Synopsis
Five friends. One dog. One river carrying a secret.
When one of their friends goes missing, everything comes crashing down for the small group of childhood friends in the small town of Greenfield. Ethan takes it hard. Then he loses his dog, his only consolation.
Hoping to start anew, Ethan leaves Greenfield and moves to New York City. Far from the ghosts of his childhood and the river that gives and takes life. There he finds his one true love and builds a career as a bestselling author.
But how long will Ethan’s happiness last as doubts creep back into him and shatter his reality? And will his reconciliation with the past come at too great a price?
All rivers carry their secrets, but not every river keeps its secret forever.
In this heartwarming coming-of-age literary fiction with episodes of mystery and romance cross-genre story, Bernard Jan, the author of Look for Me Under the Rainbow and A World Without Color, speaks of true friendship, first darlings, and real loves. With gentle words, he describes our connection with nature and love for our four-legged friends who quickly become honorable members of our families but also tells about the dark secrets we carry in our hearts.
Excerpt
Ethan McCoy lay in the grass, stretched out to his full length. He flung his head back and unbuttoned his shirt, exposing his neck and the pale skin of his chest to the sun. His rolled-up sleeves were already drenched in sweat. Perspiration ran off his forehead, dripping onto the jacket folded under his head in a faux pillow.
Ethan removed the light-sensitive glasses from his nose and wiped the sweat off with a handkerchief. Inhaling deeply, he stared at the sun through unprotected eyes. The scent of Greenfield invaded his nostrils, conquering his throat, lungs, and heart. Inside him the memories were waking up, ignited by familiar feelings from the past.
In the strong light he felt a pain in his eyes, forcing him to close them. So that he might suffer too, he didn’t move to escape into the protective shadows. Determined to stay exposed to heat that reached him from the vast distance with such strength, he willed the sun to cause him pain. Wanted it to numb his senses and make him oblivious to any and all experiences—both pleasant and unpleasant. Most of all, he wanted to let go of the internal pain that refused to leave him alone after all these years.
He wished one pain could soothe another. The physical could annul the emotional. Even as he thought it, he knew it was in vain. He also accepted there was no cure for that pain. At best, it might be blunted some day and become just a painful reminder of his past.
But it would never disappear.
Because if it did, Greenfield would no longer exist. The artificially created grove beside the river in which he now rested, would vanish too. The same for Willy, then Jason, Derrick, and Sarah. Riv and . . . Susan. Could they evaporate, all of them? Did he have the right to ask that?
Or, what if it were possible for all of them to remain in their reality where they belonged? While he—Ethan—disappeared? Both could be possible only by some supernatural phenomenon. Something that could never happen.
Eventually moving into the shadows, he took off his shirt, shoes and socks and continued with his fantasy. Recalling. Or gathering up the strength and determination to do what he intended. Well, that’s what he planned on saying if someone asked him why he was there. So far, nobody had. Nobody knew. He arrived less than an hour ago. He hadn’t gone to the town, but had come straight to the river. To the place where everything had begun. Therefore, it only seemed fitting that it be where the beginning of the end transpired. The place where he would insert a period at the end of a life story. If he got lucky, he’d tear out a blank page and start anew. No memories. No past.
Without the bad memories, he could live in peace.
However, if he were honest with himself, that would be equally impossible to achieve.
In the still air, the river flowed quietly. Steadily. Innocently. Nothing about it had changed as if nothing happened. Effortlessly and seemingly without concern, the river continued to give life to all around it. But also taking it. . . .
Ethan watched the river and felt as though the river also observed him. Two silent witnesses, side by side again after so much time. Ethan had often wondered what this moment would be like. Would he find the river repelling, disgusting even, carried by the ravages of time and pressured by anxiety heavy as storm clouds? Or would it be seductive like it had been long ago when he was still a child?
Removing the rest of his clothes, he stood on the sand along the riverbank. The sunbeams warmed his naked body—a body weakened and slimmed by an avalanche of past events. He walked into the cold water up to his knees and shuddered. Almost icy. Or was he too hot after basking in the sun?
He barely hesitated before plunging in. He knew he wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation. Love between the river and him could not dissipate that easily. As he swam, he wondered if this love would ever dissolve. Would another separation be even harder than the last?
Not far away, a dog gave up chasing a butterfly. Pricking up his ears and staring toward the woods, he searched the spot where his guardian had lain only a moment ago. Except for a heap of clothes tossed on the grass, the spot was empty. Sniffing the air, the dog moved toward the river—slowly at first and then breaking into a run.
Reaching the riverbank, he looked at the water. He gazed at the other bank. No sign of life on the river. Only the nature, butterflies, and the twittering of the birds. He wagged his tail and whined. Then he barked. Soon, he ran up and down the riverbank not knowing what to do. His barking became louder and uneasy. He decided to jump and was already in the air when Ethan surfaced, with no way to avoid the collision.
