Greyhart Press

The Cutlip brothers — Frank the town sheriff, and Adam the professor of zoology — feature prominently in The Clearing by Thomas Rydder. They think themselves well armed against anything Nature can throw at them in the quiet wooded hillsides of Pennsylvania. But if what faces them out there is natural, it’s not a form of Nature they’ve ever encountered before…

Here’s an extract from early in the book when they have yet to realize the danger that hunts them.

They emerged onto the sidewalk, where Adam Cutlip opened the door to his SUV and reached into the rear seat. “Annie here hasn’t left me down yet,” he boasted, handing his brother a huge revolver.

Frank hefted it and sighted down the barrel. “Geez, what do you do with this thing, hunt bear?”

“I have, actually, but mostly it’s just for protection. She’s a .44 magnum, and with the scope I have for it I can hit a mouse 100 yards away. And what I hit stays hit, bro.”

“All well and good, but you could still get it in a wringer if you come up against the whole pack.”

Adam chuckled disdainfully. “Now brother, don’t you worry your pretty little head. One discharge from this baby and those canines will run until they hit Canada. I’ll be fine. I’ll have my cell phone, too.”

“Yippee. Hard to use a cell phone when you’re running for your life.”

“Relax, will you? Wolves are nocturnal. Now, I’m going to go over to the Benningers’ again, to see if everything is okay. I’ll set up a camera over on the trail there, where we found the tracks. Going to do the same thing over at the Dankas’. Then I’m going to swing north and go behind the old Ackerman place. It’s lousy with game trails, so I’ll set up a couple more cameras there.”

Frank frowned, unimpressed. “You just keep a sharp eye out. Better yet, give me a call on every hour to let me know you’re safe.”

Adam slapped his brother’s shoulder affectionately. “Once a Marine, always a Marine, eh? Very well, sir!” A passerby jumped and circled him warily as he came to attention and snapped what passed as a salute. “I shall do as you request. Radio checks once an hour on the hour! Over and out!”

“Asshole.” Frank grinned and climbed into his Bronco. As he pulled out, Adam looked after the receding police car, his forehead furrowed with worry he hadn’t shared with his big brother.

The Clearing launches in paperback and eBook editions on March 1st. You can see some early comments and reviews about the book on Goodreads here. 

The supporting cast for The Clearing by Thomas Rydder includes canine and lupine members*. Author, Thomas Rydder, gets inside the animal mindset so effectively that you’ll have to watch you don’t start sniffing the air and howling at the moon.

Here’s an extract from early in the book when the family dog starts to test human-set boundaries.

An eerie howl split the night air. It seemed to go on forever, rising in pitch and holding, before slowly falling off. Beth felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, and Lizzie stood frozen, staring up into the hills. Beth had completed her graduate work in the Gila National Forest of New Mexico, and had heard her share of coyotes yelping.

This wasn’t a coyote.

The howl was stronger—almost demanding—and lacked the mournful tone of a coyote’s lament. Flapjack whined then sprang up to pace back and forth, hunching his shoulders and sniffing ceaselessly. Another howl burst forth, this one closer.

Keeping her eyes on the dog, Beth commanded, “Honey, go inside. Everything is fine, but I think you should go in for a minute.” A third howl cut off any protest the youngster might have made, and the slamming screen door was evidence of her compliance. Turning her attention back to the woods line, Beth considered the agitated canine. “Come on, boy. Let’s go inside. We got enough bugs tonight, anyway.”

Suddenly, a faint rustling came from just inside the trees, and as her eyes snapped toward the sound, she could swear she saw a shadow flitting by an opening. Flapjack’s whimpering elevated and he was now standing with ears up. Suddenly, he bounded forward and cleared the fence in one leap. Beth scarcely had time to scream “Flapjack!” before he disappeared into the blackness of the forest.

The Clearing launches in paperback and eBook editions on March 1st. You can see some early comments and reviews about the book on Goodreads here. If you’re very quick (and based in the US), you could be in with a chance of winning a paperback copy in this Goodreads giveaway that finishes early on Thursday. (We’ll be doing giveaways for other countries at a later date).

