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The Gray and Guilty Sea: An Oregon Coast Mystery (Garrison Gage Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Scott William Carter (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 19,015 ratings
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"Carter's writing is on target." - Publishers Weekly

A curmudgeon. An iconoclast. A loner. That's how people describe Garrison Gage, and that's when they're being charitable.

After his wife's brutal murder in New York, and Gage himself is beaten nearly to death, the hobbled private investigator retreats three thousand miles to the quaint coastal town of Barnacle Bluffs, Oregon. He spends the next five years in a convalescent stupor, content to bide his time filling out crossword puzzles and trying to forget that his wife's death is his fault. But all that changes when he discovers the body of a young woman washed up on the beach, and his conscience draws him back into his old occupation - forcing him to confront the demons of his own guilt before he can hope to solve the girl's murder.

"Irresistible for an old John D. MacDonald fan like me . . . Recommended." -- Brandywine Books

"The Gray and Guilty Sea is quite an enjoyable novel that engages a reader on multiple levels." -- Stimulated Outlet Book Reviews

"Carter's outstanding debut crime novel set on the Oregon coast and starring a misanthropic former detective is as much a fascinating character study as it is an original story." - Michael J. Totten, author of The Road to Fatima Gate
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  1. Book 1 of 8
    Garrison Gage Series
  2. Print length
    314 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    October 26, 2010
  6. File size
    1790 KB
  7. Page Flip
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  8. Word Wise
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From the Publisher

Garrison Gage Series
Garrison Gage Series
Garrison Gage Series Oregon Coast

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It was a shrewd marketing move ... to entitle his first mystery novel The Gray and Guilty Sea. It makes it nearly irresistible for an old John D. MacDonald fan like me . . . Recommended." - Brandywine Books
"The Gray and Guilty Sea is quite an enjoyable novel that engages a reader on multiple levels." - Stimulated Outlet Book Reviews

"Outstanding debut crime novel set on the Oregon coast and starring a misanthropic former detective ... as much a fascinating character study as it is an original story." - Michael J. Totten, author of Resurrection
"Scott William Carter makes it look easy." - Chizine.com

From the Author

Never miss a new Garrison Gage book: Sign up for the new release mailing list by going to this link (copy/paste into browser): swcarter.com/news

The Garrison Gage Mystery Series (in chronological order):
    • A Plunder By Pilgrims (short story prequel)
    • The Gray and Guilty Sea
    • A Desperate Place for Dying
    • The Lovely Wicked Rain
    • A Shroud of Tattered Sails
    • A Lighthouse for the Lonely Heart
    • Bury the Dead in Driftwood
    • A Deep and Deadly Undertow
    • A Cold and Shallow Shore

    Product details

    • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0049H92G8
    • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Flying Raven Press (October 26, 2010)
    • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 26, 2010
    • Language ‏ : ‎ English
    • File size ‏ : ‎ 1790 KB
    • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
    • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
    • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
    • Print length ‏ : ‎ 314 pages
    • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ B0BJ7VHG4N
    • Customer Reviews:
      4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 19,015 ratings

    About the authors

    Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
    Previous page
    1. Scott William Carter

      Scott William Carter

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      Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

      SCOTT WILLIAM CARTER’s first novel, The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys, was hailed by Publishers Weekly as a “touching and impressive debut” and won an Oregon Book Award. Since then, he has published many books, including the popular Garrison Gage mystery series set on the Oregon coast, as well as the provocative Myron Vale Investigations, about the private investigator in Portland, Oregon who works for both the living and the dead. He lives in Oregon with his wife and two children. Find out more about him at scottwilliamcarter.com.

      Sign up for his NEW RELEASE NEWSLETTER and be among the first to know when a new book is released (copy and paste into browser):

      swcarter.com/news

      See more on the author's page
    2. Jack Nolte

      Jack Nolte

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      Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

      JACK NOLTE was the original mystery and suspense pen name of award-winning writer Scott William Carter, who has now re-published those books under his own name. Critics raved that The Gray and Guilty Sea, the first book featuring the curmudgeonly Garrison Gage, was "irresistible" and "a fascinating character study." Under his own name, Carter's first novel, The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys, was hailed by Publishers Weekly as a "touching and impressive debut" and won the prestigious Oregon Book Award.

      Since then, he has published twelve novels and over fifty short stories, his fiction spanning a wide variety of genres and styles. To find more information about Scott's other work, go to swcarter.com.

      See more on the author's page
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    Customer reviews

    4.3 out of 5 stars
    4.3 out of 5
    19,015 global ratings
    Great Thriller ! Worth reading , well written !
    4 Stars
    Great Thriller ! Worth reading , well written !
    Good & thrilling story , I enjoyed it , worth reading for sure !
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    Top reviews from the United States

    Larry C
    5.0 out of 5 stars Do yourself a favor and give this book a try. I found it well worth it.
    Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Wow, I stumbled on this book while searching Kindle listings for free books. I've found several great authors this way and I found another one in Scott William Carter. I chose this book because it is a part of a series set in the Oregon Coast region - an area I know fairly well and love. I didn't read any reviews and started reading with no preconceived notions about the book.

