An Honest Man

A Novel

by Michael Koryta
Robert Petkoff

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From the New York Times bestselling author of Those Who Wish Me Dead: The murder of several politicians at sea has shattering implications for a local lobsterman and a young boy in this action-packed thriller.

Israel Pike was a killer, and he was an honest man. They were not mutually exclusive.
After discovering seven men murdered aboard their yacht – including two Senate rivals – Israel Pike is regarded as a prime suspect. A troubled man infamous on Salvation Point Island for killing his own father a decade before, Israel has few options, no friends, and a life-threatening secret.
Elsewhere on the island, 12-year-old Lyman Rankin seeks shelter from his alcoholic father in an abandoned house only to discover that he is not alone. A mysterious woman greets him with a hatchet and a promise: "Make a sound and I'll kill you."
As the investigation barrels forward, Lyman, Israel, and the fate of the case collide in immutable ways. Written with mounting suspense, stirring emotion, and deep understanding of character, Koryta continues to prove why Stephen King has called him "a master" and Michael Connelly has deemed him "one of the best of the best, plain and simple."

Creators
- Michael Koryta
  
  Author
- Robert Petkoff
  
  Narrator
Publisher

Hachette Audio

Edition: Unabridged
Release date

July 25, 2023
Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
  - ISBN: 9781549151248
  - File size: 326999 KB
  - Duration: 11:21:14
Languages
- English
Reviews
- Library Journal
  
  February 1, 2023
  Regarded fearfully on Salvation Point Island for having killed his father a decade previously, lobsterman Israel Pike is an obvious suspect when he discovers seven murdered men (including two feuding senators) aboard a yacht. Meanwhile, 12-year-old Lyman Rankin seeks shelter from an alcoholic father in a seemingly empty house where he encounters a scary woman with a hatchet. Watch the masterly Koryta pull those plotlines together. With a 60,00-copy first printing. Prepub Alert.
  Copyright 2023 Library Journal
  
  Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
- Publisher's Weekly
  
  Starred review from May 29, 2023
  At the beginning of this superb thriller from Edgar winner Koryta (Those Who Wish Me Dead), recently paroled killer Israel Pike discovers seven murdered men on a yacht adrift near the small island of Salvation Point, Maine. Despite a lack of evidence, Sterling Pike, Israel’s uncle and the island’s sole police deputy, immediately blames his nephew, who was convicted of murdering his own father 15 years earlier. Sterling, who fancies himself the island’s de facto ruler, builds a case against Israel while receiving pushback from FBI agent Jenn Salazar, who’s been assigned to the investigation. Meanwhile, 12-year-old Lyman Rankin escapes the wrath of his abusive, alcoholic father and decamps to an abandoned house, where he’s confronted by a hatchet-wielding woman who’s also seeking shelter. Koryta seamlessly stitches the two stories together with white-knuckle action and strong character development: the novel’s potency comes from the parallels between Israel and Lyman, each the products of brutal homes who are determined not to repeat their fathers’ cruelty. Koryta’s atmospheric prose is a treat, too, tempering Maine’s natural beauty with hints of the island’s corruption: “The sea was calm but the air was uneasy, too warm, too still.” This is top-tier suspense. Agent: Richard S. Pine, InkWell Management.
- Kirkus
  
  June 1, 2023
  Two male victims of parental abuse and two female victims of sex trafficking converge on a small island off the coast of Maine following the killing of seven men on a yacht. Israel Pike, having served 15 years in prison for killing his abusive father, becomes a prime suspect in the yacht murders after discovering the bodies, which include those of two candidates for U.S. Senate. Running off to hide from his own brutal father, 12-year-old Lyman Rankin discovers a frightened young woman lying low in a former neighbor's abandoned house. She proves to have a crucial connection to the killings. The odds of anyone good coming out of this mess alive, or anyone bad getting punished for their deeds, are not high. The island, Salvation Point, is controlled by Israel's uncle, Sterling, a corrupt deputy sheriff who owns half the town and, along with his late brother, was involved in running underage girls up and down the East Coast. One of their early victims was 14-year-old Jenn Salazar, now a state cop with a secret agenda. There's a whole lot of abuse going on here--more than one novel can comfortably contain. The twin narratives can get pretty schematic. But having written two of his previous three novels under the pseudonym Scott Carson, Koryta seems recharged by the dark human themes, the stormy coastal setting (no crime writer makes more of the great outdoors), and the ugly politics. As in real life, the upcoming election here has great significance to the nation. Having created memorable outsize villains in such books as The Prophet (2012) and Those Who Wish Me Dead (2014), Koryta chills the air with smaller-than-life bad guys. A strong effort by one of crime fiction's go-to writers.
  COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
- AudioFile Magazine
  
