16. “Hammer” by Cliff Martinez (from Drive soundtrack)
17. “Promise” by David Helpling
18. “Sandstorm” by Peter Gabriel (from Passion)
19. “It Is Accomplished” by Peter Gabriel (from Passion)
20. “This Was My Intention” by Thomas Newman (from Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael soundtrack)
21. “A Strangely Isolated Place” by Ulrich Schnauss
22. “Eternal” by Above & Beyond
23. “Ain’t You Tired” by Thomas Newman (from The Help soundtrack)
Behind the Book: Say Anything
So there you have it. My teen series starring Chris Buckley as the wide-eyed new kid in school who ends up discovering an evil town while also discovering hope. If I could, I’d love to hear each and every reader’s thoughts about this series and its ending. Regardless of what you think—whether you loved it or hated it—I wouldn’t change a thing.
That’s the same thing I’d say about my high school experience.
I went to four different high schools. If you want to know their names, look at the dedication in each Solitary Tales book. At each school I attended I was a different character in a different tale. They say don’t judge a book by its cover, but every time I changed schools, that’s exactly what happened. I understand—people can’t help themselves, whether they’re sixteen or sixty. It’s human nature.
When I came up with this idea for “Pretty in Pink meets The Exorcist,” I knew the story I wanted to write. But what I didn’t realize was why I wanted to write it. Now that the series is finished, I can look back and see that what I wrote was my swan song to my high school years, a summing up of my own experiences as a teenager.
I could show all the similarities, but that’s not too terribly interesting. Why, for instance, does Chris have these love interests showing up in each book? Well, that’s just the story that came into my head. But looking at it now, it makes sense, because every time I ended up changing schools, my old friends would suddenly be gone. Whether it was a close relationship that suddenly died or a friend who suddenly disappeared, the end was always the same. Leaving, moving on, sometimes not even getting to say good-bye, sometimes saying good-bye because of a mistake of mine.
There were many times when I felt isolated and abandoned. Hmmmm. What’s a word to describe that feeling? Solitary. Of course, there were no tunnels or great-grandfathers who hissed or demon dogs, right? But sometimes the ordinary craziness of the high school experience seems to be full of things just like that. Things that are out of our control. Things that are stranger than fiction. Things that cannot be explained.
God was very real to me when I was a teen living on top of a mountain in North Carolina. When I moved, a part of that closeness and innocence left. I decided to change personalities to fit in, and in doing so I got a bit lost as well. At least for a while.
To say that I am Chris Buckley or that he is me is too simplistic. Chris is more like the brother I never had. In some ways, yes, we’re very much alike. But after four books with this likable kid, I can honestly say he’s a character that’s come to life. I’d like to hang out with him and talk about music for a while.
What will become of Chris Buckley? Well, I have some ideas. Anybody who knows me knows I have some ideas. So we’ll see. That’s all I’ll say. For now.
That’s the beauty of this white open space. It’s just waiting to be filled. It’s waiting for those words. And the thing I’ve come to love about The Solitary Tales and remembering what it was like to be sixteen is that you can truly say anything in the confines of this space.
Thank you for taking this journey with Chris and me. It’s been quite the ride.
Acknowledgments
Thank you …
Sharon, for asking me to be your partner in a high school play and never turning back.
Kylie, Mackenzie, and Brianna, for making every day shine brighter than the last.
Don Pape, for believing in me and in this series.
L. B. Norton, for being a wonderful editor and encourager.
Claudia Cross, for continuing to partner with me as we pursue writing dreams.
Amy Konyndyk, for producing four amazing covers.
Alex Field, Karen Stoller, Ginia Hairston, Caitlyn Carlson, and the rest of the fine folks at David C Cook.
Anne Goldsmith, who liked this idea enough to ask for a proposal years ago.
Jake Chism, Josh Olds, and Lori Twichell, for your enthusiastic support of this series from the very beginning.
My parents, Bill and Mary Thrasher, who moved my sister and me to the top of a mountain in North Carolina where an imagination could roam free.
My in-laws, Warren and Willamae Noorlag, for helping me continue to remain in this writing canoe of mine.
My family and friends, who continue to encourage and support me as I see which doors continue to open.
And last but definitely not least, thank you to my fans and readers, who continue to remind me all these hours of solitary confinement are worth it.
Without all of these people, The Solitary Tales would never have seen light of day. So thank you.
This twelfth grader knew what he wanted to do and where he wanted to go. Little did he know he’d still have a long and a rocky road ahead of him in college. Maybe someday some of those stories will be reworked in another series.…
HURT
Published by David C Cook
4050 Lee Vance View
Colorado Springs, CO 80918 U.S.A.
