Nothing But the Bones: A Novel

by Brian Panowich

Overview

With lyrical prose and hard-hitting depictions of the hardscrabble life in the rural south, Brian Panowich, author of Bull Mountain, Like Lions, and Hard Cash Valley, delivers a gripping new chapter in his tales of McFalls County in Nothing But the Bones.

In McFalls County, local crime boss Gareth Burroughs runs everything on the mountain. And Nelson “Nails” McKenna has been his enforcer since he was a teenager, though his heart's not really in the dirty work. Then one night in a local roadhouse, Nails goes too far, defending a woman, and even Burroughs’s reach can’t get him out of this one. With a dead body and countless witnesses, Nails and the woman become fugitives on the run, and unlikely partners.

But on the road to Jacksonville, where a possible escape awaits, there’s more than one interested party on the pair’s trail, and the glimpse they had of getting away scot free suddenly seems elusive. In the end, Nails must make one final stand for his freedom—or pay with both of their lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250835246
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/16/2024
Pages:	336
Sales rank:	26,489
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Brian Panowich is an award winning author, a Georgia firefighter, and a father to four incredible children. His first novel, Bull Mountain, was a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist, ITW Thriller Award winner for Best First Novel, Southern Book Prize winner, and a finalist for both the Anthony and the Barry Awards. He lives in Georgia with his family.

Editorial Reviews

04/22/2024

The vivid fourth installment (after Hard Cash Valley) of Panowich’s series set in McFalls County, Ga., follows a criminal enforcer on the lam. In 1989, 16-year-old Nelson McKenna is confronted by a pair of bullies. Clayton Burroughs, son of drug kingpin Gareth Burroughs, intervenes on Nelson’s behalf, and one of the attackers ends up dead. Gareth cleans up the mess, but in return, forces Nelson (whom he nicknames “Nails”) to start working for him. Ten years later, Nails is collecting contraband for Gareth at a bar when he interrupts a man sexually assaulting a woman in the bathroom. In the chaos that ensues, Nails’s crew kills the woman’s assailant. Gareth refuses to cover for Nails this time, and sends him to hide out in Florida. On his way out of town, he links up with the woman he defended, who tells him her name is Dallas Georgia, and the two develop an emotional connection. Meanwhile, Alex Price, brother of the man Nails’s crew killed, grows hell-bent on revenge. Panowich keeps readers on their toes all the way through, and anchors his well-executed plot reversals in Nails and Dallas’s tender feelings for each other. It’s another standout Southern noir from Panowich. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Nothing But the Bones

“A moving, deeply felt take on Bonnie and Clyde whose inexorable trajectory still allows room for plenty of twists.” –Kirkus Reviews

“Panowich keeps readers on their toes all the way through, and anchors his well-executed plot reversals in Nails and Dallas’s tender feelings for each other. It’s another standout Southern noir from Panowich.”—Publishers Weekly

“Both pulse-pounding and heart-stirring. This one should be savored.” –The Wall Street Journal

"Brian Panowich goes all-in with Nothing But the Bones, a novel of all that is human: love and friendship, lust and sin, sacrifice and murder. There is profound evil in this story but also enduring goodness, and while not everything is as it appears on the surface, befitting a very satisfying crime story, what is clear from the beginning is that this is a terrific, mesmerizing read that satisfies from beginning to end." –Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sympathizer

“The compelling tale, its tone alternately brutal and tender, unfolds at a breakneck pace. The character development is superb, the settings are vivid, and the prose is as tight as a noose. The plot is full of twists. Among them is a startling revelation about Dallas’s identity, introducing a sensitive subject that Panowich handles with understanding and grace.” –Associated Press

“Brian Panowich is one of the best shared world authors out there.” – The Hard Word

“Nothing But The Bones is an absolutely spellbinding crime novel, brilliantly told. The characters are wonderfully drawn, the plot is truly suspenseful, and Nails is a masterful creation. Brian Panowich has written another winner.” –Marilyn’s Mystery Reads

"Nothing But The Bones is highly recommended. Panowich’s stories and novels are also highly recommended to those interested in starting a new series or exploring the works of a different author." –Mystery and Suspense

Praise for Brian Panowich and McFalls County

“Jaw-dropping." —Wall Street Journal

“The plotting is skilled, as is the sleuthing, and the landscape is stunning. But it’s the hard-jawed characters, with their tough talk and scarred souls, who really get under your skin.” —The New York Times Book Review on Hard Cash Valley, One of the 10 Best Crime Novels of the Year

"[Panowich] continues to mix crime fiction with a violent family drama, perfectly melding characters with a sense of place.” — Associated Press

“Prose as punchy as rapid-aged whiskey.”—Esquire

“This is country noir with a bite as sharp as a rattler's.” — AARP

"In the vein of Grisham and Burke, Panowich zips readers along with action backed by delightfully rhythmic storytelling.” — Garden and Gun

From the Publisher

2024-01-20
In this prequel to Panowich's earlier novels about McFalls County, Georgia, we learn that Clayton Burroughs, who's shunted into a supporting role here, led an eventful life before becoming sheriff.

Nelson McKenna’s always had it tough. Born with a deformed hand and a cloudy mind and regularly beaten by his father, he had precious few friends in high school, where his sudden, violent turn against a bully brought him into uncomfortably close contact with Gareth Burroughs, Clayton’s wealthy, unscrupulous father, who’s willing to do anything to protect his extensive interests. When Nelson, now known simply as Nails, senses a dispute between patrons of Tuten’s Chute, the bar where he works, he lashes out again, this time leaving Robbie Price dead. Given $8,000 in traveling money and promised a safe landing by Gareth’s agents if he makes it to Jacksonville, he takes it on the lam with Dallas Georgia, the girl he rescued. Their modern-day odyssey, revolving around a relationship that unfolds in unexpected ways, is further complicated by the fact that both Robbie’s brother, attorney Alex Price, and Nails’ old friend Clayton are searching for him with very different goals in mind. Clayton’s hunt puts him clearly at odds with his father, who’s protecting Nails for reasons of his own and only up to a point. The familiar story of fugitives on the run is intensified by the contrast between Nails’ mental challenges, which combined with his hulking stature make other people see him as a monster, and his essential sweetness.

A moving, deeply felt take on Bonnie and Clyde whose inexorable trajectory still allows room for plenty of twists.

Kirkus Reviews