*By the way, I did wonder about the correctness of the terms ‘canine’ and ‘lupine’. It’s a case of commonly used terms dating back to Roman times rubbing up against modern scientific classification. Wolves and dogs (and dingoes) are both subspecies of Canis lupus. Coyotes, which get a mention in this passage, are slightly more distantly related, being Canis latrans. So now you know 🙂

This week sees the publication of The Clearing by Thomas Rydder. One of the ways Dean Koontz and Stephen King stand out in my mind in comparison with other authors is the attention to detail with their characters. They are real, multi-faceted individuals — often complex, sometimes grotesque, but always real.

Thomas Rydder writes that way too. There are no cookie-cutter characters in The Clearing. Some are carefree; most are anything but. Many of the characters have tragedy in their past, but none of them are broken; they just need a little love.

Here’s Lizzie, a sparky girl adapting to her aunt becoming her adopted mother.

On the night before the formal adoption, Beth had explained to Lizzie exactly what was to happen—that her mother would always be her mother, but she would now be her legal mom, and would take care of her forever. Lizzie had responded in typical Lizzie-ish fashion.

“Well, then you’ll be my Momma Beth. Is that okay?”

It was indeed okay, and slowly, the youngster had begun transforming back into the bright, cheerful girl Beth remembered.

Nor had it taken long to realize Lizzie shared her love for anything outdoors. Soon after her new daughter’s arrival, Beth was preparing for an afternoon of specimen collection, when Lizzie stuck her head around the workroom door.

“Where are you going?”

“Just out in the woods for a bit. I wanted to give a class on the Rose Hooktip moth, so I was going to collect some specimens.”

“Can I come?”

“Well…sure…I didn’t know you liked the woods.”

The shadow of a frown came across Lizzie’s features. She averted her eyes, “Daddy always took me with him went he went fishing. He showed me how to bait my own hook and everything. Sometimes, we would just walk in the woods, and he would help me lift rocks and look at all the bugs underneath.”

Beth managed to swallow the lump in her throat. “Well, I could sure use an assistant. Carrying all these jars and stuff gets to be a bit much. You interested in the job?”

“You bet!”

The Clearing launches in paperback and eBook editions on March 1st. You can see some early comments and reviews about the book on Goodreads here. If you’re quick (and based in the US), you could be in with a chance of winning a paperback copy in this Goodreads giveaway that finishes on Thursday. (We’ll be doing giveaways for other countries at a later date).

This week sees the publication of The Clearing by Thomas Rydder. This is the book for you if you enjoy the novels of Dean Koontz, Stephen King or Michael Crichton, those stories where everyday people encounter far from everyday challenges.

The book launches in paperback and eBook editions on March 1st. You can see some early comments and reviews about the book on Goodreads here. If you’re quick (and based in the US), you could be in with a chance of winning a paperback copy in this Goodreads giveaway that finishes on Thursday. (We’ll be doing giveaways for other countries at a later date).

To whet your appetite, here’s the prologue:

He stepped aside and let the followers pass. They were haggard and spent from days on the trail with no food, hiding during the day and travelling by night. One of their members had not survived the long walk, and would have to be replaced, and quickly. He looked up at the moon – three quarters full and shining in a cloudless summer sky. Soon. They would have to find a suitable location soon.

Dawn brought them to a small valley, spotted with quaint farms and cattle herds. He left the followers in a dense stand of underbrush and set off to scout the surrounding countryside. By noon he had found it. A cave opening stood before him, the depths cool, inviting, and most important, secluded. Making his way back to his charges, he led them back to the cave and in, allowing them to lie down on the stone floor in exhaustion.

He walked back outside and over to the edge of the steep hill. The valley spread before him, full of creatures who would become their victims. It was time. Time to find the seventh member, for it must be seven. And time to find a successor, for he was growing tired.

Glancing back into the cave, he observed no movement, and only snoring came to his ears. They would sleep soundly until the moon came full, bidding them to rise and feed. He trotted down the hill and toward the lights of houses. The voice of the moon spoke to his soul, and it told him north. North to find a new follower. North to find food. North to kill.