The sound of the dog’s whine mingled with a yell of surprise filled the air before it was swallowed and disappeared in the splash of water. The waves rippled its calm surface.
Review
January River is a coming of age story that focuses on Ethan and Will McCoy. They are from a small town in Nebraska that is picturesque but not without its own share of tragedies. Ethan and Will are thick as thieves and have a few friends that do what young men do, have adventures and try to avoid too much trouble. As we watch them grow up, they leave the town and end up in New York City. The story at this point really focuses on Ethan and his life, meeting his wife, his career, and watching him mature in life despite some issues that hold him back.
Ethan has many facets to his character and he holds guilt close to his heart when he should be moving past events that are dragging him down. It takes the whole story for him to do that, but it is a journey he has to take to reach that conclusion. Thankfully, he has the love of his wife and his dog, River. He has his family too, especially his brother, but there are others that care about him and his well being.
This book spans several decades and it is interesting to see the world change around Ethan. It was a simpler time then and I think that binds the story together and will take the reader back in time and remember what life was like before technology.
There are a few passages I would like to share with you from the book. These are poignant and show the depth of the thought process of the author and his direction for the story.
“Life sometimes goes astray, into unusual streams, and then you must swim upstream if you don’t want to be dragged down the stream and fall over the waterfall.”
“He also knew he wasn’t ready for that yet, that he didn’t have courage. So he agreed to pay the price for it. The price of fear.”
“It is hard when we lose someone we loved. Very hard. We’ll all leave one day. Someone sooner, the other one later. but the end comes to all of us whether or not we like it.”
I enjoyed reading this book and watching the characters become more complex as they aged and coming to terms with events in their past. It doesn’t hurt that there are a couple of dogs in the book that help facilitate the story as they become a focal point for more than just the name of the river in their town, but for a location that has fond and tragic memories. The story has a variety of characters, both good and bad, that make this book complete. The story will also hit on a variety of emotions at various points and I found myself empathizing with different characters at different points.
This is a book worth reading and we give it 4 1/2 paws.
About the Author
“There is no greater joy than to share what you love with those who appreciate it.”—Bernard Jan
Bernard Jan is a novelist and a poet from Croatia, and he has released three books in English.
A World Without Color is a true story of the last three days he spent with his cat, while Look for Me Under the Rainbow in a unique and gentle way sheds light on the plight of harp seal pups in Canada. It warms the heart of all readers concerned about our planet and its treasures. January River is a heartwarming cross-genre novel about five friends, one dog, and one river carrying a secret.
His first two books were written at the beginning of the war in Croatia in 1991 amidst air alerts and illusory attempts when he wanted to believe and think that life is normal, that everything is all right with the world. He has published five novels, two novellas, and one book of poems in Croatian. Four of his books, including the book of poems, were translated into English.
His passion for music and entertainment resulted in his becoming a partner of Tom’s Music Place, which was established in 2009 by his friend Thomas Carley Jr., whose objective was to raise the respect of music.
His desire to help others came to the fore during his years advocating environmental protection and advocacy of animal rights. He did volunteering work for the refugees, because suffering does not know any borders. When it comes within your reach in your home, you simply have to do something. As part of his animal advocacy activities, it has been a great honor and pleasure to translate Eternal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust by Charles Patterson into Croatian.
About the Author
Dianne Freeman is the acclaimed author of the Countess of Harleigh Mystery series. She is an Agatha Award and Lefty Award finalist, as well as a nominee for the prestigious Mary Higgins Clark Award from Mystery Writers of America. She spent thirty years working in corporate accounting and finance and now writes full-time. Born and raised in Michigan, she and her husband now split their time between Michigan and Arizona.
Mary Lee Ashford is a lifelong bibliophile, and avid reader, and supporter of public libraries. In addition to writing the Sugar & Spice mystery series for 
Gabriel Valjan lives in Boston’s South End where he enjoys the local restaurants. When he isn’t appeasing Munchkin, his cat, with tuna, he documents the #dogsofsouthendboston on Instagram. His short stories have appeared online, in journals, and in several anthologies. Gabriel is the author of two series, Roma and Company Files, with Winter Goose Publishing. He was nominated for the Agatha Award for Best Historical Mystery for Company Files: 2. The Naming Game in 2020. Gabriel has been a finalist for the Fish Prize, shortlisted for the Bridport Prize, and received an Honorable Mention for the Nero Wolfe Black Orchid Novella Contest in 2018. Dirty Old Town, the first in the Shane Cleary series, was published in 2020 by Level Best Books. Gabriel attends crime fiction conferences, such as Bouchercon, Malice Domestic, and New England Crime Bake. He is a lifetime member of Sisters in Crime.
