Winner of the 2010 Edgar Award for Best Novel
John Hart's New York Times bestselling debut, The King of Lies,
announced the arrival of a major talent. With Down River, he
surpassed his earlier success, transcending the barrier between thriller
and literature and winning the 2008 Edgar Award for best novel. Now,
with The Last Child, he achieves his most significant work to date, an
intricate, powerful story of loss, hope, and courage in the face of
evil.
Thirteen year-old Johnny Merrimon had the perfect life: a warm home and
loving parents; a twin sister, Alyssa, with whom he shared an
irreplaceable bond. He knew nothing of loss, until the day Alyssa
vanished from the side of a lonely street. Now, a year later, Johnny
finds himself isolated and alone, failed by the people he'd been taught
since birth to trust. No one else believes that Alyssa is still alive,
but Johnny is certain that she is---confident in a way that he can never
fully explain.
Determined to find his sister, Johnny risks everything to explore the
dark side of his hometown. It is a desperate, terrifying search, but
Johnny is not as alone as he might think. Detective Clyde Hunt has never
stopped looking for Alyssa either, and he has a soft spot for Johnny. He
watches over the boy and tries to keep him safe, but when Johnny
uncovers a dangerous lead and vows to follow it, Hunt has no choice but
to intervene.
Then a second child goes missing . . .
Undeterred by Hunt's threats or his mother's pleas, Johnny enlists the
help of his last friend, and together they plunge into the wild, to a
forgotten place with a history of violence that goes back more than a
hundred years. There, they meet a giant of a man, an escaped convict on
his own tragic quest. What they learn from him will shatter every notion
Johnny had about the fate of his sister; it will lead them to another
far place, to a truth that will test both boys to the limit.
Traveling the wilderness between innocence and hard wisdom, between
hopelessness and faith, The Last Child leaves all categories behind
and establishes John Hart as a writer of unique power.
