Fistful Of Rain - Hardcover

BARON R. BIRTCHER spent a number of years as a professional musician, and founded an independent record label and management company. Critics have hailed Baron's writing as "the real deal" (Publishers Weekly), and his plots as "taut, gritty, and powerfully con-trolled" (Kirkus Reviews).

His first two novels (Roadhouse Blues and Ruby Tuesday) are Los Angeles Times and Independent Mystery Booksellers Association best sellers, and he has been nominated for a number of literary awards, including the Nero Award (Hard Latitudes), the Claymore Award (Rain Dogs), the Left Coast Crime Lefty Award (Angels Fall), and won the Silver Falchion Award in 2016 (Hard Latitudes). He is the 2018 WINNER of the Killer Nashville READER'S CHOICE AWARD (South California Purples) and 2019 WINNER for BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR (Fistful Of Rain).

Baron divides his time between Portland, Oregon and Kona, Hawaii.

Rancher Tyler Dawson, the sheriff of Meriwether County, Ore., sums up the previous year, 1974, in the brief, cogent prologue of Birtcher's elegantly written, bleak sequel to 2017's South California Purples, as "one of the most demoralizing that I could remember." He goes on to comment on such downbeat topics as the Watergate scandal and the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam. This sets the tone for what follows: 17-year-old runaway Mila Kinslow leaves Tennessee by bus and eventually finds her way, with Peter Troy, a sweet-tempered rock musician she meets in L.A., to a hippie commune known as Rainbow Ranch in Meriwether. Meanwhile, sheep rancher Harper Emory claims that he was beaten by the hippies when he got into a dispute with them about some missing lambs. Ty vainly tries to keep the peace as tensions rise between the locals and the Rainbow Ranch residents. Two murders raise the stakes. Ty may strike some readers as almost too smart, too well educated, and too pedantic for a small-town sheriff, but his insights into 1970's social issues make him an irresistible spokesman for the era. --Publishers Weekly

In 1975, rural America is coming to terms with the 60s, Vietnam, and political scandal. People who'd rather simply govern themselves are bound to rules of law. And a clear-sighted sheriff sees trouble looming but can t quite spot the cause. Readers follow the well-voiced first-person narration of this novel, quickly caring for characters and falling in love with the place. Vivid descriptions, captivating dialog, and natural humor bring everything to life. Natural sensitivities father for child; people for land and arguments over education, freedom and more draw the reader in, adding depth and intelligence. Meanwhile the natural world, from ocean's roar to field, airfield and plain, is a convincing backdrop to it all. There's an ever deepening mystery in Fistful Of Rain, an ever-broadening sense of reality, and a delightfully light touch keeping the guilty human, rendering the wounded real, and watching the truth slip through fingers that never quite grasp. Change is inevitable, but "change for its own sake is not change at all, it s only corrosion." How true! Sheriff Dawson holds back the corrosion, clearing space for what must be, and looking forward to the future. The reader, too, might find that placid place between present and past, letting time take its course... because it can t be stopped. I love the characters, the narrative voice, the places (even my beloved Depoe Bay, Oregon!), and the timely sense of timelessness. Fistful Of Rain offers a smooth read, an exciting ride, and a satisfying plot, all bound up in believable people moving through changing times. It's highly recommended. -- Sheila's Reviews