Thriller

Finished January 3
The Blue Cheer by Ed Lynskey
The main character in this thriller is Frank Johnson, a Virginia private investigator who has recently moved to a cabin in the woods in West Virginia, trying to make a break with his past. He is befriended by Old Man Maddox, a retired CIA man. Maddox and his paraplegic wife Jan are Frank's nearest neighbours, and live over the ridge from him. When Frank sees a Stinger rocket take down a drone one evening over the woods near him, he calls on Maddox to help investigate. Frank ends up targeted for injury and vandalism and the investigations of the two men lead them into further danger including murder. All the clues lead back to a group called the Blue Cheer, but the local authorities seem too eager to turn the other way. What with corrupt lawmakers, lots of drinking, and a love for bluegrass, this book takes the two into a world of open racism and unbridled hate.