This is the first book I've read by this author, who was previously unknown to me. I read it, really enjoyed it, but have no idea what to make of it, let alone what to say about it. The first few pages make you think you're delving into a mystery---bodies discovered in a gravel pit near a small town, local doctor called to the scene to see what he can see. Well, that's a mystery all right. But it's soon clear that solving it, or even investigating it, will not be what this book is about. What we get is a picture of the professional and domestic lives of Dr. Lamar Hale and his partner, Richard, who is a school teacher/administrator. The town of Willnot is full of "characters", just like every town I've ever lived in. Some peculiar things happen and remain unexplained, but accepted. That mass grave is just one of them. Life is peculiar. Dr. Hale grew up with a father who wrote fiction across all genres. Nearly everything could be a jumping-off place for a new story. He has a dream life that borders on psychosis, but except for needing the occasional "news blackout", he seems to function extremely well. He and Richard seem well matched; their relationship is as close to "normal" as any couple could wish for. I think he'll be OK. I'd trust him with my life. And I'll read more Sallis. ( )

This is my 3rd book by this author, and it was as enjoyable as the other two.
These books are far more about the characters than they are about much of a story. The author writes the characters, Extremely well. So far I really like this author.
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Willnot by James Sallis

In a wooded shallow grave outside of the town proper, there is a discovery of several bodies, and the local doctor, Lamar Hale, is called in to assist law enforcement…

While this beginning sets up expectations of a ‘usual’ sort of crime novel, the reader is soon expertly seduced away…

Hale is busy man (“the town’s all-purpose general practitioner, surgeon and town conscience”) and we-the-reader are soon contentedly engrossed in a story of Hale, his family, friends and the town of Willnot.

So…perhaps not for the die-hard mystery/crime reader who needs and expects a formula, this clever, intimate, immersive, ‘regional’ short novel is an excellent read for those who willingly follow the bread crumbs. ( )

I think I'm giving up on Sallis. He can write circles around most authors, but he seems to have given up on actual plots. Here we have lots of things going on, centering on a doctor, a mysterious man who has returned to town, a pit full of bodies, and so on and so on. Along the way, Sallis throws in quotes from lots of authors and the main character reminisces about his father, a science fiction author, and his encounters with Theodore Sturgeon, Robert A. Heinlein, and others. Scene by scene, there is interest here, but it doesn't add up to much in the end. No mysteries are solved. ( )

Un polar sans but, presque sans intrigue (au final) mais avec une sacrée ambiance. ( )