Hub City Press
978-1-891885-90-7
$14.95 paperback
5½ x 8½
220 pages
January 2012 Fiction
Winner of the South Carolina First Novel Prize
In the sulky summer days of a Virginia Eastern Shore town, a current of guilt and repression flows beneath the placid surface of respectability. In this year after his mother’s death, with girlfriend problems and his father’s flirting with a new romance, 16-year-old Isaac faces not only the mysteries of his coming of age but also the mysteries of a twisted communal past.
A summer job at Chum’s Hardware introduces Isaac to Crazy Eddie, an acerbic 82-year-old who is outspoken about everything except the string of bizarre vandalisms pulling down big headlines in the weekly paper. Someone is flooding the houses of Rooksville’s leading citizens and leaving a signature of painted flames on the walls. A clutch of self-righteous vigilantes who gather at the hardware store offers a $5,000 reward for the conviction of whoever is responsible—and they have their eyes on Isaac.
Isaac quickly discovers that small towns where everybody knows everybody else’s business often hide the most vicious secrets. A lost ledger at Chum’s and the unmoored rantings of the town’s recluse about the Klan are the first clues to the unexplained puzzles that swirl like dust motes at the hardware store. By laying bare the stains of history and facing down the town’s hatemonger, Isaac resolves the question of where he belongs in the world.
In this quietly suspenseful story with splashes of manic humor, the eccentrics, the outcasts, the bigots, and the bores join the human parade. Mercy Creek is a memorable novel by a new voice who deserves to be heard.
Reviews
“An enticing full-blown whodunit . . . a first-rate effort displaying skill, sensitivity, and grace.”
—Publishers Weekly, March 7, 2011
“A fast-paced novel about life in the slow lane, in which mundane life becomes charged with menace . . . This is more than a mystery novel; it’s a coming-of-age story.”
—Richmond Times-Dispatch
“A fast-paced coming of age novel with strong mystery and thriller elements, highly recommended.”
—Midwest Book Review
“Mercy Creek is a refreshing, entertaining, and meaningful novel. This book is about the deep and slow-moving river that is history, and the darker story of a past the town won’t reveal for fear its shadow will overwhelm those parties involved in its making; it’s also about murder, and arson, and baseball, and all the worries, worthy and unworthy, real and imagined, every teenager experiences in the course of growing up.”
—Bret Lott, distinguished novelist and final judge of the South Carolina First Novel Prize
"Three cheers for Matt Matthews and his surprising debut novel Mercy Creek. Mercy Creek is part mystery and part love story, a chronicle of loss and recovery, and an exploration of family and friendship. The writing, the characters, the sense of place are all vibrant and complex and marvelous."
—Sheri Reynolds, author of A Gracious Plenty and The Sweet In-Between
"Mercy Creek, so beautifully written by Matt Matthews, marks the launch of a brilliant new voice in literature. This coming of age story tells the tale of a summer when the adult world came into focus for Issac Lawson. It's got huge heart, it's compelling, and it's downright irresistible. I loved every single word. You will too. Congratulations, Mr. Matthews! The world what you will give us next!"
—Dorothea Benton Frank, author of Lowcountry Summer
"Readers of Mercy Creek will be captivated by this story of scandal and intrigue, judgment and fear, cowardice and fortitude, as young Issac navigates the waters of a turbulent summer that would end with his feeling like 'he was right where he belonged, right where he was supposed to be.' Matt Matthews offers stunning characters and relationships in this remarkable first novel."
—John Buchanan, editor and publisher of the The Christian Century
