First published 2025
Tom Gatestone has already made a name for himself in Orvop, Utah when newcomer Kalin March arrives in town. The fall of 1982 brings them together around two neglected horses scheduled for slaughter at the Porch paddocks on Willow and Oak. The boys decide to take matters into their own hands, launching a rescue mission that carries them beyond the city limits into treacherous mountain terrain. The Katanogos massif proves unforgiving, ready to throw even experienced climbers from its slopes. What starts as an animal rescue transforms into something far more dangerous when the dead begin to rise and the mountain itself starts to collapse. At Pillars Meadow, Kalin March faces down Old Porch with words that will echo through Orvop long after the adventure ends. The journey tests both boys in ways they never anticipated, demanding acts of courage so extreme they border on the appalling. Their determination to save two horses becomes a story of survival against overwhelming odds in terrain that forgives no mistakes.
Genres: adventure, mystery, horror, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-friends, found-family
Setting: Katanogos, Orvop, Pillars Meadow, Porch Paddocks, Utah, Willow and Oak
Period: 1982
1232 pages · Hardcover · Pantheon
Content warnings: death, graphic-violence