WOLF SEASON

The homecoming of a prodigal son is darkened by sinister ghosts from the past and multiple murders in the present.

The bloody corpse of a jackrabbit welcomes Everett Johnson back home to the mountain town of Killdeer after his father, Sheriff Dale Johnson, goes mysteriously missing. King’s spicy thriller, set in Montana, often feels more like a Southern gothic, with family feuds, tangled romantic relationships, and eerie touches. Though the plot is anchored in Everett’s search for Dale, in which his semiestranged brother, Connor, joins him, their hunt arguably takes a back seat to the bad blood between the Blackburn and Armel clans. A prologue depicts the brutal murder of 17-year-old Orsie Armel, one of seven Armel women spanning two generations. Among these is Orsie’s cousin Bernadine, whose amatory relationship with Everett a generation ago emerges across a series of interspersed chapters. Violent murder also figures in her past. The discovery of Dale’s corpse does nothing to quench Everett’s thirst for answers. The decades-long feud seems to be at the root of current developments, which include a missing Blackburn brother and the killing of a prize Hereford by one of the Armel women. Looming over everything is the Hill Man, a mysterious creature who issues ominous warnings and sits on his porch with his dog, Trouser. The plot is decidedly overstuffed and the interactions overheated, but it’s all consistently brisk and juicy.

A lurid suspenser with killings and scandalous secrets aplenty.