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manadabomb's review against another edition
3.0
My first completed book of 2024 is The Far Empty by J. Todd Scott. This was a borrowed book that got lost in my stacks (sorry!) but once I found it again, I started reading it. And stopped reading it. Then I started it again.
It was so hard to find a character to root for.
Chris Cherry is a former football star who ended up blowing out his knee and returning to be a deputy in the little Texas town he grew up in. He drags his girlfriend, Melissa, to this town and just makes them both unhappy. The sheriff, The Judge, is an evil asshole. The other deputies are corrupt, with Duane being insane and a drug addict deputy. Already, WTF?
Chris is called out to a body on a ranch and feels like it needs investigating, because he’s not content with everyone’s “It’s just a Mexican crossing the border, who cares?” mentality. His investigation is the spark that sets off a firestorm of chaos, bloodshed, and dark secrets being forced into the light.
Apparently this is the first in a series (or trilogy) based on Chris and after the ending of The Far Empty, I kind of want to see where it goes. But, please, give me some characters that make me want them to live.
Trigger warnings for violence and racism. Also if swearing bothers you, this may not be the book for you.
It was so hard to find a character to root for.
Chris Cherry is a former football star who ended up blowing out his knee and returning to be a deputy in the little Texas town he grew up in. He drags his girlfriend, Melissa, to this town and just makes them both unhappy. The sheriff, The Judge, is an evil asshole. The other deputies are corrupt, with Duane being insane and a drug addict deputy. Already, WTF?
Chris is called out to a body on a ranch and feels like it needs investigating, because he’s not content with everyone’s “It’s just a Mexican crossing the border, who cares?” mentality. His investigation is the spark that sets off a firestorm of chaos, bloodshed, and dark secrets being forced into the light.
Apparently this is the first in a series (or trilogy) based on Chris and after the ending of The Far Empty, I kind of want to see where it goes. But, please, give me some characters that make me want them to live.
Trigger warnings for violence and racism. Also if swearing bothers you, this may not be the book for you.
mcf's review
5.0
The Far Empty is another one of those infuriatingly accomplished debut novels of ridiculous power and grace. In it, J. Todd Scott creates a small, Texas town of fully formed, complicated characters, even the most terrifying of whom he manages to make somehow sympathetic. The story is engaging and sad and difficult to escape once it gets its hooks into you (which it does very quickly), both because of the characters and because of the world Scott has created around them. In spite of the awful things that happen in Murfee, the reader -- like the characters -- feels compelled to care for such a beautifully drawn place, something which sets up an excellent foundation for the sequels that follow.
TL; DR: Holy hell is this good.
TL; DR: Holy hell is this good.
lcoverosey's review against another edition
4.0
Gripping. I really could not put it down. Bad men...... and of course at least one good deputy made the story.
aaronboyes19's review against another edition
2.0
This book was a slog to get through. The plot is so thin, but there are just enough little details to keep you reading. It should have been 200 pages shorter as most of the book was flowery language trying to be high literature. By the end I simply didn’t care anymore and was relieved when it was over. The characters were awful, not a single one was likeable.
dantastic's review against another edition
5.0
When Deputy Chris Cherry finds some skeletal remains on a ranch, it sets him on a collision course with the law of Murfee, Texas in the form of renowned sheriff Standford "Judge" Ross, local hero. Ross's son Caleb carries a horrible secret, that his father is crazier than a shithouse rat...
I've read hundreds of mysteries and thrillers, so many that there aren't a whole lot of surprises left and I've gradually shifted toward horror. This one had enough twists and turns to make me rethink things.
The Far Empty is part modern day western, part slow burning thriller. "What if Lou Ford from [b:The Killer Inside Me|298663|The Killer Inside Me|Jim Thompson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403187402s/298663.jpg|1724756] had a family and was a lot better at keeping his demons under wraps" is a lazy way to describe the book but that's essentially what it is. Judge Ross has the Texas town of Murfee snowed and only his son suspects the depths his father can sink to.
Chris Cherry is a failed college football star barely limping by in his old home town with his unhappy girlfriend when a rancher finds some remains on his property. Who do the remains belong to and who doesn't want them identified?
J. Todd Scott has assembled a great cast and I can't believe this is someone's first novel. The viewpoints shift between half a dozen or so characters: Caleb Ross, his friend America, Chris Cherry, Cherry's girlfriend Mel, the Sheriff, Deputy Duane Dupree, and new teacher Anne, who is carrying secrets of her own. By the end, I couldn't decide who was the most dangerous: Sheriff Ross, meth-addled Duane, or Mel.
For my money, the hallmark of a good mystery is making me feel like a rube at some point. Scott did a great job with misdirection. He was also adept at building the tension. You know the ending is going to be a bloody train wreck but it was still a hell of a road getting there.