    What I found was incredibly good writing, superb characterization, wonderful settings, a great story/mystery and excellent editing (I'm a crazed reader when editing isn't done well). The main character, Garrison Gage, is a hermit from New York who has had an amazing past career as a private investigator. He moved to the Oregon coast to escape some demons in his recent past. After a time living in a small fictional town near real ones he stumbles on the body of a girl who washed up onto the beach. His investigative skills kicked in and he started a journey he wasn't sure he was ready for. Through the journey, we meet his few friends and he discovers that he can still love...both romantically and personally. The supporting characters are wonderful and through them, Gage discovers himself again and also helps find the identity of the dead girl as well as the cause of her death.
    Gage is a tragic hero in this book. He suffers physically and mentally while pursuing the girl's killers. The tale is believable and well-written. The author has splendidly used the ocean and the late winter/early spring Oregon coast weather to frame the entire work. I look forward to reading more of Carter's work and getting to know Gage even better.
    35 people found this helpful
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    Diane Challenor
    4.0 out of 5 stars Really enjoyed the story. Looking forward to more.
    Reviewed in the United States on May 27, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    I discovered the Garrison Gage Mystery series through a book blogger whose name, unfortunately, escapes me. I keep reminding myself to take note of the source of my discoveries, but there are so many, I’m discouraged by the time leakage. I must become more disciplined because book bloggers are so generous with their information that the least I can do is give them credit for leading the way.

    The first book in Scott William Carter’s Garrison Gage Mystery series, The Gray and Guilty Sea, started off with the author using the pseudonym of Jack Nolte, and the series was collectively called the Oregon Coast Mystery. He had a re-think about his pseudonym and the collective title of the series after his first book gave him the pleasant surprise of gaining popularity, and because of the fast and radical changes happening within the publishing industry. He decided to re-publish his Garrison Gage books under his “real” name, Scott William Carter and he also re-named the collective title of the series, to the more appropriate title of the “Garrison Gage Mysteries”. This pleased me so much that I re-purchased the book so I could have the correct book cover and the more up-to-date edition. Scott explains his reason for these changes, in an interesting blog post, on his website www.scottwilliamcarter.com .

    When I started reading The Gray and Guilty Sea recently, I realised that I’d read this book a few months ago. I must have skimmed it, and not given it the focus it deserved. I usually have five books on the go, so if I overwhelm myself with choice, I just “clear the decks”. When I clear the decks, many a good book gets shelved and sometimes forgotten. Anyway, I picked it up again recently, I couldn’t recall “who done it”, so I read it again, and I’m very glad I did. It’s really good.

    I could summarise the book for you here, but I think, particularly with crime novels, a summary always rips the heart and soul out of a good story. If you summarise what it’s about, it ends up sounding like a million other crime novels. I read lots of them. Mysteries, not thrillers. My favourite series, and there are many, could all be made to sound the same, but they’re not. I enjoy hours and hours of reading. Reading crime novels gives me great pleasure because the mystery drives my fascination. So no, I’ll not summarise the Garrison Gage Mysteries for you, except to say the stories are set on the Oregon Coast of the USA. The writing is good, the characters are interesting and their experiences are well drawn. The books are plot driven at a speed where you have time to take in the scenery and the weather, there’s time to get to know the characters and the consequences of their actions. There is a degree of violence and sex but it’s not too graphic nor over indulged. The core is the mystery of what, why and how and that’s what I like.

    I look forward to the next two in the series. There are three books so far, as at May 2015, being: A Desperate Place for Dying and The lovely Wicked Rain. . Enjoy!

    Originally written as a blog post on my blog at www.artuccino.com
    One person found this helpful
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    JimF
    5.0 out of 5 stars A well written book
    Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    I enjoyed the story quite a bit. The writing style was relaxed and enjoyable. I will definitely read more from this author.
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    Patricia Storm
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great characters
    Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Slow building of facts, relationships deepen in this compelling mystery. I could feel the Small town coastal life on every page. Looking forward to next book in the series.
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    Kevin Bracken
    3.0 out of 5 stars Bad ending.
    Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Loved the book all they way until the end. Should have ended without the action that was unbelievable for a cripple. Spoiler 📢⚠️(having a tranquilizer gun? And a knife throwing expert without a throwing knife? Disappointing)
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    Top reviews from other countries

    Mark P.
    5.0 out of 5 stars Murder mystery with plenty of mystery.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 25, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    Well written. The words do all the work which is always the sign of a good writer. The characters and locations come to life with gentle layers upon layers of detail. A perfect e read. Read this on my phone and got to the end which doesn't happen all that often. Very good 👍
    Report
    נוד מדבר בודד
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Gray and Guilty Sea: An Oregon Coast Mystery (Garrison Gage Series Book 1
    Reviewed in Germany on November 6, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    very good
    Report
    Pace carreau
    5.0 out of 5 stars Gage
    Reviewed in Canada on November 24, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Nice enjoyable full of detail and surprise twists. Garrison is an interesting character and pretty smart. Worth the purchase and I am going to get the rest of the series .
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    Abhinav
    5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully crafted mystery
    Reviewed in India on July 11, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Very well written whodunit which describes the setting very well and keeps you guessing till the end. Really loved reading this.
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    Joanne Ford
    4.0 out of 5 stars A really good read!
    Reviewed in Australia on October 6, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    I really enjoyed this book plenty of twists and turns and a very engrossing read!
    Report
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