Kilborn: One Man's Spiral Into Madness

by Wayne Hughes

Small towns are remembered with nostalgia, deep-seated anger, or parts of both. So it is with those who live or have lived in Jerrod, a small cotton-farming town in north-central Texas. It is home for multiple generations of men or women with few opportunities to break the bonds with land, family, and hometown. Kilborn focuses on a third-generation native son, Drake Kilborn. Under his father’s tutelage, he learned to pilot spray planes in his youth. Although it was generally understood he’d inherit the business, he felt the lure of moving to a nearby city so that he could continue flying, but for higher stakes and higher rewards, rewards from hauling illicit herbicides used to defoliate cotton—and cause cancer for those who handled it.He was lured back to Jerrod by the death of his mother and the impact it had on his father. He took over the business, but his mother’s demise caused a growing depression, leading to a careless, terminal madness and flirtation with suicide. Freddy Paz, an undercover Texas Ranger working for Kilborn, travels with him to Jerrod and builds a case for his arrest. He finally reveals himself to people close to the Kilborn family and works—in vain—to bring Drake to justice. His final hour ends in a bizarre, other-worldly way fans of carefully-twisted horror stories will appreciate.Kilborn is told in the spirit of Faulkner and Grisham with a nod to Erol Stanley Gardner and Stephen King.Small towns are remembered with nostalgia, deep-seated anger, or parts of both. So it is with those who live or have lived in Jerrod, a small cotton-farming town in north-central Texas. It is home for multiple generations of men or women with few opportunities to break the bonds with land, family, and hometown. Kilborn focuses on a third-generation native son, Drake Kilborn. Under his father’s tutelage, he learned to pilot spray planes in his youth. Although it was generally understood he’d inherit the business, he felt the lure of moving to a nearby city so that he could continue flying, but for higher stakes and higher rewards, rewards from hauling illicit herbicides used to defoliate cotton—and cause cancer for those who handled it.He was lured back to Jerrod by the death of his mother and the impact it had on his father. He took over the business, but his mother’s demise caused a growing depression, leading to a careless, terminal madness and flirtation with suicide. Freddy Paz, an undercover Texas Ranger working for Kilborn, travels with him to Jerrod and builds a case for his arrest. He finally reveals himself to people close to the Kilborn family and works—in vain—to bring Drake to justice. His final hour ends in a bizarre, other-worldly way fans of carefully-twisted horror stories will appreciate.Kilborn is told in the spirit of Faulkner and Grisham with a nod to Erol Stanley Gardner and Stephen King.

246 pages, Paperback

Published October 8, 2019

Reviews

[Everett Callen · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Kilborn" immerses you in the gritty, haunting world of small-town Texas, where nostalgia and anger intertwine. Drake Kilborn's tragic descent into madness and crime, set against the backdrop of family loyalty and generational struggles, makes for a gripping read. With echoes of Faulkner and Grisham, the story explores the haunting price of secrets, betrayal, and survival. If you're a fan of deeply psychological, twisted narratives that veer into horror, this one’s a must-read—a chilling, thought-provoking journey through both the human mind and the eerie, decaying landscape of Jerrod.