An Island of Quality in an Ocean of Slush
BLOODLINE RUN, by Chet Baker
Bloodline Run
Chet Baker’s debut novel, BLOODLINE RUN, is a struggle between light and darkness, both in the world and within the human soul. It’s haunting. It’s powerful, a deeply affecting novel that grapples with weighty psychological and moral questions but also lilts with a literary bent that stands out in the genre and stays with the reader long after the final page. A testament to the enduring power of love and connection to guide us home, even from the darkest of places.
A disturbed man searches for his missing girlfriend in Baker’s Jekyll-and-Hyde–inspired debut crime novel.
Peter Longer, the son of an abusive preacher, has another personality inside him—one he calls Jason, who tells him to do
bad things—and he believes the alter ego to be a result of a family curse. The 49-year-old man also believes that he’ll die
at 50, the same age that his father did; a spirit woman known as the Wren, he thinks, will come to punish him for the things
he’s done. He was committed to a state institution as a teenager after killing a woman, but he managed to escape and was
accepted, under a false name, to Columbia University. Later, he pursued a series of blue-collar jobs out West. Eventually,
in Colorado, he strolled into a church on a snowy morning, looking for warmth, and met Sarah Montrose, a friendly young
woman with a trust fund. The two fell in love and Peter found himself with a luxury apartment, a job polishing resumes, and
a good woman in his life. He was convinced, in fact, that Sarah cured him of his family curse. Then, after two years of
happiness, Sarah disappeared in 2016. The cops got involved, but the case quickly went cold, leaving only Peter and
Richard Redd, a lone Denver police detective, committed to finding her two years later: “I continued to search for Sarah,”
Peter narrates. “For without her, I was doomed. She had protected me from the cruelty, the savagery the bloodline bred
into the men who carried the seed.” When Redd comes across a name related to a different murder—someone named
Jason Bane—it becomes clear that the story that Peter has been telling himself may not be as straightforward as it seems.
Baker’s prose is taut and plainspoken, with shades of dirty realism that go along with the novel’s general sense of
psychological unease. Here, for example, Peter stops at a drug store to tend some wounds before going to meet a single
mother whom he thinks might be a suitable replacement for Sarah: “In the rearview mirror, I saw my lip had broken open
again....I stopped for gauze, antiseptics, and Band-Aids. A fuzzy pink bunny sat on display at the checkout counter.
Perfect for the first gift to a little girl who I hoped would grow to adore me.” The novel is mostly narrated from Peter’s
perspective, although the introduction of Redd offers some much-needed respite from the protagonist’s unsettling point of
view. The book has a sensationalized view of violence, rural poverty, and mental illness, and readers will be likely to spot
the plot’s big twist from miles away. Even so, the mystery that unfolds over the course of the novel is somewhat more
nuanced than it initially appears, resulting in a reading experience that’s chock full of reversals and complications. The
faint of heart should probably stay away, but fans of dark, cerebral horror tales will likely enjoy unraveling this one.
A devious, if occasionally melodramatic, psychological thriller.
Meet Chet
Texas born, raised in a military family, moving from to the Philippines, London, and Biloxi. I was a rolling stone before spending three years in the Army. After that, I landed in Albuquerque and graduated from the University of New Mexico, studying Psychology, Art, and Business. My early careers included real estate, trucking, and operational management positions. I even became a bureaucrat reporting directly to the Governor of New Mexico. But government wasn't for me. So I built a mid-west twelve-year marketing business until the allure of the Southwest called me back.
Landing in Colorado, I became an executive recruiter and wrote hundreds of resumés about people's lives, dreams, and fantasies. It struck a nerve, the writing bug bit. I first dabbled with simple vignettes and short stories. It wasn't long before I wanted to be a Novelist. The idea flourished, and my resumé clients became inspirations for character ideas.
Ten years later, BLOODLINE RUN became a reality, followed by NATALIE'S WAY. Both crime novels with deep psychological intrigue, thought-provoking plots, and unexpected twists on moral dilemmas. With my writings, I aim to challenge reader's assumptions and keep them on the edge of their seats. But dark fiction isn't all I write. I may come up with a twisty love-lost sentimental piece or a convoluted coming-of-age drama.
When I'm not writing, I can be found on the golf course, playing pickleball, or fishing. Or maybe just lying around reading a good book, enjoying the cool, rarified air of Northern Colorado.
