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Small-town secrets and a journalist’s dark past ignite a burning mystery.
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Ransom Burning

A Novel

RRP$39.98

$38.09

  • Paperback

    320 pages

  • Release Date

    26 January 2027

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Summary

Inspired by true events, this riveting historical mystery combines richly layered characters, small-town intrigue, and powerful emotional depth in an unforgettable story.

A decade after fleeing tragedy, an award-winning journalist finally returns to his hometown to face head-on the dark past he tried to outrun.

It’s 1974, and Los Angeles Times reporter Hunter Dreary returns to his hometown of Ransom, Kentucky, when he hears his autistic younger brother, Wally, is in trouble. B…

Book Details

ISBN-13:9798892427975
Author:James Markert
Publisher:Crooked Lane Books
Imprint:Crooked Lane Books
Format:Paperback
Number of Pages:320
Release Date:26 January 2027
Weight:369g
Dimensions:139mm x 209mm
A-Format
B-Format
Ransom Burning by James Markert - ISBN: 9798892427975
139 × 209 mm
C-Format
A4
mm / in
What They're Saying

Critics Review

Praise for Ransom Burning:
“Ransom Burning is a moonshine rough, sweet potato pie sweet piece of Southern Noir that thrills the soul and pulls at the heart strings. A great read!”
—S.A. Cosby, New York Times bestselling author of King of Ashes

“A gripping narrative … Readers will feel the emotional weight of decades as Markert’s story unfolds.”
—Library Journal

“James Markert’s Ransom Burning will grip you from the very first page. It’s a powerfully-written time capsule of a novel that will utterly transport you.”
—Meg Shaffer, bestselling author of The Wishing Game

“Ransom Burning
combines the emotional depth of James Lee Burke, the narrative propulsion of John Hart, and the tragic intimacy of Mystic River, while telling a story that feels distinctly its own. A powerful mystery of the first order.”
—James W. Hall, award-winning author of the Thorn series

“Ransom Burning is a heart-wrenching, page-turning Southern mystery with heart. With scalpel-like precision, Markert lays bare the dark, harrowing past of Ransom, Kentucky, a town fraught with long-buried secrets and evils of the worst kind. I found myself reading long into the night, from one shocking revelation to another. This timely novel demands to be read.”
—Scott Blackburn, author of It Dies with You

About The Author

James Markert

J. H. Markert is a producer, screenwriter, husband, and father of two from Louisville, Kentucky. He was also a tennis pro for twenty-five years before retiring in 2020. He graduated with a degree in history from the University of Louisville in 1997 and has been writing ever since.

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