Award-Winning Author Jenni Wiltz Releases New Novel with Decanter Press

PILOT HILL, Calif. - Jan. 26, 2015 - PRLog -- The latest release from award-winning author Jenni Wiltz takes readers to a place she never imagined—her hometown. Published by Decanter Press, The Red Road features 16-year-old Emma West, an honor student who has to choose between the future her family wants for her...or the chance to avenge her father’s near murder by a gang member.

Wiltz describes the story as one she never wanted to tell. “My dad used to suggest that I write about Salinas,” she says, referring to her hometown on California’s central coast. “I refused every time. I didn’t know what I wanted to say.”

While earning a graduate degree in creative writing from Sacramento State, Wiltz read “A Father’s Story” by Andre Dubus. It describes the lengths a father went to in order to protect his daughter. “I wanted to look at the flip side of that story,” Wiltz says. “How far would a daughter go to protect her father? Right away, I knew this was going to be my Salinas story, that it would involve gang violence and a terrible choice for my heroine. What I didn’t know was how many real-life details I’d include or how hard it would be to write.”

In the novel, fictional Malo Verde acts as a stand-in for Salinas. Emma’s unemployed father gets a job as a census worker. Mistaken for a cop on Malo Verde’s dangerous east side, Roger West is beaten and left for dead by a fearful gang member. Without a witness, the police can’t help. Her mother and her friends want her to move on, but Emma can’t. She’s tormented by the idea that a crime against a good man has gone unpunished. The novel follows Emma as she tries to decide what means more to her—the future or her family.

“I hope readers relate to Emma and her family,” Wiltz says. “I also hope the story shows how important it is for families to spend time together. Even the kids who seem the most together, like Emma, really need someone to talk to.”

The Red Road is the first release from Decanter Press. It is available in digital and paperback formats from major retailers including Amazon, Kobo, BarnesandNoble.com, and Google Play. Visit http://jenniwiltz.com/project/the-red-road/ for more information, including buy links, book trailer, and sample chapters.

About the Author

Jenni Wiltz has won national writing awards for creative nonfiction and romantic suspense, including a 2011 Romance Writers of America Kiss of Death Chapter’s Daphne du Maurier Award. Her short fiction has appeared in The Portland Review, Gargoyle, and the Sacramento News & Review. She holds bachelor’s degrees in English and history from UC Davis, and a Master’s in Creative Writing from Sacramento State. Visit http://jenniwiltz.com/about for her media kits, publications, and awards.

About Decanter Press

Decanter Press publishes fiction and non-fiction. Founded in 2014, it is headquartered in Pilot Hill, California. Visit http://decanterpress.com for more information.