Ozark Dogs

By: Eli Cranor

Narrated by: Eli Cranor

In this Southern thriller inspired by a chilling true story, two families grapple with the aftermath of a murder in their small Arkansas town.

After his son is convicted of capital murder, Vietnam War veteran Jeremiah Fitzjurls takes over the care of his granddaughter, Joanna, raising her with as much warmth as can be found in an Ozark junkyard outfitted to be an armory. He teaches her how to shoot and fight, but there is not enough training in the world to protect her when the dreaded Ledfords, notorious meth dealers and fanatical white supremacists, come to collect on Joanna as payment for a long-overdue blood debt.

Headed by rancorous patriarch Bunn and smooth-talking, erudite Evail, the Ledfords have never forgotten what the Fitzjurls family did to them, and they will not be satisfied until they have taken an eye for an eye. As they seek revenge, and as Jeremiah desperately searches for his granddaughter, their narratives collide in this immersive story about family and how far some will go to honor, defend—or in some cases, destroy it.

©2023 Eli Cranor (P)2023 Recorded Books

Really good

Great character exploration. A complex mix of personalities fears and motivations. Very engaging. I will read more by this author.

Such a great book!

I really loved this book and can’t wait to recommend it to all of my friends!

Good Gracious, Grudges, Gritty, Grim Golly Grandpa!

A lot of characters with complex relationships. A grand daughter’s love for her grandfather who raised was a beautiful story. He raised her to have grit. I could have done without hearing about dogs eating a dead coyote; a cow caring for her still born calf; dead dogs, etc. Really, these before mentioned episodes added nothing to the story. Story started to fall apart towards the end. Everything thrown in. Possible incest, maternal betrayal, trafficking young women for sex, dirty cop👮, flashbacks to the Vietnam war, international intrigue all at included in the last few chapters made it difficult for me to follow. Mr. Cranor proved to me that some authors can narrate their own books. He was excellent. His calming voice encouraged me to stick with this story.

The Judge

Wow, I really like this kind of story. It hits so close to home. The characters are so authentic and could be real. The Prisons, the Cartels, the sadness that cuts
the life out what was, at some times considered middle
class America, is all way too real. So great job. I would like to find other books similar.

Junkyard noir, a barbed wire thriller

“The kitchen was aglow in the morning sun, specks of dust floating through the slanting rays. Belladonna’s momma had told her dust was just bits of dried human skin. Might have even been bits of the old Ledfords, the ones that built this house, grandpa Moses and all his brothers, still floating around in the kitchen.”
Sweet, delicious Southern noir! This was dark, twisty and jagged. The tension builds as the story switchbacks from one POV to another, sometimes jumping backwards to replay events and obscure the big picture. I was at the edge of my seat, worried that this would go too far into genres or plots that cross my lines. Thankfully, even though there’s drugs, racism, trafficking, military PTSD, and a dog eat dog** vicious cycle, this wasn’t violence for the sake of violence. If you can handle the True Detective series or the movie Taken, then you can handle this book.

“Colt remembered how they’d lain in silence … how the world had come back to him in stages …
his vision, and finally his sense of smell, a saline mixture of the lower latitudes.”
I was mightily impressed by this author’s prose, which, combined with his own narration set the mood perfectly. Were there some inconsistencies? Sure. The idea that someone could escape peril, get back to town, and not immediately call family or police was particularly hard to swallow. Were some of the twists predictable? Also, yes. But, people do crazy things in real life, so I’ll make allowances for the sake of setting up a good finale.

“There’s always one in the chamber.”
This book hangs on the exhale. Bloody good.

**This last warning is literal, as dogs hurt each other and are hurt by humans.
If you’re the kind of listener who loves human blood and gore, but is aghast if someone kicks a puppy,
then you should pass on this book.