Where’d you go Ridge?
In 1988, Sloan Hadfield’s brother Ridge went fishing with their father and never came home. Their father, a good-natured Vietnam veteran prone to violent outbursts, was arrested and charged with murder. Ridge’s body was never recovered, and Sloan’s mother— a brilliant ornithologist— slowly descended into madness, insisting her son was still alive.
Now twenty years later, Sloan’s life is unraveling. In the middle of a bitter divorce, she’s forced to return to her rural Texas hometown when her mother is discharged from a mental health facility.
Overwhelmed by memories and unanswered questions, Sloan returns to the last place her brother was seen all those years ago: Crow’s Nest Creek. There, she is shocked to hear a crow murmuring the same syllable over and over: Ridge, Ridge, Ridge.
When the body of another boy is found, Sloan begins to question what really happened to her brother all those years ago. What she discovers will shock her small community and turn her family upside down.
Praise for A River of Crows:
“In A River of Crows, Shanessa Gluhm spins a complex web of murder and family revelation that propels the reader forward at a breakneck pace. Just when you think you know where the story is headed, she reveals another thread. If you haven’t yet read Shanessa Gluhm, you need to put her on your to-be-read list.” –Allen Eskens, USA Today bestselling author of The Life We Bury
“A twisted family dynamic and complex personal history combine with a touch of romance in Shanessa Gluhm’s knockout second novel. A River of Crows grabs on with the opening pages and holds a reader tight to the very end.” –Elena Taylor/Elena Hartwell, author of All We Buried and the Wait, Wait, Don’t Query (Yet) series.
“Shanessa Gluhm is one of the strongest new voices in mysteries. All stories start with character, and this fundamental tenet shines in Gluhm’s writing. Her innate ability to infuse personality, emotion and passion into her storytelling drives mysteries that twist the heart almost as much as they twist the brain.
Weaving two stories in the past that intertwine with a shattering climax, Gluhm has invented what could be a new genre: the family-driven mystery. The mystery of Ridge tugs at our heartstrings because we’re invested in the characters. You’ll fall in love with her characters and then wish you were right there with them, trying to solve the intricate puzzles Gluhm has constructed. She hooks you from the opening pages and by the jaw-dropping ending, leaves you salivating for her next book.
A River of Crows is a superb second novel that shows Shanessa Gluhm is a naturally gifted storyteller and writer, on a par with all the greats.”- Rob Samborn, author of The Prisoner of Paradise and Painter of the Damned
“Shanessa Gluhm crafts a thought-provoking story of revelation, family ties, discovery, and murder.
Living up to its initial promise, A River of Crows pulls on many disparate threads of experience and possibility that then take unusual turns. As the plot thickens, a cast of characters participate in events that lead to both an inevitable outcome and an unusual twist on predictability. This approach keeps readers thoroughly engrossed in the psychological dynamics of evolving possibilities.
Readers who choose A River of Crows for its mystery will find an unexpected draw and value in the emotional components which keep the plot action-packed and charged with transformation.”- D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review
Shanessa Gluhm has created a complex world along the banks of Crow’s Nest Creek that will completely absorb the reader. The mystery of what happened to Ridge when he went fishing with his father carries the reader throughout and keeps them guessing. Compelling characters that you root for, especially protagonist Sloan, are at the heart of this story.
Gluhm peels away layers of family secrets in this dual timeline narrative, right up until the climactic final reveal, a twist that truly surprised me. Well done!” -Laura Kemp, award-winning author of the Lantern Creek Series
“Shanessa Gluhm, with literary panache, expertly shows what happens when a family strays from respect and honesty, with the consequence of it all, as dark as a crow’s wing, unfurling, touching, and changing everything and everyone in its path.”—Lone Star Literary Life
“Like the tumultuous river flowing at the center of this gripping tale, Shanessa Gluhm has crafted a pulsating story that is just waiting to pull you into its chilling depths and slowly reveal all its darkest secrets.”—Indies Today
“Shanessa Gluhm delivers compelling psychological suspense propelled by complex family drama, intriguing twists and a keen sense of place.”-Jayne Ann Krentz, New York Times bestselling author
Shanessa Gluhm 