Dr. John A. King calls Chris Offutt's Country Dark "straight up brilliant." A prohibition-era bootlegger raises five children, three disabled, in a story that mixes noir with a father's fierce love for his kids. King says it's impossible to put down.
Country Dark by— well, it's hard to say— Offutt, Offutt, Offutt, Chris, by Chris. Country Dark. So yeah, righto, first up, most importantly, where would I place Country Dark on the Brilliant to Bollocks Meter? I'm just going to have to give you another straight up brilliant. Okay, so a prohibition, running alcohol, criminal, With disabled kids. Like, one of them's got a massive melon. And so you've got this criminal, and okay, noir, very dark, very sort of in the trope, but this criminal's got a whole bunch of disabled kids. And it's a story about a father's love for his kids and what he would prepare to do, wrapped up in the middle of this noir thing. Now, you don't get a lot of information on why the kid's disabled. Why are, like, I think it's 3 out of the 5 kids disabled? I won't ruin it for you. I don't want to give you spoilers. But, um, take a chance on Country Dark. It is absolutely worth it. Again, I just read the thing from woe to go. Couldn't put it down. On the 1-minute review brilliant to bollocks meter. Brilliant.
