A Fine Dark Line

Joe R Lansdale

ISBN 10: 0892967293 / ISBN 13: 9780892967292

Published by Mysterious Press, 2003

About this Item

13-year-old Stanley Mitchel Jr. spends most of his time helping his family run the town's drive-in movie theater, reading ten-cent comics, and playing with his dog Nub. Life in East Texas circa 1958 is not very exciting until Stanley discovers a stash of old, crumbling love letters in a pile of burnt rubble behind the drive-in. As Stanley reads through the letters, he finds himself in the middle of an old mystery and discovering the secrets of his sleepy town. Stanley, with the help of the old projectionist and his older sister, uncovers the identities of the people who penned the letters and sheds light on a shocking 20 year-old murder plot. As Stanley unearths more and more truths, he realizes the injustices of life in East Texas in the 1950's including class, race, gender, and the cruelty of unrequited love. Stanley feels betrayed by his family and his town as he takes a closer look at the dark truth and refuses to allow himself to succumb to the darkness.

Seller Inventory # 00108284122

Bibliographic Details

• Title: A Fine Dark Line
• Publisher: Mysterious Press
• Publication Date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0892967293
• ISBN 13: 9780892967292
• Binding: Hardback
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

For young Stanley Mitchell, Jr., 1958 is quickly becoming a year of newfound joys and thrilling adventure. Beginning with the discovery of hidden love letters, and an uneasy meeting with Buster Lighthorse Smith, the Dewdrop Drive-in's elderly projectionist and former reservation policeman, Stanley learns about blues music, Sherlock Holmes, racism, and lost dreams. Through the natural course of growing up, he discovers the true nature of his father's heart; the love of his mother and sister and house servant, Rosy; and becomes involved in a forbidden world that exists beneath Dewmont, Texas, like dirt and bacteria beneath a beautiful carpet. Stanley enters a forbidden world of secrets filled with death and darkness, jealous lovers, and ghostly occurrences-until he finds the real murderer of the young girl who wrote the love letters he found, and becomes the murderer's next target.

About the Author

Joe. R. Lansdale has won the British Fantasy Award, the American Horror Award, and six Bram Stoker Awards. He lives in Nacogdoches, Texas.