“Offutt’s storytelling captures the authentic spirit of Southern rural communities. There is colloquial language. There’s a little gossip. There’s atmosphere, too. Code of the Hills is consuming, both as a thriller and as a story about Southern life and family.”—Bradley Sides, Chapter 16
“Offutt once again demonstrates his command of the detective form, delivering well-plotted satisfactions that still spurn cliché. His prose expertly conveys a blend of child-like wonder at the ragged beauties of the Appalachian hills with deep pessimism over humanity’s awful capacities. Less about elaborate conspiracies or a fathomless underworld, Code of the Hills puts the naïve intimacies, pathetic pettiness, and moral dilemmas of its subjects under the microscope. The conclusion is quiet but startling, with an emotional weight belying its calm surface.”—Walker Minot, Shelf Awareness
“The characters are folks you can identify with, the style is honest and captivating, and the stories are always amazing.”—Vishwesh Bhatt, Garden & Gun
“Thought-provoking . . . The story combines action and humor in just the right proportions . . . The dialogue of the South and the attitudes on the Detroit streets all ring true in this tightly written novel. The contrast between the two worlds Mick must inhabit is well-drawn . . . This relatively short novel will . . . entertain the reader through to the end.”—Deadly Pleasures
“Excellent Kentucky noir—Offutt’s third Mick Hardin novel is the best yet . . . Offutt once again beautifully captures both the roughness and the generosity of the inhabitants of Rocksalt, both the menace and the beauty of the eastern Kentucky landscape. The dialogue is a highlight, consistently sharp, quick, and funny; in that, Offutt is rapidly becoming a rural-noir rival to greats like Elmore Leonard . . . Another love letter to Appalachia with a high body count. Another bloody delight.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review
“In Offutt’s third Hardin title . . . Mick continues to be a wonderful character—strong, resilient, compassionate—and here we see him very much in family-man mode, a man who is deeply concerned for his sister but also a man who values a close-knit community. Offutt is from Kentucky and often writes about it . . . Rocksalt is as much a character as its people, and the author writes about them all with the kind of intimacy and perceptiveness that comes from a long and ardently observant association. More Mick Hardin stories, please.”—Booklist
“The writing in the follow-up to Shifty’s Boys is as beautifully descriptive of the scenes in Detroit as in the Kentucky hills. Offutt’s Mick Hardin novels are powerful books that feature characters with questionable ethics.”—Lesa Holstine, Library Journal, starred review
“Kentucky noir, with a twist. Or two or three. Offutt delivers a dirty, dangerous, suspenseful, page-turning tale that takes us from the vengeful Kentucky hill country to the gun-ridden streets of Detroit and back again. He plays with the conventions of the genre as well by making character and storytelling higher priorities than plot . . . each chapter functions as a deftly written short story. It’s a pleasure to read . . . You have a treat in store.”—Reckon Review
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