Wilderness House Literary Review publishes review of Shadows of the Seen

 I got a nice review from WHLR where, for years, I used to be their fiction editor, so the review really is by a friend of the family. 

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Wilderness House Literary Review 20/2  

Shadows of the Seen by Timothy Gager 

ISBN 9781965784099 

Pierian Springs Press 

Review by a friend of the family 

Haunting, Riveting, and Relentlessly Honest: A Novel That Holds a Mirror to America 

Shadows of the Seen by Timothy Gager is a provocative and unflinching novel that dives deep into the fractured psyche of modern America, where personal trauma, political ambition, and gun violence collide in shocking and deeply human ways. 

The novel unfolds through a series of interconnected narratives—Candace, a rising Republican star with a carefully hidden past; Peter, her volatile former lover scarred by neglect and rage; Lucky, a man grasping for redemption; and Bobby-Joe, the clean-cut poster boy of conservative America. Gager skillfully explores how their lives twist together against a backdrop of political doublespeak, performative morality, and the devastating reality of gun culture. 

From the very first chapter, Gager’s voice is raw and unapologetic. His descriptions of violence and emotional despair don’t flinch—they cut. In particular, the prologue (“They Do Not Ring Out”) is a masterclass in immediacy and psychological detail, capturing the chaos and dissociation of a mass shooting with terrifying clarity. 

Candace’s journey—from a manipulated teen to a calculating political figure—is particularly compelling. Gager doesn’t paint her as simply hypocritical or villainous; rather, she’s deeply human, caught between ambition and suppressed trauma. Her ascent through political ranks, bolstered by a marriage of convenience and NRA backing, offers biting commentary on how “values” are twisted into strategy. 

The novel isn’t just about gun violence—it’s about what America chooses to see and what it insists on hiding. Gager skewers both ends of the political spectrum with equal precision, but reserves his sharpest critique for a society that treats mass shootings as background noise and politicians as products of marketing rather than moral conviction. 

Despite the heavy themes, Shadows of the Seen is compulsively readable. The pacing is brisk, the dialogue razor-sharp, and the structure—told through shifting points of view—keeps the emotional stakes high. 

If you’re looking for a novel that dares to confront the darkest corners of contemporary American life, this book delivers. It’s not comfortable. It’s not easy. But it’s necessary. Shadows of the Seen should be required reading—an unsettling parable of our times.