PRIZES to win! PROMOTIONS
James Ryan Daley is a writer, editor, and digital designer. After earning an MFA in fiction at the Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2004, James has spent most of the years since then teaching writing to college students, creating websites about video games, and editing anthologies of fiction and political rhetoric. When he's not glued to his computer, obsessively poring over pixels and pronouns, James can usually be found skiing the slopes of Vermont or sailing the harbors of Rhode Island. He lives in Newport, RI with his wife and two daughters.
When high school football hero Ryan Stiles is found dead at the bottom of a ravine, the only person not consumed by grief is his younger brother. Jonathan has reason to believe his brother's death was no accident. While everyone around him goes through the many stages of grief, Jonathan can only investigate. The book works as parallel mysteries: On one track are the shady details of Ryan's death, and on the other are the religious and spiritual questions brought up by his demise. Jonathan's friend Henry and Ryan's girlfriend, Tristan, help him solve the murder, while the mysterious Jesus Jackson helps Jonathan with his theological needs. Daley's use of Jesus as a sounding board for Jonathan's crisis of faith makes for the book's most surreal and intimate moments. The author argues the necessity of faith regardless of where it is placed, a simple concept that is refreshed when delivered in such an unusual fashion. The book excels, sidestepping holier-than-thou rhetoric and addressing the pain of loss head-on as well as painting a wonderful depiction of a young man coming to terms with how he was raised and how he wants to lead his own life. The mystery element and minor romance are icing on the cake: well executed and finely tuned, complementing the book's major themes in all the right ways. Smart and sweet, comforting and moving. * Kirkus Reviews *
