This twisting tale, the sequel to the author’s Ring Around the Sun, takes Coot Boldt and Narlow Montgomery back to their childhood in the wilds of the Tularosa Basin of southern New Mexico Territory and west Texas. The story tracks their days tending Papa’s goats, and Narlow’s war with his copper-lined, half-Pale Eye-half-Comanche mama. The boys lived with the Apaches for two years where Narlow studied the mysteries of the medicineman. As young men, they enjoyed successes in ranching and land sales in El Paso, a dusty adobe village known for whiskey, shot-dead men on its streets, soiled doves, and rigged roulette wheels. Both their marriages went sour, and though Coot went on, Narlow was stuck with a wife who never allowed the consummation of their vows. All those months Narlow brushed off Coot’s advice to take up with a widow-lady, but during a trip to San Francisco, he fell into the clutches of a wealthy actress who demanded that he return home and divorce his wife. He refused, though he did return to El Paso and become the town drunk. Finally, he was convinced by his father and Coot to seek the solitude of a cave where, as a child, he had played with his father, a man who made sawhorses with straw-stuffed sock heads, eyes drawn with charcoal, and read the great books to his son. Narlow won his battle over the bottle. Includes Readers Guide.

When my father married Sloane, I vowed to hate her. I have a mother. Well…, had. I had a mother. A very good one who I’ll always carry with me in my heart. But that was three years ago. I was fifteen. Since then, Sloane and I have come to realize two things. The first is that my father isn’t the suave man we thought he was. The second is that I’m not the jerk that I tried to make her think I am. Ever since I opened my eyes to the truth in front of me, I’ve been the one to build her up when my father tears her down. I’ve been the one to comfort her when he causes her emotional breakdowns. I’d give her the entire world if she’d let me. When I return for a visit just after leaving for college because I miss her, I discover that my father has done something unforgivable. Every protective fiber of my being is front and center. I make a decision that will change our lives. Now, I just need to make Sloane see that her forever is with me. Content Warning: - Reverse Age Gap - Dark Themes - Physical Violence - Mentions of Domestic Violence (Not by MC)