Auras

"Auras is a timeless and deeply moving collection of short fiction. In these poignant stories, Kevin Fitton illuminates the mysterious chambers of the human heart. Fitton renders his characters with such care and delicate craftsmanship that readers will be reminded of Andre Dubus and John Cheever. These are stories of grief and desire, of melancholy and atonement, and they leave no doubt that even in our darkest moments, our lives are still emanating a rare and hopeful light."

-Bret A. Johnston, internationally best-selling author of Remember Me Like This

"These stories, these joyful bursts of humanity, are the tonic we need, each story a thoughtful, utterly surprising voice in our ear conjuring new worlds; they snap into focus. Fitton writes with a jeweler's precision, yet unspools stories with effortless grace about love, understanding, compassion, confusion; his scope and heart are enormous. Here's how I felt: that I was sitting on a porch at perfect sunset and the stories had beckoned to step off into the night grass, into mystery, other lives. If you love Marilynne Robinson or Charles Baxter, Auras is your book."

- Doug Stanton, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of Horse Soldiers, In Harm's Way, 12 Strong

The beautifully crafted stories of Kevin Fitton's Auras explore the fathomless intimate terrain of human relationships, seeking at every turn to uncover and understand the ways in which we try so desperately, and so often fail, to communicate-or even to know-what's in our own hearts. Fitton's characters are like family: beloved in all their flawed, broken, humbled, and endlessly striving humanity.

-Thisbe Nissen, author of How Other People Make Love, Our Lady of the Prairie, and Osprey Island

"Kevin Fitton's characters-pastors, parents, a math teacher who is also a mom and a thief, a steamboat ferryman-are always aspiring to do better, and much of the pleasure of reading his work is in rooting for their better angels and wondering when and where they'll succeed. Too wise a writer to believe in easy happy endings, Fitton is nonetheless attuned to the possibility of transformation. The pulse of human warmth running through these stories pulls the reader on from one to the next. "

- Rachel Pastan, author of In the Field

"Readers, beware. The stories in Kevin Fitton's powerful new collection, Auras, contain strong, sometimes hurtful emotions. Faced with loss and disappointment, characters lash out, showing us the extremes that love will drive us to. And in the end, those characters are left with a greater, sometimes rueful, understanding of their own hearts-as we readers, who recognize ourselves in them, will understand our own. These are wise, passionate stories that will not easily be forgotten."

- Erin Mcgraw, author of the New York Times Notable Book, Lies of the Saints

"The nuanced, flawed, and beautiful characters in this collection feel as if they have been cut from real life. Scenes from the book have been marinating in my imagination since my first read. Kevin Fitton exhibits an acute understanding of the longings, loves, and regrets that make each of us human. It's a must-read!"

- Erin Wasinger, author of A Year of Small Things

"Kevin Fitton's Auras is an elegant and patient meditation on how we persist in the face of loss and separation. Each story examines with precise detail our faults, limitations, and sorrow, but always well-balanced with notes of humor, music, and glory. Fitton is a born storyteller, and Auras is a wise and lasting debut."

-Keith Lesmeister, author of the story collection We Could Have Been Happy Here