In the lush literary tradition of such acclaimed Southern writers as Flannery O'Connor and Katherine Ann Porter, Nel Rand pens an extraordinary tale of one woman's search to uncover a past full of haunting family secrets.

Thirty-one year-old Ellie Moon goes on a three-week road trip with her estranged father, Tiny, conman and famous gambler. They follow the Mississippi River from St. Louis down to New Orleans, while being chased by a crazed Kentucky sheriff hell-bent on revenge on Tiny. Amidst poker games, an eating contest, a near drowning in the Mississippi River, and a Voodoo ceremony, Ellie retrieves memories from childhood that connect her dark past with the present. She learns that in order to forgive she must first remember.

“A compelling story told by natural storyteller. Author, Nel Rand, takes the reader on a gripping, haunting, and at times painfully rich voyage of self discovery in MISSISSIPPI FLYWAY. She peopled her story with characters that leap off the page and her prose has an opulent nuance that places the readers firmly in the scenes. Her evocative descriptive passages are excellent and serve to set the stage. This complex and emotional novel is beautifully published; with an eye-catching cover photograph and appealing covers. Rand’s deft characterization, gift for natural dialogue and compelling storyline will linger with the reader long after the final page.
MISSISSIPPI FLYWAY is a tremendous story from a talented new comer.
Judge's comment from WRITER”S DIGEST, 15th Annual International Self-Published Book Awards.

"Nel Rand's soaring prose transports the reader over time and space like the birds of her Mississippi Flyway. With a voice that stirs echoes of the river itself, Rand weaves a flowing tale of hope, self-discovery, and forgiveness. This is one 'road-trip' you can't afford to miss."
S.W. Capps, author of Salmon Run

"Mississippi Flyway is a powerful work from first-time novelist Nel Rand. Like the innocent Huck Finn who rafts down the same river, learning as he goes, Ellie makes her own journey, meeting an assortment of unforgettable characters. The river carries many secrets and will divulge them only to the deserving. Readers who make and complete this journey with Ellie will find themselves similarly rewarded."
George Evans, author of A Rose on Gallows Hill, Chastity Hoar, Georgy Porgy.

"Rand has the masterful ability to create suspense through poetic description of the Mississippi basin."
Andres Berger-Kiss, author of The Sharpener and Other Stories, Children of the Dawn.

"The author writes with care and a kind of visionary ease. For anyone who has ever felt a disconnect with herself or her past this is necessary reading."
Elizabeth Bunker, filmmaker, author of the documentaries Goose Hollow, Carie.

"The author's style, rich with unforced detail, expertly conjures very different places…and she crafts characters with the same meticulous detail.
Rand's narrative has a captivating momentum, and she offers countless subtle appealing touches.
An absorbing well-written novel about coming to terms with personal demons."
Kirkus Discoveries

Read an Interview with Nel Rand in Reader Views

Biography

Nel at home in her Oregon woods