Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of Sunsetter by Curtis LeBlanc
I enjoyed this novel, I had previously tried to read it and just couldn't get into the story, so I put it aside for a few weeks and when I picked it up again, I couldn't put it down. The narrative is a little different but it's fast paced, I never felt like there was a lull or too much repetitive information about the characters.
This novel is about a small town and the corruption in the local police department, how a couple of teens deal with this information that they unfortunately stumbled across, the loss of lives and the dealing with this loss
The story introduces us to Hannah and Dallan, they both find themselves at the Sunsetter, the fair that comes to town once a year. Hannah is going to meet Nick whom she hasn't sen in a year since the last time he was in town working the fair, Dallan is hanging out with his buddy Brooks taking in the fair, but looking to beer as well. Things don't end well for two of them.
I recommend this novel, it's the first I've read by this author and would certainly read more

It’s Sunsetter, the annual rodeo activities, where people drink to much and teens get high on drugs and the atmosphere. Brooks dies as a result of a bad pill, the same evening Nick dies after falling onto the ground - the police put both down as accidents, not to be investigated further, but Dallan and Hannah aren’t convinced and try to find out what is going on and why the cover up of each of their best friends. They reveal police corruption, and in their desire to seek justice will the truth come out, or will more people get hurt?
Twists and turns, some surprises - the backgrounds as to why people do what they do and then find they can’t back out, all they can see is going forwards, going deeper and losing themselves.
An engaging read, fairly fast paced once it gets going and rather thought provoking - people stuck in small town lives. But I was intrigued how it would end, and was surprised.

Small-town grunge at the Sunsetter fairgrounds where the rodeo isn't the only thing happening. The story kept changing without me caring too much about the characters.

Sunsetter by Curtis Leblanc
Rating: Starred Reviews

Summary: Back dropped in a dry dusty town during the annual festival named Sunsetter a series drug deals and possessions a young man dies of a overdose setting off a bleak chain of events. The discovery of who is doing the distribution will forever change the lives of the people involved.

Comments: I will say up front this is a top 10 novel of the year for me. Bleak, dark, and crime noir to the very core of writing. Some serious chops go into writing a novel this good. No good happens here. Don’t expect smiley faces. So great. Highly recommended.

I couldn’t finish it but the story line is solid. The only thing I have to say is I’m giving this a one star cause it needs a lot of work! There is no “” for the characters talking and that really bugs me, there’s also a lot of grammatical errors. I did go through as much as I could and I really think this could be a good book but it needs a lot more work on it. I loved the premise and was so excited but just go back through everything and fix it up.

Sunsetter is a slow burn work of fiction mixed with thriller like elements. It’s not a long one but it packs a punch to your gut.
The synopsis is …”two teens, Dallan and Hannah, attend the opening night of the infamous Sunsetter rodeo, they find themselves entangled in the suspicious deaths of their two closest loved ones. Driven by loss, rage, and their gut instincts for justice, they channel their grief and confusion into uncovering the criminal truth about their small town of Perron…”
I have to say, this is a good story. It enraged me while reading so I felt it must have struck a cord.
The writer LeBlanc is really talented. I think I read this was his debut novel?
One thing that was difficult to follow in the ARC was there were no quotations when someone was talking or names of who the speaker was. Not sure if that will change in the final copy due out in the spring of 2023 but it’s hard to follow a bit when you don’t know what is saying what to whom.
The story of the privileged and corrupt police as well as the poor and young is very fitting for our climate. I look forward to more from Mr LaBlanc in the future.

Interesting. Creepy and suspenseful, without having to use anything Supernatural.
The characters were well written.
A few parts were predictable, but didn't spoil the whole story

What an ending, I was not expecting that at all. I really enjoyed reading this book. Thank you for choosing me for an ARC.

This book has a lot of potential and I enjoyed it overall. I did not feel like this was a fast-paced thriller like the description markets the book as, but more of a slow burn as the abundant description of people/places outweighed the action. I was not particularly drawn to any of the characters until the end scenes with Hannah where her character really shined, which were my favorite part of the story. The concept of the Sunsetter mixed with the drug ring creates the foundation for a unique premise that did make this an enjoyable read.

I really appreciated that this book's villain wasn't a supernatural thing or something unexpected. It was a really well done story about real life problems that are still a problem today. The characters felt like real people and I was invested in what was happening to them. It was so well written and I enjoyed each page of it, it kept me invested in what was happening. Curtis LeBlanc has a great writing style and I can't wait to read more from him.

"Your boyfriend? Was he even your boyfriend? My best friend got killed by your so-called boyfriend—and you hardly even fucking knew the guy. He was gone all year with a goddamn carnival. Dallan’s voice is raised to a level she hadn’t imagined him capable of. She rises to meet him."