Nothing More Dangerous - by Allen Eskens (Paperback)

About the Book

"High-school freshman Boady Sanden dreams of glass towers and cityscapes - anywhere that isn't Jessup, Missouri, where he lives with his widowed mother. But when Thomas Elgin moves in across the road, everything changes. As Boady comes to know the Elgins - a Black family settling into a small town where loyalty to family and to 'your people' carries the weight of a sacred oath - he begins to see the dark secret behind a local African American woman's disappearance. As the mystery of her fate plays out, Boady realizes that nothing in this town is as he took for granted. Up against the stark lines of race and class that both bind and divide, he'll have to reconsider everything he's believed about loyalty, community, and family - and face the fact that defying unspoken rules can quickly become a deadly proposition"--

Book Synopsis

Missouri native Allen Eskens' "stunning small-town mystery" (New York Times Book Review) is a necessary exploration of family, loyalty, and racial tension in America and "a coming-of-age book to rival some of the best, such as Ordinary Grace" (Library Journal, starred review).

In a small Southern town where loyalty to family and to "your people" carries the weight of a sacred oath, defying those unspoken rules can be a deadly proposition. After fifteen years of growing up in the Ozark hills with his widowed mother, high-school freshman Boady Sanden is beyond ready to move on. He dreams of glass towers and cityscapes, driven by his desire to be anywhere other than Jessup, Missouri. The new kid at St. Ignatius High School, if he isn't being pushed around, he is being completely ignored. Even his beloved woods, his playground as a child and his sanctuary as he grew older, seem to be closing in on him, suffocating him.

Then Thomas Elgin moves in across the road, and Boady's life begins to twist and turn. Coming to know the Elgins -- a black family settling into a community where notions of "us" and "them" carry the weight of history -- forces Boady to rethink his understanding of the world he's taken for granted. Secrets hidden in plain sight begin to unfold: the mother who wraps herself in the loss of her husband, the neighbor who carries the wounds of a mysterious past that he holds close, the quiet boss who is fighting his own hidden battle.

But the biggest secret of all is the disappearance of Lida Poe, the African-American woman who keeps the books at the local plastics factory. Word has it that Ms. Poe left town, along with a hundred thousand dollars of company money. Although Boady has never met the missing woman, he discovers that the threads of her life are woven into the deepest fabric of his world.

As the mystery of her fate plays out, Boady begins to see the stark lines of race and class that both bind and divide this small town -- and he will be forced to choose sides.

Best Book of the Year: Florida Sun-Sentinel and Library Journal
Finalist for the Minnesota Book Award

Review Quotes

"Nothing More Dangerous works well as a mystery, a dissection of hatred and racial prejudice, and a coming-of-age novel. . . . Eskens gracefully moves the novel through the little moments that help to shape people and see the world with a different attitude."--Oline H. Cogdill, Associated Press

"Mystery Pick of the Month: This powerful, unforgettable crime novel is a coming-of-age book to rival some of the best, such as William Kent Krueger's Ordinary Grace or Larry Watson's Montana 1948.... This timely stand-alone is a must-read for followers of the best in crime fiction."--Library Journal (starred review)

"A stunning small-town mystery.... Eskens clearly has an affinity for clever boys like Boady and Thomas; but he also has lovely visions of the mighty trees and secret swimming holes that make them long for summer -- and mysteries to solve."--Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Book Review

"Allen Eskens doesn't just tap into the experience of growing up in a rural Southern town; Nothing More Dangerous dissects the inner life of a teen forced to confront prejudice and persecution.... Eskens has the skill to make readers cry... and then cheer."--Shelf Awareness

"Allen Eskens hits it out of the park with his new novel.... More relevant than ever in this divided country... This is a story of hope through an act of love.... It would be a fine supplementary text for high schoolers, especially the discussions of prejudice and where it comes from."--Mary Ann Grossman, Pioneer Press

"Both heartwarming and hard-nosed, Nothing More Dangerous is a coming-of-age page-turner that probes the dark heart of small towns and the resilient strength that keeps families together."--Thomas Mullen, author of Darktown

"Eskens does an excellent job of weaving [the] disparate threads together into a fine blend of mystery and coming-of-age novel. The setting is spot-on, the characters are empathetic and well realized, and the plot is clever and compelling, building suspense until a harrowing denouement reveals all."--Booklist

"Magnificent... Nothing More Dangerous is the next best thing to Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird.... Setting, plot, and characterization are masterfully woven together to create a tapestry of a small town as a tinderbox of prejudice, fear, friendship, and dark secrets." --New York Journal of Books

"The story is gripping. . . . The characters are intriguing. . . . Eskens weaves a fine mystery that involves layers of racial introspection. . . . Eskens tells us in an author's note that he started this book in 1991 and kept putting it away, never quite feeling it was ready. He can proudly pronounce it ready now."--Ginny Greene, Minneapolis Star Tribune

About the Author

Allen Eskens is the USA Today bestselling author of The Life We Bury, The Guise of Another, and The Heavens May Fall. His debut novel, The Life We Bury, has been published in twenty-six languages and is being developed for a feature film.

He now lives with his wife, Joely, in out-state Minnesota where he has been a practicing criminal defense attorney for twenty-five years.