  Narrator Robert Petkoff uses a variety of New England accents to enhance this thriller, which takes place on an island off Maine. Petkoff's controlled, dark narration adds some brine to the unraveling mystery of who killed seven people on a beached ghost ship. Like a set of Russian nesting dolls, the story reveals secrets that beget secrets as Israel Pike, the island outcast, attempts to put a corrupt cop out of business. The trouble is that the cop is also Israel's uncle, who's still angry that Israel committed patricide 15 years earlier. The plot also includes a woman who appears from the sea named Hatchet (so called because she always carries one) and a sad subplot dealing with Lyman, a kid whose drunken dad beats him. Put it all together with Petkoff's professional storytelling, and the result is hard-to-put-down suspense. R.W.S. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
- Library Journal
  
  April 1, 2023
  Koryta's (Those Who Wish Me Dead) suspense and story move along at a brisk pace in his latest, whose titular honest man is Israel Pike. Within the first pages, Israel finds seven men shot to death on a yacht drifting in the ocean off a small island in Maine. He is immediately considered a suspect, especially by his uncle, the deputy sheriff of Salvation Island. Fifteen years ago, Israel killed his own father during an argument, and his uncle arrested him on the spot. Israel had been out of prison for only a few months when he found the bodies. It appears that Israel is withholding a secret as he works with state police major crime unit's Jenn Salazar. Meanwhile, a boy named Lyman Rankin, hiding out on a nearby island, finds a woman squatting in an abandoned house. She is holding a hatchet, has terrible wounds on her feet, and has a pile of blood-soaked money. As in his other novels, Kortya's characters evoke feelings of sympathy, anger, and joy. Readers will stay engaged until the end. VERDICT Fans of Lee and Lincoln Child and of Koryta's previous works will enjoy his new offering.--Jason L. Steagall
  
  Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
- Booklist
  
  Starred review from May 1, 2023
  When Israel Pike is paroled from prison, he returns to the place he's least welcome, tiny Salvation Point Island. After all, who would trust a man who killed his own father? Israel is driven to root out the evil that he's seen there, backed by an informant deal he made with the state police. Unfortunately, that deal falls short when Israel discovers seven bodies, two of them rival Senate hopefuls, in an unmoored yacht. Meanwhile, 12-year-old Lyman seeks refuge from his father's alcohol-fueled beatings and finds that a terrified, wounded, hatchet-wielding woman has occupied his hideout. Lyman doesn't know where she came from, but he knows her fear too well, and vows to hide her from the "bad men." Israel's power-hungry uncle, the island's only cop, tries to pin the yacht murders on him, and his deal with the state police turns out to be less bulletproof than he'd thought, forcing Israel to unmask the island's trafficking ring sooner rather than later. Koryta, a regular on awards lists, rewards readers with his trademark shadowy mood and perfectly calibrated suspense in this stand-alone. They'll also find haunting symbolism, expert character development, and realistically imperfect redemption arcs as the author plays the sea's healing gifts and dangers against those of Salvation Point to make this Koryta's best yet.
  COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
- Library Journal
  
  June 10, 2024
  Israel Pike, fresh out of prison for murdering his father, is ostracized in his coastal Maine hometown and is immediately a suspect when he finds seven dead people on a boat at sea. His own uncle is the crooked cop working the investigation, and Israel needs allies as he defends his innocence and investigates the crime. He is soon mixed up in a brutal case of human trafficking and child abuse, as he encounters two mysterious women who suddenly disappear and young Lyman, a local child who is terrorized by his own father. Israel isn't an unblemished tragic hero--listeners may bristle as he admits to taking artistic photographs of local children without parental permission. Koryta's (Those Who Wish Me Dead) standalone thriller uses intriguing multiple storylines that involve violence and injustice, yet listeners will be satisfied with the explosive and hopeful ending. Experienced and talented narrator Robert Petkoff is in his element as he voices a plethora of Northeastern accents, most of them men, in gruff and terse tones. VERDICT Recommend to fans of the author and fast-paced thrillers.--Sarah Hill
  
  Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.