★ 05/12/2014 Although set in northeastern Pennsylvania, Bouman’s outstanding debut has the feel of a western. Officer Henry Farrell became the head policeman in Wild Thyme Township because he expected it to be an easy job with hunting and fishing taking up most of his time. But uneasiness has settled into the economically depressed area with an active drug trade, including home-brewed meth. Drilling for natural gas is bringing money to the region, but this new wealth affects only a few residents, pitting neighbor against neighbor while potentially destroying the land. The discovery of a stranger’s body on a disused dairy farm owned by elderly hermit Aub Dunigan, followed by the murder of a policeman, heightens the tension among the residents. Henry’s growth from a grief-stricken widower to a lawman with an inner resolve fuels the brisk plot, as does an evocative look at a changing landscape. Agent: Neil Olson, Donadio & Olson. (July)
"Grit-lit meets wry suspense, along with a keen rendering of place and politics."
New York Magazine (Six Books to Read this Summer)
"Debut author Tom Bouman is a gem… Recommended for your end of summer pleasure."
Book Reporter - Joe Hartlaub
"An exciting and disturbing debut… Bouman brings his world to life with texture that gives every room and vehicle and person a history and character, keeping us immersed in this mesmerizing and often terrifying story."
"Some stories are so sad, you want them to have the comfort of a gentle storytelling voice. Tom Bouman extends this kindness in… his beautifully written first novel."
"[Incorporates] literary elements—thick atmosphere, regional rootedness, social scope—into an actual fast-paced mystery series."
New York Magazine - Boris Kachka
★ 2014-05-19 The worn-down mountains and fertile river valleys of northeastern Pennsylvania hide some dreadful secrets.Officer Henry Farrell has returned, bereft and mentally damaged, from Wyoming to the land of his birth after his wife died from a number of health problems he suspects were related to fracking. In Henry's quiet corner of Pennsylvania, hardscrabble dairy farms and small businesses struggle for survival. For years, there have been few jobs and plenty of poverty. But that's all being changed by the influx of companies leasing land for gas drilling. When the body of a young man is found on the property of Aub Dunigan, and Danny Stiobhard appears at a local clinic to have buckshot picked out of his side after Aub "accidentally" shoots him, Henry realizes he'll have to call in both the sheriff and the state police. Aub, who's suffering from dementia, has little to say, and Danny takes off before the police can ask too many questions. Life only gets more complicated when Henry's deputy, George Ellis, is shot dead and Henry discovers a well-hidden old grave on Aub's property. Henry went to school with many of his suspects and believes that, despite their casual thievery and poaching, most of them are incapable of murder. But the drilling has brought an influx of out-of-state workers, set neighbor against neighbor, and opened the door to dangerous meth cookers and heroin pushers who've set up business in remote locations. The key to solving Henry's case may lie in a remarkably well-preserved body found in the hidden grave.Bouman's debut shows rural noir at its finest: a poetically written mystery about a man struggling with his inner demons and an area of great natural beauty few had heard of before the natural gas boom.
"You would be hard-pressed to find a finer new series than Tom Bouman’s Henry Farrell novels because of the complexity of the plots or the richness of the characters, but what it really comes down to is just damn good writing."
"It's a mystery, yes, but it's also a love story between a man and the land and people he knows like the back of his hand. Dry Bones in the Valley is a gorgeous, lived-in novel, and Bouman's turns of phrase are chest-clutching in their beauty."
"Raymond Chandler said that Hammett took murder away from the manor houses and gave it back to the people who actually commit it. Tom Bouman continues that tradition. Bouman's story is deceptively simple, layered with history, bearing the promise of lightness, of redemption."
"So smooth it's as if it was written on spring water. Shadowy, swift, impossible to put down. I was enraptured. Any justice and this writer will soon be a major star."
"Officer Henry Farrell is a shy man, but in his own ways just as ornery and tough as the cast of rugged characters who inhabit his Pennsylvania woods, where the mysteries are as old as love and grief. A rural cop with a keen intelligence and a wounded heart, Henry’s the right man to unearth the secrets of Dry Bones in the Valley . Tom Bouman’s debut novel is one you won’t want to miss."
"A tough, edgy thriller that asks hard questions about the destruction of our environment, our local communities, and our families. Readers of smart literary thrillers are going to love this novel. I wish like hell that my name were on the cover."
"Tom Bouman is a remarkable new voice in contemporary fiction. Dry Bones in the Valley is a tightly crafted piece of rural noir that seems pulled from the earth itself, a profound look at the dark corners of rural America. Readers of Daniel Woodrell and Donald Ray Pollock will find much to love."
[An] outstanding debut... Henry's growth from a grief-stricken widower to a lawman with an inner resolve fuels the brisk plot, as does an evocative look at a changing landscape.-- "Publishers Weekly, starred review" Bouman's debut shows rural noir at its finest: a poetically written mystery about a man struggling with his inner demons and an area of great natural beauty few had heard of before the natural gas boom.-- "Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review" It's a mystery, yes, but it's also a love story between a man and the land and people he knows like the back of his hand. Dry Bones in the Valley is a gorgeous, lived-in novel, and Bouman's turns of phrase are chest-clutching in their beauty.--Hannah Pittard, author of The Fates Will Find Their Way Officer Henry Farrell is a shy man, but in his own ways just as ornery and tough as the cast of rugged characters who inhabit his Pennsylvania woods, where the mysteries are as old as love and grief. A rural cop with a keen intelligence and a wounded heart, Henry's the right man to unearth the secrets of Dry Bones in the Valley . Tom Bouman's debut novel is one you won't want to miss.--Ed Falco, author of The Family Corleone Tom Bouman is a remarkable new voice in contemporary fiction. Dry Bones in the Valley is a tightly crafted piece of rural noir that seems pulled from the earth itself, a profound look at the dark corners of rural America. Readers of Daniel Woodrell and Donald Ray Pollock will find much to love.--Steve Weddle, author of Country Hardball You would be hard-pressed to find a finer new series than Tom Bouman's Henry Farrell novels because of the complexity of the plots or the richness of the characters, but what it really comes down to is just damn good writing.--Craig Johnson, author of the Walt Longmire novels, the basis for the Netflix series Longmire So smooth it's as if it was written on spring water. Shadowy, swift, impossible to put down. I was enraptured. Any justice and this writer will soon be a major star.--Joe R. Lansdale, author of Deadman's Road A tough, edgy thriller that asks hard questions about the destruction of our environment, our local communities, and our families. Readers of smart literary thrillers are going to love this novel. I wish like hell that my name were on the cover.--Wiley Cash, New York Times best-selling author of A Land More Kind Than Home Raymond Chandler said that Hammett took murder away from the manor houses and gave it back to the people who actually commit it. Tom Bouman continues that tradition. Bouman's story is deceptively simple, layered with history, bearing the promise of lightness, of redemption.--James Sallis, author of Drive
Beautifully written.
Marilyn Stasio - New York Times
Henry Farrell [is] truly one of the most likable and dedicated law officers in the history of crime fiction. I loved every word of it.
A standout debut with an authenticity of place and character rare in any form of literature.