Title: The Distant Dead by Heather Young
Publisher: William Morrow
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery
Length: 352 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
A young boy finds himself at the center of a murder mystery in this timely and twisty thriller from the author of the acclaimed The Lost Girls–a compelling and indelible story set in small town America that examines the burden of guilt, the bitter price of forgiveness, and the debts we owe our dead, both recent and distant.
A body burns in the high desert hills. A young boy walks into a fire station, pale with the shock of a grisly discovery. A middle school teacher worries when her colleague is late for work. By day’s end, when the body is identified as new math teacher Adam Merkel, a small Nevada town will begin its reckoning with a brutal and calculated murder.
Adam Merkel left a university professorship to teach middle school math in Lovelock seven months before he died. A quiet, seemingly unremarkable man, he spoke little about his past and connected with only one of his students: Sal Prentiss, an orphaned sixth grader who lives on a remote ranch in the hills with his uncles. The two outcasts developed a tender, trusting friendship that brought each of them hope in the wake of tragedy. But it is Sal who finds Adam’s body, and Sal who must carry his darkest secret.
Nora Wheaton is the middle school’s social studies teacher. Twelve years ago she abandoned her dream of being an archaeologist to care for her disabled father, a man she loves but can’t forgive for her brother’s death. As she delves into Adam’s past for clues to who killed him she draws closer to Sal, unearths difficult truths about her relationship with her father, and finds an unexpected chance to — perhaps — live the life she thought she’d lost.
Over the course of one fateful school year, all three of these kindred spirits must wrestle with the burden of remorse, the price of forgiveness, and the debts they owe their dead. The very questions, it turns out, that also haunt Adam’s killer.
Weaving together the last months of Adam Merkel’s life and Nora’s search for answers after his death, this literary thriller crafts a taut web of suspense that builds relentlessly to its shattering, unexpected conclusion.
Review:
The Distant Dead by Heather Young is a captivating mystery that is achingly poignant.
Sixth grader Sal Prentiss goes to live with his off the grid uncles Gideon and Ezra following his mother’s death. The lonely land has been in the family for several generations and the Prentiss family has quite the checkered history. Neither uncle is overly affectionate with the grieving boy so when school begins, Sal forms an unexpected friendship with his math teacher, Adam Merkel. Although Merkel is not exactly an animated instructor in the classroom, he completely captures Sal’s attention with his mathematic stories while one on one. One morning, on his way to school, Sal makes a grisly discovery when he stumbles across a burned body.
Meanwhile at school, everyone is wondering where Adam is. He has never been late nor has he called in sick. Fellow teacher and friend Nora Wheaton knows something has to be wrong. Unfortunately once word of the burned corpse gets out, she is shocked to discover it is Adam. Her ex-husband Chief Deputy Mason Greer is working the case and he readily answers her questions throughout the investigation. Nora beings asking questions on her own and she uncovers stunning information that might just lead to his killer.
Sal is a bright young man with a creative mind and impressive skill as an artist. His life before his mother’s death was lonely yet happy and he greatly mourns her loss. Life with his uncles is sparse and he is often left to his own devices. So when his Uncle Ezra begins paying attention to him, he likes being noticed and included in the family. But Ezra has an ulterior motive for his interest in Sal who reluctantly agrees to his uncle’s plan.
Nora is resentful that she had to put her life’s plans on hold to care for her father. At the time, she was about to begin her career as an anthropologist. But after returning to Love Lock, she reluctantly accepts a position as a Social Studies teacher. Before Adam’s murder, she only pays cursory attention to her students. However, while trying to find out more information about her friend’s death, Nora becomes invested in the lonely boy. Despite progress in the case, she becomes certain that Sal is the key to solving the murder.
The Distant Dead is a spellbinding mystery with a slight otherworldly element. Sal is a heart achingly appealing young boy who is intuitive and sympathetic. Nora’s bitterness toward her father is understandable and her anger at him is quickly reaching a boiling point. The storyline is multi-faceted and the desolate setting is atmospheric and adds to the overall feeling of hopelessness. Heather Young brings this riveting mystery full circle with an absolutely shocking denouement.
I was thoroughly immersed in this incredibly engrossing mystery from beginning to end. I highly recommend it to readers of the genre.
