Boot Tracks is a commanding tale of a man and a woman struggling against a destiny they cannot control, told in Matthew F. Jones' characteristically taut, economic style. An assassination gone terribly wrong; a couple searching for one last chance to find a safe place in a hostile world. With these elements Jones weaves a harrowing tale of suspense, violence and compassion.

Charlie Rankin has recently been released from prison, but prison has not released its grip on him. He owes his life to "The Buddha," who has given him a job to do on the outside: he must kill a man, a man who has done him no harm, a man he has never met. Along the road to this brutal encounter, Rankin meets Florence, who may be an angel in disguise or simply a lonely ex porn star seeking salvation. Together they careen towards their fate, taking the reader along for the ride.

"Brilliantly chilling. A nightmare thriller with the power to haunt." - Kirkus Reviews *Starred Review

"Jones is a rare stylist - readers looking for an intense, affecting experience shouldn't miss this one." - Peter Handel, Pages Magazine

"An artful novel enlivened by some of the best low-life dialogue this side of Elmore Leonard." - Patrick Andersen, The Washington Post

"Superlatives have been sapped of their meaning by overzealous critics, and somehow it sounds fake to say that a book is one of the "best things" you've "read all year." It's just that, sometimes {as in the case of Matthew F. Jones's "Boot Tracks"} that happens to be true. I haven't read something that made me empathize with a bad guy this intensely since I read "In Cold Blood" in high school." - Katie Haegele, The Philadelphia Inquirer

"The sense of horrible inevitability is almost overpowering here. If only Jean-Pierre Melville (Bob le Flambeur) were still alive to make the movie version." - Bill Ott, Booklist

"'Boot Tracks, by Matthew F. Jones, is a stunning crime novel - and one you won't soon forget." - Guy Savage, Mostly Fiction Book Reviews