Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northwest of Normal | 2009 | John Larison | Buy |
| 2 | Holding Lies | 2011 | John Larison | Buy |
| 3 | Whiskey When We’re Dry | 2018 | John Larison | Buy |
| 4 | The Ancients | 2024 | John Larison | Buy |
John Larison’s four standalone novels span from Northwest of Normal (2009) through Holding Lies (2011), Whiskey When We’re Dry (2018), and The Ancients (2024). Each is a self-contained work that shares Larison’s characteristic attention to the American West, its landscapes, and the people who inhabit them.
Holding Lies is set in contemporary rural Oregon and follows a fly-fishing guide navigating the return of his estranged daughter. The natural world, particularly the river, is as central to the story as the characters themselves. Whiskey When We’re Dry moves back in time to the nineteenth century and follows Jessilyn Harney, a young woman who takes on a male identity to track down her outlaw brother, confronting questions of survival, loyalty, and identity along the way.
The Ancients (2024) is his most recent novel and the most removed from recognizable historical settings, exploring long spans of human time and the deep relationship between people and the land they inhabit.