The remote Texas setting was another thing I enjoyed, a far cry from thrillers happening in crowded metropolises. Scott did a great job at capturing what small town life is like, warts and all.
The Far Empty was a fantastic first novel and I'll be ready for the second book in the series once it drops. Five out of five stars.
I've read hundreds of mysteries and thrillers, so many that there aren't a whole lot of surprises left and I've gradually shifted toward horror. This one had enough twists and turns to make me rethink things.
The Far Empty is part modern day western, part slow burning thriller. "What if Lou Ford from [b:The Killer Inside Me|298663|The Killer Inside Me|Jim Thompson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403187402s/298663.jpg|1724756] had a family and was a lot better at keeping his demons under wraps" is a lazy way to describe the book but that's essentially what it is. Judge Ross has the Texas town of Murfee snowed and only his son suspects the depths his father can sink to.
Chris Cherry is a failed college football star barely limping by in his old home town with his unhappy girlfriend when a rancher finds some remains on his property. Who do the remains belong to and who doesn't want them identified?
J. Todd Scott has assembled a great cast and I can't believe this is someone's first novel. The viewpoints shift between half a dozen or so characters: Caleb Ross, his friend America, Chris Cherry, Cherry's girlfriend Mel, the Sheriff, Deputy Duane Dupree, and new teacher Anne, who is carrying secrets of her own. By the end, I couldn't decide who was the most dangerous: Sheriff Ross, meth-addled Duane, or Mel.
For my money, the hallmark of a good mystery is making me feel like a rube at some point. Scott did a great job with misdirection. He was also adept at building the tension. You know the ending is going to be a bloody train wreck but it was still a hell of a road getting there.
The remote Texas setting was another thing I enjoyed, a far cry from thrillers happening in crowded metropolises. Scott did a great job at capturing what small town life is like, warts and all.
The Far Empty was a fantastic first novel and I'll be ready for the second book in the series once it drops. Five out of five stars.
itsmarkyall's review against another edition
5.0
Man, what a damn good book.
It's a barn burner from page one. The story is told in short crisp chapters and there's constant action. This book made Texas so vivid and the characters were real on the page. The Judge is one of the most well told villains. I ate up every chapter he was in.
I highly recommend this one.
It's a barn burner from page one. The story is told in short crisp chapters and there's constant action. This book made Texas so vivid and the characters were real on the page. The Judge is one of the most well told villains. I ate up every chapter he was in.
I highly recommend this one.
sjj169's review against another edition
3.0
It all starts when a skeleton is found in Murfee, Texas. Secrets start coming out and they aren't unicorn farts.
You have the sheriff..or as he is known around town as the "Judge."
His deputy-Chris Cherry, who had left small town life with big hopes for a football scholarship when an injury brought him back home and he ended up working on the police force in the small town.
Another deputy, who is dark as night and dreams sometimes that he is a wolf. (Drugs do that shit to you kids) I totally saw him as this guy.
The sheriff's son, who knows how evil his father really is.
A new teacher in town, she left behind some nasty business and changed her name. She hopes for a new start in a small town.
Several more characters factor into this small town and one good thing the author does is bring each of them to life without getting bogged down with the story or having my simple brain get confused. I read for pleasure not the smarty farty stuff.
He does a really decent job with describing the setting and life in the small Texas town also.
The only problem that I found with this book is that sometimes I just wanted something to happen. It takes a whole lotta time just to get going and sometimes I lost interest in the meantime.
I'll still read more of this author since this type of book is totally my peanut butter and
(oh yes the log and I do judge but I loved that dang gif and wanted to use it)
Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review
You have the sheriff..or as he is known around town as the "Judge."
His deputy-Chris Cherry, who had left small town life with big hopes for a football scholarship when an injury brought him back home and he ended up working on the police force in the small town.
Another deputy, who is dark as night and dreams sometimes that he is a wolf. (Drugs do that shit to you kids) I totally saw him as this guy.
The sheriff's son, who knows how evil his father really is.
A new teacher in town, she left behind some nasty business and changed her name. She hopes for a new start in a small town.
Several more characters factor into this small town and one good thing the author does is bring each of them to life without getting bogged down with the story or having my simple brain get confused. I read for pleasure not the smarty farty stuff.
He does a really decent job with describing the setting and life in the small Texas town also.
The only problem that I found with this book is that sometimes I just wanted something to happen. It takes a whole lotta time just to get going and sometimes I lost interest in the meantime.
I'll still read more of this author since this type of book is totally my peanut butter and
(oh yes the log and I do judge but I loved that dang gif and wanted to use it)
Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review
paintergirl4ever's review against another edition
4.0
Good storyline, well designed characters. It look me a bit to realize it was written from individual and multiple perspective, but good none the less. His writing kind of reminds me of C.J. Box, reader warning this is an Adult Fiction book meaning expect adult violence, language, and adult situations.
truegrit's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0