Product Description

After a near-fatal automobile accident, Brandon Keller returns to resume his life in Natchitoches, Louisiana only to confront the unsolved murder of his high school sweetheart. Determined, Brandon investigates the night of his accident and the murder, a night he cannot remember, to uncover the truth. The journey reunites him with his friend, Devin Slater—they must rebuild their fractured friendship before the facts can surface. He also meets Casey Brown, who holds the secrets that could unlock everything, and enlists the help of Jared Wise, a former nemesis who works for the local newspaper. When a secret diary is unearthed and his trust shattered, Brandon must learn who he can turn to. As all of their lives weave together, the story unfolds piece by piece, until the police uncover another mysterious death and a confession. The police announce they found the killer...but do they have the right man?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1245461 in Books
• Published on: 2003-09
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 218 pages

Customer Reviews

An intriguing mystery with an unexpected twist.
Reviewed by: Tyrone Banks of Betsie's Literary Page
Highly Recommended
5 out of 5 points

An intriguing mystery with an unexpected twist.

Brandon Keller returns to Louisiana to solve the mysterious murder of his high school sweetheart. He revisits the precious moments that he spent with his lover in an attempt to determine the cause of his death. The police have no leads but Brandon is determined to solve this murder and make sure that the perpetrator is punished. He feels that his lover would want no less. He revisits the world and the people that he left behind. Some were friends and others were enemies, but he will sacrifice his comfort to see that justice is served.

The story unfolds at a rapid pace as small clues are given and some obvious inconsistencies are ignored. The reader will follow Brandon on his search for justice, meet some of his acquaintances and try to determine who the real killer is. This is easier said than done as you find out who the accused killer is, but you are left questioning that determination.

Cray Donnelly's writing style resembles that of some of this century's literary greats, but the story is told from a different perspective. You push past a comfort zone of sorts to digest the images that are given and you will have a great difficulty in putting this book down. Upon opening the first page, a Pandora's box of sorts is activated and you are pulled into the story, one line at a time. You want to solve this mystery as much as Brandon Keller did, and I promise you, the end will surprise you.

Add this one to your library to compliment the other genres assembled there, but be prepared for this one to stand out! Mr. Donnelly, thank you for the read!

Tyrone Vincent Banks.

Great Book!
If you like Christopher Rice then I must tell you to check out this book! Laudanum is the best book I have read this year, the author has an amazing writing style that just draws you in, in fact he is way different from Christopher Rice in that fact this this story could be real, and there are no boring parts! Once you pick up this book you will be hooked, this is a great book to read on rainy weekend at home. I don't want to say to much about the details because you just have to read it, it is so cleverly thought out that you really will be supprised by the time you get to the end. This book would make a great movie!
A MUST have for any mystery fan!

Great Book!
I purchased this book about a month ago and just finished reading it--for the fourth time. Mystery lovers HAVE to read this. Fiction lovers HAVE to read this.

For people turned off my mysteries, let me clarify...this is not a typical mystery. It's not a detective story, it's not "Murder, She Wrote," it's not about revenge. It's a touching and intelligent journey.

The story is about Brandon Keller. In the beginning of the story he's just returned home from a long hospital stay after a car accident that almost killed him. That's when he has to start facing his life again, and the first thing on his list is to find the person who killed his high-school love, the same night as his car accident--a night he doesn't remember.

Its during his own investigation into the crime that he discovers that he might be the only witness to the murder, now all he has to do is remember it. The thing I liked most about the book is that there is so much going on, but not in a confusing way. Yes, there is the mystery of the murder and the mystery about his car accident, but its about so much more--its about the secrets each character is hiding and the truth that those secrets cover up, its about sexual tensions, its about love and hate and indifference. Even the secondary characters play into the whole scheme of the story--every one has a purpose in the book so we're not subjected to window dressing characters. Another thing, each character is very well developed that I felt like I was reading about people I knew. You sense the pain as Brandon struggles to come to terms with many emotions, and you feel Devin's (the best friend) struggle to maintain control of his secrets and his life that seems to burden his emotions. Even the minor characters are fleshed out. One more thing before I go to the negatives; the writing style was effortless to read--it was like reading a movie, but not so densely filled with description that it detracted from the story. It seemed well planned out, the ending didn't seem rushed (like in so many other novels), but the ending...let me say SHOCKING! I didn't see it coming (who the murderer is), so I re-read it--all the clues were there, just very well hidden. But all the open stories were very neatly wrapped up by the end of the story.

I think that there could have been some more lighter moments since this book is so heavy and dark. Granted, its about murder and loss and struggling to move on, and at the end their lives seem brighter, but when we're in the story I felt like I was on the emotional roller coaster with the characters (which is good writing, but I need a break now and then). Also, I would have liked to see a few of the secondary characters moved up to primary characters because their mini-storylines were quite interesting and probably could have become a whole other book. So, I recommend this book to anyone who likes well-crafted stories and well-developed characters and a plot that will keep you guessing until the final pages.