked last time, the overdose deaths involving opioids has risen to over hundred thousand people per year. This Novel, is not only great entertainment, but also a way to help create a greater awareness for the issue. The setting of this Novel is small town America and MacKinney weaves other issues that people face into the story, such as trauma from past experiences, people's bias, local newspapers struggling to survive, issue of trusting police, etc. It makes it a more multi dimensional experience. What I wondered during my reading was, can the opioid crisis really be overcome in the way it plays out in this Novel? Maybe a question for another Novel! I recommend this book to readers who like thrillers with real world relevance.
January 23, 2023
Need a smart page-turner? MacKinney’s latest crime novel, "Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here," hooks you and doesn’t let go with an engaging plot (and subplots and twists) that centers on the dark web-based world of illegal opioid distribution. Vivid descriptions and similes (without ubiquitous “likes”) deliver an honest sense of rural “place” rarely found in modern crime novels. But more importantly, the novel is filled with complex and memorable small-town heroes and villains, in line to find either redemption or comeuppance. James Lee Burke has a worthy successor in Gordon MacKinney.
February 15, 2023
One of my favorite reads of the year. The main character is authentic, ambitious and engaging. In order to deal with the loss of a special dad she has to confront dangers, past hurts and accusations. She does so with guts and smarts. The challenges are exciting, the pace just right all the way through. I definitely want to read more from this author. His mix of action, analysis and subtlety is just what I like.
February 28, 2023
Once again, Gordon MacKinney comes through with another winning high stakes thriller in Tell Anyone You Want That I Was Here. This novel has it all, wonderfully drawn characters, emotional depth, and a fast paced plot that makes you want to keep turning the pages. High recommended
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews