Some books feel like they were made to be discovered on a school library shelf, shoved into a bag and finished in one sitting. Wyatt Moore’s second novel after 7 Days to Die is that kind of book. The Dyre Prophecy follows fourteen-year-old Kevin Greene, who returns to his small hometown of Dyre, Nevada after a year away following his parents’ separation. He expects to spend the weekend loading furniture. Instead the bank has padlocked the house, his mother drives to Reno, and Kevin gets one unplanned final night in the town he has missed badly. It is a book written for a YA audience, but it is a breezy, enjoyable read for adults too.
The first thing worth saying about the structure is that the whole story takes place over roughly 24 hours, spread out over only ten chapters. Everything happens in that window. Moore makes this feel natural rather than gimmicky, and it gives the novel a pleasing sense of structure throughout like you’re spending a day with old friends.
The plot proper kicks off when Kevin learns that local runaway Alex Freeman has been missing for over a week. He and his three friends, Jerry, Drew and Chase, promptly form the Alex Freeman Rescue Battalion, or A.F.R.B., and set off across Dyre to find him. Their search takes them to the town overpass, a gas station called Jackpot, the local rodeo and various other corners of Dyre. This mission will surely be chaotic and frequently derailed.
“Kevin, Jerry, Drew and Chase truly felt like they owned East Dyre. All throughout middle school they sailed through every vein of those streets and cul-de-sacs on their bikes. As soon as the bell rang, it was like an electro-magnet had activated and they were happily stuck together, riding until sunset.”
The four friends are the best thing in the book. Moore gives each of them a distinct personality and resists the temptation to make any of them simply a sterotype. Kevin is stubborn and sentimental. Jerry is carrying a secret that explains why he has been cold toward Kevin since his arrival. Drew, who was almost entirely homeschooled and housebound before Kevin essentially dragged him into the world, is loyal. Chase is enthusiastic, occasionally reckless, and proves when it matters to have good instincts.
Dialogue is another strong point. Together they talk exactly like boys who have known each other for years. Readers who love Stranger Things will feel at home here, though Dyre has no monsters. Just ordinary teenage trouble, which turns out to be more than enough. It also gave me a slight Stephen King quality; not the horror, but that specific feeling King does so well of small-town life and teenage friendship.
Moore is particularly good at capturing the teenage mind. There is a scene early on where Kevin crashes his bike headfirst into a fence because he was too busy thinking about his ex-girlfriend to watch where he was going. Jerry stops, laughs at him, and asks if he is still working on his sea legs. The author clearly remembers what it actually feels like to be fourteen and the banter there rather than what adults imagine it feels like.
The novel will likely resonate with anyone who has ever left a rural hometown behind, as it did for me. Kevin spends the night measuring the Dyre in front of him against the one in his memory. Moore also plants the story firmly in the 2000s without making a big deal of it. The references to iPod Videos and to the film (500) Days of Summer help give the novel a nostalgic quality, and make it feel like a book from a simpler time.
One of the book’s most funny quirks is its author’s notes, which appear as numbered footnotes throughout. When the novel calls the Black Bear Dyre’s “famous” restaurant, a note clarifies that “‘famous’ here means ‘only,’ and also ‘inside a small casino.'” When a character says levee and another does not know what that means, the footnote says simply: “Google it.” These touches give the novel a warm, self-aware personality and add some necessary humour.
If referring to Google is copyright infringement, then Bing it. And if that’s also copyright infringement, the author would sooner contend with Bing’s lawyers over Google’s. Considering that, the author officially declares that you should Bing it. And Bing yourself while you’re at it.
The heart of the story is of course the search for Alex Freeman, which builds to a tense and dramatic climax during a sudden catastrophic flood. This is the mystery that will keep readers turning pages, as well as the drama surrounding Angie and Jerry and wanting to see what happens to Kevin, who is a very likeable main character.
The Dyre Prophecy of the title is a local legend claiming that rain can be summoned if three conditions are met, and the way Moore weaves it through the story without ever over-explaining it is one of the most memorable aspects of the book. I definitely noticed the symbolism there too. There is also a hint of romance in the book, with Kevin’s ex-girlfriend Angie proving to be far more than a footnote in the story. She is tied to nearly every memory Kevin has of Dyre, and when the two finally sit down and talk honestly, it is one of the better scenes Moore has written.
Now getting to the downsides, it is worth saying clearly that this is a fun and relaxing read, but not exactly a thriller. Nobody should pick it up expecting The Hunger Games. The book is a perfect length overall, and can be read in a single sitting, but some chapters run longer than they need to. The dialogue is occasionally punctuated incorrectly, misplaced commas, full stops in the wrong spot, which is a common enough error but noticeable when it crops up. Neither issue, however, seriously damages the reading experience and most people will probably not notice.
Overall, The Dyre Prophecy is a short, funny, surprisingly moving novel about four friends on bikes in a small desert town, a missing boy, a local legend, and what it means to leave somewhere you love. It’s the kind of book that feels like one you’ve already read and cherished some time in the distant past. By the time Kevin says goodbye to his friends and gets back in his mother’s car, you will wish he didn’t have to.
Final Verdict: For fans of Jeff Zentner, Stand By Me and The Catcher in the Rye, or anyone nostalgic for their childhood, The Dyre Prophecy is a warm, funny and affecting book that more than delivers on its premise.
You can get your copy of The Dyre Prophecy or read for free on Kindle Unlimited here!
