The bright lands A novel

Fram's first novel is a mash-up of mystery and horror. When Joel Whitley returns to his tiny, intolerant Texas hometown, which he left 10 years earlier, vowing never to revisit, it is to help find his younger brother, the high school's star quarterback, who soon after Joel's arrival is discovered murdered. Who did it? To find out, Joel partners with Starsha Clark, a local sheriff's deputy, whom he had dated in high school (she's a woman; he's gay). Soon, he learns that his brother was also gay. Is this why he was murdered? In the wake of his brother's death, Joel begins having horrible nightmares, as does Clark and virtually everybody in town. What is causing them? Could it be an evil monster that, it is said, lives on the deserted flats outside of town? And what does it have to do with something the football team calls "the bright lands"? The answer comes in a violent but compelling denouement that requires a serious suspension of disbelief. But, like the novel itself, it's a fascinating and suspenseful read.

Fram's ambitious debut takes a critical, terrifying look at a small town in Texas, where high school football reigns supreme and puts a double bind on those who are desperate to get out. Former high school quarterback Joel Whitley, now almost 30, returns home to Bentley, Tex., from Manhattan after a decade, distressed by a series of desperate text messages from his younger brother, Dylan, a star high school quarterback himself who has become disenchanted with football. Joel, openly gay, has embraced a new life as a data analyst, but when he's back in the stadium watching Dylan play, old feelings of angst return after someone makes a homophobic remark about a black male cheerleader. Dylan soon disappears, which may be related to an out-of-town s&m club and a supernatural creature that occasionally causes underground rumblings. Joel teams up with a former classmate turned sherrif's deputy to search for Dylan, and they begin to uncover the town's dark secrets. While Fram stacks the deck with a few too many secondary characters (old loves, family ties) and subplots (drugs, murders, nefarious schemers), his attempt to connect Bentley's long-buried secrets with generation-repeating bullying and homophobia is commendable. This offers as many weekend frights as celebratory lights. (July)

DEBUT The residents of Bentley, TX, love nothing more than football. When star quarterback Dylan contacts his older brother, Joel, who fled the small, conservative town years ago, their unsettling conversation worries Joel, who immediately hops on a flight home. Shortly after Joel's arrival, Dylan goes missing, and it's quickly apparent that something sinister is afoot--and has been for quite some time. With clever nods in style and tone to the work of legendary horror author Bentley Little, Fram delivers a satisfying supernatural mystery in which the town itself is at the heart of the evil. The points of view bounce among multiple well-developed characters, all harboring their own destructive secrets. The sense of dread builds, enveloping the town, its characters, and readers in a terror denser than the "Friday night lights" can penetrate. VERDICT Fram refers to himself as "Stephen Queen," and while this should certainly be embraced as a "gay Stephen King" read-alike, it is also a confident and thought-provoking tale that explores complex family dynamics, sexuality, religion, and coming-of-age anxieties within a solid horror frame. A great choice for fans of Victor LaValle or Ania Ahlborn.