Last Train to Stratton

In America’s dark days following the Vietnam War and Watergate, Zach Carlson is a deeply cynical Chicago crime beat reporter, making his living by the adage “if it bleeds, it leads.” He is as emotionally detached from those around him as he is from the blood and death he covers daily. When Zach’s life in Chicago shatters, he moves to a small Indiana town to run a weekly newspaper, seeking to lose himself in the mundane dullness of small-town America. Instead of tranquility, Zach finds a town trying to cope with its own fear, anxiety and anger. The railroads, which have provided the town’s economic lifeblood, are leaving, and with it most of the town’s jobs. Violence, drugs and crime are seeping into the bucolic community. When Stratton suffers its first murder in decades, Zach’s investigation uncovers secrets that tear away the town’s veneer of innocence and force Zach to face the still-open wounds that eviscerated his life."Stephen Terrell’s Last Train to Stratton sneaks up on you and yanks you in. The writing is as sensitive as it is tough, and the unforgettable characters are as familiar as they are fresh. Simply put, Last Train to Stratton is a gripping, heartfelt read that will stay with you long after you finish it."— Janis Thornton, author of the Elmwood Confidential Series and Too Good a Girl