Awards
2008 Edgar Award winner Best Novel
Synopses & Reviews
Down River is the winner of the 2008 Edgar Award for Best Novel.
Everything that shaped him happened near that river….
Now its banks are filled with lies and greed, shame, and murder….
John Harts debut, The King of Lies, was compelling and lyrical, with Janet Maslin of The New York Times declaring, “There hasnt been a thriller as showily literate since Scott Turow came along.” Now, in Down River, Hart makes a scorching return to Rowan County, where he drives his characters to the edge, explores the dark side of human nature, and questions the fundamental power of forgiveness.
Adam hase has a violent streak, and not without reason. As a boy, he saw things that no child should see, suffered wounds that cut to the core and scarred thin. The trauma left him passionate and misunderstood---a fighter. After being narrowly acquitted of a murder charge, Adam is hounded out of the only home hes ever known, exiled for a sin he did not commit. For five long years he disappears, fades into the faceless gray of New York City. Now hes back and nobody knows why, not his family or the cops, not the enemies he left behind.
But Adam has his reasons.
Within hours of his return, he is beaten and accosted, confronted by his family and the women he still holds dear. No one knows what to make of Adams return, but when bodies start turning up, the small town rises against him and Adam again finds himself embroiled in the fight of his life, not just to prove his own innocence, but to reclaim the only life hes ever wanted.
Bestselling author John Hart holds nothing back as he strips his characters bare. Secrets explode, emotions tear, and more than one person crosses the brink into deadly behavior as he examines the lengths to which people will go for money, family, and revenge.
A powerful, heart-pounding thriller, Down River will haunt your thoughts long after the last page is turned.
Praise for John Hart and The King of Lies
“Treat yourself to something new and truly out of the ordinary.”
---Rocky Mountain News
“A top-notch debut. Harts prose is like Raymond Chandlers, angular and hard.”
--Entertainment Weekly (grade A)
“A gripping performance.”
---People magazine
“A marriage of carefully crafted prose alongside have-to-keep-reading suspense.”
---The Denver Post
“A masterful piece of writing.”
---The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC)
“A gripping mystery/thriller and a fully fleshed, thoughtful work of literature.”
---Winston-Salem Journal
“The King of Lies moves and reads like a book on fire.”
---Pat Conroy
“John Harts debut . . . is that most engrossing of rarities, a well-plotted mystery novel that is written in a beautifully poetic style.”
---Mark Childress, author of Crazy in Alabama
“Grisham-style intrigue and Turow-style brooding.”
---The New York Times
Review
"Treat yourself to something new and truly out of the ordinary." Rocky Mountain News
Review
"[C]omplex, emotionally charged....Hart dexterously juggles a large cast of characters and several intricate plotlines....A truly splendid novel with a deep emotional core." Booklist (Starred Review)
Review
"Hart's sophomore effort surpasses his debut....Complex relationships blur the lines between friend and foe, heightening the suspense in this intricate, haunting story of a family in crisis, and the writing is simply superb. Highly recommended." Library Journal (Starred Review)
Review
"Hart gathers the story's many strands into a satisfying and surprising conclusion, one that simultaneously reveals the true strength of family bonds and then sets them up to be tested again." Art Taylor, The Washington Post Book World
Review
"Steamy Southern Gothic has much in common with Hart's successful debut, but its juicy melodrama often slides into pretentiousness." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"Hart's work invokes the spirit of the best of southern literature. Down River puts readers in the mind of topics explored by Thomas Wolfe, Tennessee Williams and William Faulkner, with a contemporary vision and edge that is memorable and haunting." BookReporter.com
Review
"A top-notch debut. Hart's prose is like Raymond Chandler's, angular and hard. (Grade: A)" Entertainment Weekly
Review
"A gripping performance." People
Synopsis
In this follow-up to his New York Times bestselling debut, The King of Lies, John Hart takes readers into the heart of a small Southern town, where he explores the lengths to which people will go for money, family, and pure greed and just whether or not forgiveness is ever attainable.
Synopsis
Everything that shaped him happened near that river....
Now its banks are filled with lies and greed, shame, and murder....
John Hart's debut, The King of Lies, was compelling and lyrical, with Janet Maslin of the New York Times declaring, "There hasn't been a thriller as showily literate since Scott Turow came along." Now, in Down River, Hart makes a scorching return to Rowan County, where he drives his characters to the edge, explores the dark side of human nature, and questions the fundamental power of forgiveness.
Adam Chase has a violent streak, and not without reason. As a boy, he saw things that no child should see, suffered wounds that cut to the core and scarred thin. The trauma left him passionate and misunderstood a fighter. After being narrowly acquitted of a murder charge, Adam is hounded out of the only home he's ever known, exiled for a sin he did not commit. For five long years he disappears, fades into the faceless gray of New York City. Now he's back and nobody knows why, not his family or the cops, not the enemies he left behind.
But Adam has his reasons.
Within hours of his return, he is beaten and accosted, confronted by his family and the women he still holds dear. No one knows what to make of Adam's return, but when bodies start turning up, the small town rises against him and Adam again finds himself embroiled in the fight of his life, not just to prove his own innocence, but to reclaim the only life he's ever wanted.
