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J. Todd Scott Books In Order

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Publication Order of Chris Cherry Books

The Far Empty (2016)Description / Buy at Amazon
High White Sun (2018)Description / Buy at Amazon
This Side of Night (2019)Description / Buy at Amazon

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

About J. Todd Scott

Largely writing mystery novels, the American writer J. Scott Todd is a well known author with a gift for building both suspense and tension. Living the life of a federal agent as well, he’s managed to bring his experience into his stories, making them feel both grounded and altogether real. This has seen him gain a huge following worldwide, with many readers relating to his various stories, regardless of their respective backgrounds.

Early and Personal Life

Born in the state of Kentucky, the American novelist J. Scott Todd was born and raised in the area of Paducah city. This would be where he would come to spend the majority of his formative years, as he would harbor a deep passion for both reading and writing. Over time he would develop this, building upon it, whilst finding his own ever distinctive voice and style with which readers would come to know and appreciate him for.

Growing up in a rural area, which would inspire much of his later output, he would also take inspiration from the world around him. Attending college and then law school in Virginia, he would later put aside his ambitions of pursuing a career working as a federal agent, as he would turn to writing full-time. During his time working as an agent though, he would travel all over the world on assignments, all of which would help provide him with material, as he continues writing from his home in the Southwest to this very day.

Writing Career

Publishing his first book in the year of 2016, he would make his big literary debut with the thriller novel ‘The Far Empty’. This would also come to see his first series come to fruition as well, with it being titled the ‘Sheriff Chris Cherry’ collection of novels. These would follow the eponymous Chris Cherry in his position as a sheriff solving a series of mysteries and case files, setting them in the dark and gritty world of the Texas borderlands.

Drawing heavily from his own time spent working as an agent tracking down criminals, he brings to his work a large degree of authenticity and realism. Building a strong sense of suspense and tension, he creates strong leading characters, alongside realistic situations that draw the reader in. With a lot more to come, he’s a writer that’s quickly making a strong name for himself, marking him as someone to watch in the years to follow.

The Far Empty

Initially released in 2016 on the 7th of June, this would first come out through the ‘G.P. Putnam’s Sons’ publishing label. A crime novel bringing together thriller and mystery, it manages to really showcase what Scott has to offer as an author. It would also be the first in the series of Chris Cherry novels, later being followed up by ‘High White Sun’ in the year of 2018.

Working essentially as a western novel updated into a contemporary modern setting, this really is a story that has everything in it. Combining elements of thriller and murder mystery, it uses all the classic tropes of the western, turning them on their head in the process and finding something entirely new. Creating characters that really manage to come alive off of the page, the reader really feels invested in both them and their various plights. Using Texas as it canvas, it manages to take the setting of the small border town, giving it a sense of immediacy for a worldwide modern audience.

Looking to find his way out of the small town of Murfee, seventeen year old Caleb Ross feels adrift following the disappearance of his own mother little over a year ago. With him having just reluctantly returned to his home-town, Chris Cherry is the once high-school football hero and recently minted sheriff’s deputy. That’s when a the skeletal remains are found in the surrounding badlands of Murfee, bringing Caleb and Chris together, as they suspect who the victim is. This then puts them in the sights of one Sheriff Standford ‘Judge’ Ross, as they uncover the dark secrets that the town of Murfee is trying to hide. Where did Caleb’s mother really disappear to? Can they find the truth behind the body? What will happen as they face the far empty?

High White Sun

Released through the ‘G.P. Putnam’s Sons’ publishing outlet once more, this follows on from the previous Chris Cherry title with the second instalment in the series. Published on the 20th of March in 2018, this was published not long after the first, whilst developing the world and the characters overall. It also manages to provide some of its own exciting twists and turns along the way, giving it its own distinctive personality in the process.

Once again operating as a crime thriller novel with a western underpinning, this is a story that really manages to make the most of its themes and ideas. With the character of Chris Cherry already having been established in the previous novel, this shows him in a position of power trying to make sense of it all. Challenged as a leading protagonist, he’s really pushed to his limit here, as the audience get to see what he’s actually made of. Fun and inventive, it’s also not afraid of shying away from some more difficult aspects, giving this story a serious sense of heft and weight to it.

Now the sheriff in town, Chris Cherry has now taken over in the wake of Sheriff Standford Ross’s passing, becoming Sheriff Cherry, as he’s essentially the law in Big Bend County. Looking to escape from the dark past of the previous lawman, Cherry sets about attempting to modernize the department, whilst looking to weed out the corruption from before. Also stepping up are his new deputies America Reynosa, along with Ben Harper, the latter a hard-nosed former homicide detective brought out of retirement. With an investigation of Reynosa and Harpers being swept aside by a secretive federal agent, they’re looking for the murderer of a Rio Grande guide who’s on the loose. Not only that, but it seems that a wave of clan violence is set to descend on Cherry’s home-town of Murfee, as he must contend with the Aryan Brotherhood. Will they be able to find the killer? Who is behind the wave of violence and can they stop it? What is beyond the high white sun?

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