Not Just Right or Wrong: The Moral Fog of Frank F. Fiore’s Western Mystery

In most Westerns, there are good guys and bad guys.In Jonathan Smyth Cowboy Sleuth: The Case of the Screaming Tunnel, things aren’t that simple.

Frank F. Fiore doesn’t write black-and-white stories. He writes gray ones—murky, slow-burning mysteries where truth doesn’t always feel like justice, and right and wrong often depend on who’s telling the story.

At the center of it all is Jonathan Smyth, a man with a code—but no illusions.

A Town Willing to Believe Anything Except the Truth

The legend of the Screaming Tunnel is convenient.It explains everything.It demands nothing.

But when a body turns up, Smyth knows the legend isn’t just a myth—it’s a shield, protecting the guilty while everyone else hides behind fear and folklore.

As he digs deeper, Smyth uncovers:

• Families who don’t want to remember

• Officials who refuse to get involved

• Victims whose stories were never heard

And through it all, he has to decide how far he’s willing to go to bring the truth out into the open.

Justice Isn’t Always Clean

Jonathan Smyth isn’t out to be a hero.He’s out to be honest—even when the truth hurts more than the crime.

Frank F. Fiore writes Smyth as a man who knows:

• Justice takes time.

• It costs relationships.

• It sometimes leaves people worse off than before.

But he also knows that ignoring the truth never ends well.

📖 Read Smyth’s journey into moral uncertainty on Amazon

Why This Story Hits Hard

The most painful part of The Case of the Screaming Tunnel isn’t the murder.It’s realizing how many people were okay letting it go unsolved—because solving it meant confronting too much.

Smyth doesn’t blame them.But he doesn’t stop either.

Because he knows justice isn’t about feeling good.It’s about doing what others won’t—no matter how messy it gets.

Conclusion: Some Men Solve Crimes—Others Expose Entire Communities

Frank F. Fiore isn’t afraid to write characters who live in the in-between.Jonathan Smyth Cowboy Sleuth is about the moments that aren’t heroic or evil—they’re just hard. And real.

Because sometimes the most dangerous villain isn’t the one holding a weapon.It’s the entire town, nodding silently while the truth gets buried.

📚 Pick up the book and follow the man who refuses to stop, even when there’s no applause waiting at the end.🔗 Read The Case of the Screaming Tunnel on Amazon