THE BELLWETHER

This novel centers around a young man lost in the foster care system and assigned to some rather interesting characters over the years after the departure of his father and the mental decline of his mother. Now considered a poor, foster child coming from the wrong side of the tracks, his desperate need to return to the upper-class atmosphere of his home life drives the protagonist to make some rather unique decisions in his pursuit of normalcy.

Janice Deaner is the author of three previously published novels and has received some impressive reviews over the years.

For her debut WHERE BLUE BEGINS Kirkus pegged her as a "writer to watch," while PW said that the mystery she presented was written in "graceful prose; her narrative possesses a cinematic momentum" with "real commercial potential."

Her second novel THE BODY SPOKEN was described as "oddly compelling" by Kirkus and possessing a narrative that was "lyrically written" by Publishers Weekly.

Her last novel, NOTES ON EXTINCTION, received a Booklist Starred Review stating that "Deaner's mesmerizing tale of loss and recovery explores the eroticism of pain with unflinching precision and provocative insight that is almost on par with Somerset Maugham, Elizabeth Bowen, and Michael Ondaatje," while Library Journal claimed that it was "complex yet intriguing" followed by "good storytelling with sometimes unexpected phrases that makes one pause and think." Kirkus even agreed by acknowledging that it was a "smart, well-composed study of the perilous nature of survival."