Blood Family

Divorced technical writer Alex Whitfield lives a life of studied normalcy, in sharp contrast to his deeply dysfunctional family: uncle in prison for arson, half-sister missing after a stint in rehab, father dead by suicide in a psych ward. But Alex's normal life is shattered one night when he finds his half-sister, April, lying in his bathtub with her wrists slashed--until she disappears a few seconds later. Alex is terrified to think he might have inherited his father's madness, but when he confides in a friend, she suggests that Alex might not have been hallucinating; instead, perhaps he saw April's ghost. Alex doesn't believe in ghosts, and he doesn't want to believe April is dead, either. Still, he dreads hearing what a doctor might say about his sanity, so he delays the inevitable by letting his friend take him to see a "witch" who supposedly can help him. Thus begins Alex's reluctant journey from the streets of Atlanta to the mountains of Appalachia and from this world to the next one as he's forced to grapple with hidden truths about himself, his family, and the very nature of reality. Along the way he'll find friends and enemies among both the living and the dead, and he'll learn why his father really committed suicide, why April went missing, and why she desperately needs his help.

Author: Brent Winter
Publisher: Brent Winter
Published: 12/24/2016
Pages: 396
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.90lbs
Size: 8.00h x 5.25w x 0.81d
ISBN: 9780692826942

Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 04/15/2017 pg. 143

About the Author
Winter, Brent: - Atlanta native Brent Winter wrote his first story in sixth grade: a piece of Silmarillion fan fiction telling how the hobbits were created. Lord of the Rings was helping him survive a grim period, and he wanted to immerse himself in that world even more deeply by adding to it. The impulse to enter other worlds through writing never left him, but for many years he couldn't decide what kind of stories to write: mainstream literary fiction? Surrealism? Science fiction? Straight-up horror? He tried it all and more besides, racking up scores of rejections, a contest win, some honorable mentions, and an MFA in creative writing along the way. Finally he asked a West African shaman what he should write. The shaman told Brent he'd come into this world with bone-seated information about the other world, and the sole purpose of that information was to share it through stories. So that's what he does, writing literary supernatural thrillers about D Street, the neighborhood in downtown Atlanta that you can't find on your own; someone who's already been there has to take you first. Brent now works as a writer and editor at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. When he can, he visits Atlanta and D Street, where he gets readings at Simon Magus, has dinner at the Oracle, and takes in shows at the Aerie. Brent can be contacted via his website: dstreetisreal.com.

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