David C Cook Distribution Canada
55 Woodslee Avenue, Paris, Ontario, Canada N3L 3E5
David C Cook U.K., Kingsway Communications
Eastbourne, East Sussex BN23 6NT, England
The graphic circle C logo is a registered trademark of David C Cook.
All rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be reproduced, scanned, resold, or distributed by or through any print or electronic medium without written permission from the publisher. This ebook is licensed solely for the personal and noncommercial use of the original authorized purchaser, subject to the terms of use under which it was purchased. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.
The website addresses recommended throughout this book are offered as a resource to you. These websites are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement on the part of David C Cook, nor do we vouch for their content.
This story is a work of fiction. All characters and events are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is coincidental.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Psalm 34:7–10 in chapter 4 and Psalm 27:1 in chapter 5 are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com.
Ezekiel 20:45–48 in chapter 40 are from the New Living Translation 1996.
LCCN 2012951903
ISBN 978-1-4347-6416-4
eISBN 978-1-4347-0551-8
© 2013 Travis Thrasher
The Team: Don Pape, LB Norton, Caitlyn Carlson, Karen Athen
Cover Design: Amy Konyndyk
Cover Photo: Veer
First Edition 2013
Also by Travis Thrasher
The Promise Remains
The Watermark
The Second Thief
Three Roads Home
Gun Lake
Admission
Blinded
; Sky Blue
Out of the Devil’s Mouth
Isolation
Ghostwriter
Every Breath You Take
Broken
40
Letters from War
Paper Angels
101 Writing Tips
The Solitary Tales
Solitary
Gravestone
Temptation
Hurt
© studiosmith 2010
Critically acclaimed and creatively diverse novelist Travis Thrasher is the author of more than twenty novels, including the novelization of Home Run: The Movie, The Solitary Tales, Isolation, and Ghostwriter. Writing stories that move, haunt, and provoke readers, Thrasher tells tales in a variety of genres. He lives with his wife and three daughters in a suburb of Chicago.
www.travisthrasher.com
If you enjoyed this title, visit DCCeBooks.com for more great reads.
Praise for …
Solitary
“A YA novel for the hip, the savvy, the thinker-outside-the-box—and anybody else who wants a great read. And don’t even try to predict this one. Just hang on and let it take you straight into the real world of the newest generation.”
Nancy Rue, best-selling author of tween and young adult fiction
“Solitary is a cautionary tale, startling and suspenseful. The characters are unforgettable, the prose stark, and the dialogue masterful. Travis Thrasher is a versatile storyteller who walks his readers through life’s uncertainties while leading them toward glimmers of hope.”
Eric Wilson, New York Times best-selling author of Valley of Bones
“Though pegged as suitable for teens and tweens, this one’s no more ‘young adult’ than The Hunger Games, the Harry Potter books, or the Twilight series. But instead of hype and hoopla, Thrasher generates authentic suspense and the feeling that something wicked this way comes. Superior entry in the genre of Christian horror and teenage angst.”
Kirkus Reviews, Solitary
Gravestone
“The saga of young Chris Buckley continues in the second volume of the Solitary Tales series. As in the first book, Thrasher adroitly mixes elements of horror and high school in equally terrifying measures. And thanks to Internet access, Chris can now receive super creepy emails. A solid, suspenseful follow-up to the mesmerizing debut.”
Kirkus Reviews, Gravestone
“If you enjoyed Lost, you’ll enjoy Gravestone and all that is Travis Thrasher’s Solitary Tales series. If you weren’t a fan of meandering through endless mazes of questions without answers, it might not be the ride for you. But still, packed full of endless plot twists, fascinating characters, and engaging dialogue, it’s easy to see how this book will enthrall audiences and keep them coming back to see what Thrasher has to throw at them next.”
Lori Twichell, FictionAddict.com
Temptation
“In the third volume of the Solitary Tales, the face of evil shows itself. At the book’s core is Chris’s escalating moral crisis (the titular ‘temptation’), well illustrated by a pricey, enticing gift from the very man he most deeply distrusts. So far, the three volumes have sustained an impressive level of suspense and artfulness; the last chapter should be no different. An engrossing, well-plotted third volume that whets the appetite for the series’ finale.”
Kirkus Reviews, Temptation
“Temptation is about a kid who reaches the end of himself—and rightfully so, given what we know of his story—and finds that it’s only then can he make the decision of who he is going to be. Thrasher writes in such a way that Chris’s journey becomes our own and we find ourselves sucked into the story and unable to escape … I wouldn’t want to actually be in Chris Buckley’s shoes, but being able to step into them through Thrasher’s art of story has been an entertaining and thought-provoking experience I won’t soon forget.”
Josh Olds, LifeIsStory.com
Hurt: A Novel (Solitary Tales Series) Page 38
