Preston Falls

In his first novel, Jernigan , David Gates sends protagonist Doug Willis on a visceral journey to explore the dark side of suburban masculinity, the claim's youth makes on middle age, and the tenacious—at times perverse--power of love to assert itself. In this comic and poignant novel, when Doug Willis has a midlife crisis, he doesn't join a gym or have an affair. Instead, he gets himself arrested while camping with his wife and kids, takes a two-month leave of absence from his PR job, and retreats to his farmhouse in rural Preston Falls--where he plugs in his guitar and tries to shut out his life. While Willis' suburban wife Jean struggles to pay the bills and raise their sullen, skeptical kids, Willis' plans for hiatus crumble into Dewars-and-cocaine fueled disarray. A shattered window, an unguarded gun, and a shady small-town attorney force a crisis--and Willis can't go home again.