the forsaken... by Chad V. Broughman

In his short story collection the forsaken… Chad Broughman explores the complexities of the human condition and how relationships can shape and haunt us for the rest of days. The tales are threaded together by the characters’ common ground of abandonment, each battling against his/her reality with dignity and fortitude, though not always emerging victorious.

"Chad Broughman writes about what lies beneath. He tells stories of simple people with complicated secrets, brutality masked by beauty. He reels you in with mesmerizing prose and lyrical pacing, then hacks down to the bare bone. I’ve had the pleasure of being Chad’s writing coach, but now I’m just a fan. Soon, there will be a lot of us."

-Susan Donovan, New York Times best-selling author and writing coach

"Chad Broughman's stories thicken as they go. Each scene builds slowly and precisely from the previous. Each moment matters. Each word serves. In this sense, Broughman is a master of the craft. This is clean and perfectly tuned storytelling. But there's something else going on here. These stories slip into quiet places: dark corners of sorrow, hope, guilt, and a range of strange emotions that may not yet have a name. As I read Broughman's fiction, I am left trying to identify the weird creature inhabiting my heart and head. In short, these stories do what all great art does: make us grapple, wonder, and yearn for more."

-John Mauk, author of Field Notes for the Earthbound (Black Lawrence Press)

"Chad Broughman’s stories are stark and beautiful, timeless and timely, rounded with subtle shifts and quiet surprises.”

-Scott O’Connor, author of A Perfect Universe (Simon & Schuster)