Passing Through a Prairie Country

A Novel

Dennis E. Staples

$54.99

Hardback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Counterpoint
18 March 2025

Horror & ghost stories

A darkly humorous thriller about the ghosts that haunt the temples of excess we call casinos, and the people caught in their high-stakes, low-odds web

A darkly humorous thriller about the ghosts that haunt the temples of excess we call casinos, and the people caught in their high-stakes, low-odds web

For decades, a dark force has terrorized the Languille Lake reservation. Spoken of only in whispers as ""the sandman,"" he lurks in the Hidden Atlantis Lake Resort and Casino, the reservation's main attraction and source of revenue, leeching its patrons' dreams and preventing the ghosts that linger there from moving on. Fleeing a breakup, Marion Lafournier, a midtwenties Ojibwe, seeks solace in the slot machine's siren song. Here he falls afoul of the sandman, an encounter he barely escapes through the timely intervention of his cousins Alana and Cherie, who both work at the casino and are intimately aware of the sandman's power. Meanwhile, Glenn Nielan, recently out of the closet and an aspiring documentarian, hopes to capture the faces of the Ojibwe land while experiencing the casino's thrills. But he will learn that all who choose to play the sandman's games are in danger of falling into his grasp.

Marion and Alana are members of the Bullhead clan, a family with ties to a sacred past and a fierce determination to ensure their future. Alana, with her sevenfire sight, is the only person to fully understand the danger the sandman poses. Aware of Marion's occasional ability to navigate the spirit world, she enlists his aid in defeating this wraith. But the power and reach of the sandman go far beyond Alana's worst fears. Soon she and Marion find themselves in a battle for their lives and for the souls of the reservation's residents, both the living and the dead.

By: Dennis E. Staples
Imprint: Counterpoint
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 218mm, Width: 146mm,
Weight: 567g
ISBN: 9781640096875
ISBN 10: 1640096876
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 18 March 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

DENNIS E. STAPLES is an Ojibwe writer from Bemidji, Minnesota, and the author of This Town Sleeps. He holds an MFA in fiction from the Institute of American Indian Arts and is a graduate of the 2018 Clarion West Writers Workshop and a recipient of the Octavia E. Butler Memorial Scholarship. His work has appeared in Asimov's Science Fiction and Nightmare magazine. He is a member of the Red Lake Nation.

Reviews for Passing Through a Prairie Country: A Novel

Ms., A March Must Read LGBTQ+ Reads, A Most Anticipated Book ""Ojibwe writer Dennis E. Staples' blend of suspense, comedy and thrills is perfect for fans of Reservation Dogs and Stephen Graham Jones."" — Lizz Schumer, People ""Illuminates how a community attempts to cope with ancestral trauma. This is worth a look."" —Publishers Weekly ""The sense of timelessness and multiple points of view add to the novel's chaotic suspense, giving readers the impression they're trapped in an episode of Twin Peaks. This is a quick and unique read sure to appeal to thriller fans who also enjoy gothic horror."" —Booklist ""Taking readers on a journey through the lavish Hidden Atlantis Casino, where no clocks hang on the walls, to the timeless realm of mysterious and death-dealing spirits, Dennis E. Staples delivers an otherworldly story that's haunting, darkly humorous, and chock full of fascinating Native lore."" —Nick Medina, author of Indian Burial Ground