Bestselling author John Hart holds nothing back as he strips his characters bare. Secrets explode, emotions tear, and more than one person crosses the brink into deadly behavior as he examines the lengths to which people will go for money, family, and revenge.
A powerful, heart-pounding thriller, Dow River will haunt your thoughts long after the last page is turned.
Synopsis
A powerful, heart-pounding thriller from the unparalleled New York Times bestselling and two-time Edgar Award-winning author of The Last Child and The King of Lies, Down River will haunt your thoughts long after the last page is turned.
Adam Chase has a violent streak, and for good reason. As a boy, he saw things no child should witness, suffered wounds that left him misunderstood—a fighter. Even grown, he remains dangerous and unpredictable, so that when he narrowly beats a murder charge, hes hounded out of town, exiled for a sin he did not commit. For five long years, he disappears. But now hes back, and no one knows why - not his family or the cops, not the enemies he left behind. But Adam has his reasons. Attacked within hours of his return, the tone of his homecoming is set. As bodies turn up and the town rises in anger, Adam again finds himself in the fight of his life, not just to prove his innocence, but to reclaim the only life hes ever wanted. Secrets build on secrets, emotions tear, and more than one person crosses the brink as Hart examines the lengths to which people will go for money, family, and revenge.Praise for John Hart and Down River:
"[Hart] combines gripping plots with a wonderful gift for prose, making his books literary crowd-pleasers that appeal to the brain as well as the emotions. There are few books published that can legitimately be called "a must-read," but this is one of them." --Chicago Sun Times
"If you value Harper Lee, James Lee Burke, Truman Capote, and Michael Malone… it's time to add John Hart to your bookshelves." --Otto Penzler, The New York Sun
"An artist adding layers of paint ... Hart takes his time, snaring the reader with evocative storytelling and lush prose along with the usual quota of conflict and murder." --The Boston Globe
“[A] complex, emotionally charged novel… Down River is a beautifully constructed story of personal redemption, family secrets, and murder…. A truly splendid novel with a deep emotional core.” --Booklist (starred)
“The thrills come fast and furious.” —Washington Post
“Nail-biting suspense.” -Raleigh News and Observer
“Richly atmospheric… should settle once and for all the question of whether thrillers and mysteries can also be literature.” -Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Falls squarely in the league of the best of Southern novels." --South Florida Sun Sentinel
Synopsis
John Harts debut, THE KING OF LIES, catapulted him onto the New York Times bestseller list and earned comparisons to the works of Raymond Chandler, John Grisham, and Scott Turow. Now, Hart delivers another thriller of profound insight and psychological complexity with DOWN RIVER
“Truly splendid.”—Booklist (Starred Review)
Adam Chase is passionate and misunderstood, a fighter. When narrowly acquitted of a murder charge, he disappears for five long years: not a clue, not a trace. Now, hes back and nobody knows why—not his family or the cops, not the women he left behind. But Adam has his reasons.
“The thrills come fast and furious.”—The Washington Post
When more bodies surface, Adam must unravel a web of deceit and violence so dense it staggers the imagination. Old secrets rise, lives collapse, and more than one person crosses the brink as author Hart probes the timeless, destructive power of deception and vengeance.
“Nail-biting suspense.”—Raleigh News and Observer
Synopsis
Adam Chase is passionate and misunderstood, a fighter. When narrowly acquitted of a murder charge, he disappears for five long years: not a clue, not a trace. Now, hes back and nobody knows why—not his family or the cops, not the women he left behind. But Adam has his reasons.
When more bodies surface, Adam must unravel a web of deceit and violence so dense it staggers the imagination. Old secrets rise, lives collapse, and more than one person crosses the brink as author Hart probes the timeless, destructive power of deception and vengeance.Down River is the winner of the 2008 Edgar Award for Best Novel.
Synopsis
Adam Chase has spent the last five years in New York City trying to erase his worst memories and the scorn and abandonment of his family. Then a phone call from his best friend awakens in him a torrent of emotion and pain. Having left North Carolina and its red soil for good, he never thought returning would be easy--but being remembered as a murderer doesn't help much. Adam is beaten, accosted, and hostilely confronted by his family, including Grace, the young woman whose abandonment torments him still.
Then people start turning up dead.
Within this small Southern town, John Hart explores the lengths to which people will go for money, family, and pure greed--and whether or not forgiveness is ever attainable.
Synopsis
"In a top-notch debut, Hart's prose is like Raymond Chandler's, angular and hard." --Entertainment Weekly (Grade A) on The King of Lies
About the Author
John Hart was born and raised in North Carolina. For a time he practiced criminal defense law, but left to write
The King of Lies. John used to do foolish things, like fly helicopters and sail small boats across large oceans. Now, with a loving young family, he writes books, which is harder but safer. John still makes his home in North Carolina.
Scott Sowers has narrated numerous audiobooks, including books by Douglas Preston, Robert Ludlum, John Hart, and Nicholas Sparks. He was named the 2008 Best Voice in Mystery & Suspense by AudioFile magazine. AudioFile also awarded Sowers an Earphones Award for his narration of John Harts Down River, writing, “[providing] a bewitching rhythm and pace, expertly capturing and elevating this story of redemption. The combination of Hart and Sowers provides the perfect marriage of prose and voice. Together they enable the book to transcend genre fiction and become something exceptional.”