When Matt Johansson, a young New York actor, auditions for Chapel of Ease, an off-Broadway musical, he is instantly charmed by Ray Parrish, the show's writer and composer. They soon become friends; Matt learns that Ray's people call themselves the Tufa and that the musical is based on the history of his isolated home town. But there is one question in the show's script that Ray refuses to answer: what is buried in the ruins of the chapel of ease?
As opening night approaches, strange things begin to happen. A dreadlocked girl follows Ray and spies on him. At the press preview, a strange Tufa woman warns him to stop the show. Then, as the rave reviews arrive, Ray dies in his sleep.
Matt and the cast are distraught, but there's no question of shutting down: the run quickly sells out. They postpone opening night for a week and Matt volunteers to take Ray's ashes back to Needsville. He also hopes, while he's there, to find out more of the real story behind the play and discover the secret that Ray took to his grave.
Matt's journey into the haunting Appalachian mountains of Cloud County sets him on a dangerous path, where some secrets deserve to stay buried.
ALEX BLEDSOE is the critically-acclaimed author of the Tufa novels The Hum and the Shiver, Wisp of a Thing, Long Black Curl, Chapel of Ease, Gather Her Round, and Sadieville as well as the Eddie LaCrosse series: The Sword-Edged Blonde, Dark Jenny, Burn Me Deadly, and He Drank, and Saw the Spider.
“Beautifully written, surprisingly moving, and unexpected in the best of ways.” —Seanan McGuire, New York Times bestselling author
"With his subtle, character-driven approach, Bledsoe skillfully fuses music, legend, and regional atmosphere to create something that feels like an unexplored corner of American mythology." – Publishers Weekly
On sale March 17, 2020 by Tor Books. 9780765376572. $17.99 USD.
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