The Slayer Rule

Set against the backdrop of the American West, “The Slayer Rule” is a sweeping crime drama that delves into themes of friendship, love, loss, and the silent tragedies that haunt the rural landscape.
 

The story begins with a dinosaur hunter being found dead at the base of a cliff, just days after our protagonist, Nick Yearsley, arrives in Jordan, Montana. Unfortunately for Nick, the local sheriff doesn’t believe in coincidences.

But Nick isn’t looking for trouble—he’s looking for dinosaurs. It shouldn’t matter what happened in Jordan thirty years ago when a twelve-year-old boy deliberately killed his drunken father in a hunting “accident.” Nor should it matter that the area has a history of disappearances and deaths dating back decades. And it certainly shouldn’t matter that the young sheriff was promoted from chief deputy because of the recent death of her husband, the previous sheriff.

What does any of this have to do with the present-day life of Nick Yearsley? On the day he arrives in Jordan, absolutely nothing. By the end of that day, with what he accidentally sets into motion, everything.

Richard DeGrandpre’s stunning crime novel employs great depth of characterization to harness the age-old power of storytelling. If you’re expecting a straightforward whodunnit or a formulaic crime thriller, prepare yourself for a page-turner that is, well, just the beginning.

Next in “The Bone Hunter” series, “The Knackerman.”