Reckoning Up Black Cat Hallow

Matthew F. Jones

Regal House Publishing

January 2026

Reckoning Up Black Cat Hallow by Matthew F. Jones has Jack Sprinks making a split-second decision that will shatter his life. Spinks stops to help a young woman walking alone down a back country road. After getting into his truck the mysterious young woman grabs the steering wheel and forces the truck off the road, sending it plunging over a cliff and into the woods. What begins as a simple act of kindness spirals into a nightmare as Jack finds himself trapped in a dark and perilous world, hunted by the woman’s cryptic pursuers. As he fights for survival, Jack’s journey uncovers a haunting connection to his own past—one that may hold the key to unraveling the mystery and escaping the deadly forces closing in on him. Jack must confront a truth he’s long buried that has him questioning who, or what, he can truly trust.

Elise Coopoer: Idea for the story?

Matthew F. Jones: It came from an image as most of my stories.  I was riding my bike in upstate New York on a hallow road and got a flat tire in the dark.  I carried my bike down and saw these headlights coming at me.  The next day when I sat down to write, that image came back to me. I wrote a story where the main character is experiencing the last four years in one night. The book is written on how he perceives things. 

EC: How would you describe Jack?

MFJ: I wanted to write from his point of view only. A troubled guy with a traumatized mind.  He is not sure if he is experiencing hallucinations or reality. The reader is not sure either.  He is a complicated guy with had traumatic experiences while serving in Afghanistan, and has lost his wife and daughter.  Clearly, he is psychologically unbalanced. At times he reacts explosively to challenges. He wants to do the right thing and I think he has a good heart. He suffers flashbacks which he has not learned how to deal with. 

EC: What about his military career?

MFJ: There is a parallel story with what he experienced in the current night and what happened while he served in Afghanistan. The solider fell into a very deep open well where he tries to rescue. 

EC: Does he have demons?

MFJ: He has anger and is grieving for how he lost those close to him that he has not dealt with. He is dealing with these internal demons of grief and loss at the same time he has these human demons who are after this girl he is trying to save.

EC: What should readers get out of the book?

MFJ: All of my books are intense and pulse pounding. Readers should not read this story quickly. I do not want people to just read the book, but to experience it.  To do that they have to slow down to understand every word means something. Everything will come together at the end.

THANK YOU!!

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