The Kept James Scott

The Kept  James Scott

Overview:

The Kept is one to look out for. The ambition and sheer brilliance of James Scott's new book is astonishing, and the Washington Post's top literary critic can't stop tweeting about it. Out in February, we predict that this book will be one of those buzz books on everyone's lips. Amazon has named the book one of the Best Books of the Month, the Featured Debut, and the Best Mystery, Suspense, & Thriller.

Set in rural New York state at the turn of the twentieth century, superb new talent James Scott makes his literary debut with The Kept—a propulsive novel reminiscent of the works of Michael Ondaatje, Cormac McCarthy, and Bonnie Jo Campbell, in which a mother and her young son embark on a quest to avenge a terrible and violent tragedy that has shattered their secluded family.

In the winter of 1897, a trio of killers descends upon an isolated farm in upstate New York. Midwife Elspeth Howell returns home to the carnage: her husband, and four of her children, murdered. Before she can discover her remaining son Caleb, alive and hiding in the kitchen pantry, another shot rings out over the snow-covered valley. Twelve-year-old Caleb must tend to his mother until she recovers enough for them to take to the frozen wilderness in search of the men responsible.

A scorching portrait of a merciless world—of guilt and lost innocence, atonement and retribution, resilience and sacrifice, pregnant obsession and primal adolescence—The Kept introduces an old-beyond-his-years protagonist as indelible and heartbreaking as Mattie Ross of True Grit or Jimmy Blevins of All the Pretty Horses, as well as a shape-shifting mother as enigmatic and mysterious as a character drawn by Russell Banks or Marilynne Robinson.

“The Kept starts out as a straightforward revenge narrative, then slowly deepens into something much more mysterious and compelling. James Scott has written a riveting and memorable debut novel.” ( Tom Perrotta, author of "The Leftovers")

“With its vivid sense of time and place, lyrical writing, and complex questions of what constitutes a family, The Kept is an outstanding debut by a bright new voice in American fiction.” (Ron Rash, author of "Nothing Gold Can Stay")

“The Kept is a deeply moving, disconcerting novel… Scott manages something quite difficult here, balancing both terror and tenderness with apparent ease. By the end of the book, you’ll be convinced that he can do just about anything.” (Kevin Wilson, author of "The Family Fang")

“The Kept is a brutal and beautiful novel. Written with emotional ascendancy, these rock-ribbed characters illuminate loss, desire, and love. James Scott’s debut is a celebration of bracing action, evocative rendering of the past, and literary precision.” (Julianna Baggott, author of "Girl Talk and Pure")

“The Kept is both a thrilling adventure and a literary triumph. Following the journey of a mother and son who lose everything, only to find each other, James Scott’s haunting tale will astonish and enchant you, the words echoing long after the final pages have turned.” (Hannah Tinti, author of "The Good Thief")

“What a gripping story teller James Scott is and what a dark and lyrical novel he has written. The Kept is a thrilling debut” (Margot Livesy, author of "The Flight of Gemma Hardy")

“A work of historical fiction that is both atmospheric and memorable, suffused with dread and suspense right up to the last page.” (Publishers Weekly - starred review)

“Scott is both compassionate moralist and master storyteller in this outstanding debut.” (Kirkus Reviews - starred review)

ENJOYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!

And Blessed Are The Ones Who Care For Their Fellow Men!