Prologue: Confessions Over Scotch

The novel opens with an old man, Preston Walker, reflecting on his life's darkest acts. He admits to murder—specifically, assassinations that changed history. His tone is matter-of-fact, almost casual, as he sips scotch and claims the first killing was the easiest. This prologue sets the stage for a story that will blur the lines between personal vengeance and historical events, hinting at a secret history behind some of America's most infamous tragedies.

Debts, Deals, and Deadlines

In Huntington Beach, California, Trent Oster, a young, disillusioned bookmaker, is struggling with hangovers, debts, and the monotony of his life. When Marcus Walker, a twitchy, unreliable client, offers to pay his gambling debt not with cash but with a story—his grandfather's confession to assassinations—Trent is skeptical but intrigued. The deal: travel to Mississippi, hear the old man's tale, and write his memoirs for a hefty sum. The promise of money and escape lures Trent into a journey that will upend his life.

The Offer: A Killer's Memoir

After a night of indecision, Trent is contacted by Preston's lawyer, who formalizes the offer: $10,000 up front, $10,000 on completion, and all rights to the story. Preston wants a raw, unknown writer, not a seasoned journalist. The catch: the story can only be published after Preston's death. Trent, with little to lose and a growing sense of adventure, accepts, setting in motion a cross-country odyssey.

California Drift: Lost and Numb

Before leaving, Trent's life is painted in shades of apathy and self-destruction. He drifts through days with his stoner roommates, a stray cat, and a string of meaningless hookups. The offer from Mississippi is both a lifeline and a chance to run from his own problems, including a vengeful bouncer and a sense of existential aimlessness. The chapter explores the malaise of post-college adulthood and the longing for purpose.

Mississippi Bound: New Worlds

Trent's arrival in Oxford, Mississippi, is a plunge into a world of antebellum mansions, thick accents, and old secrets. He's greeted by Matador, Preston's enigmatic partner, and introduced to the Walker family: the beautiful, guarded Corynne; her toddler son Tucker; and Delotta, the housekeeper who keeps the manor running. The Southern setting is lush, strange, and tinged with both charm and menace.

Walker Manor: Southern Intrigue

Trent settles into the guest house, learning the rhythms of Walker Manor. He's drawn to Corynne, whose beauty and sadness are magnetic, and senses the undercurrents of old wounds and unspoken histories. Preston, though physically frail, is mentally sharp and charismatic, eager to begin his confessions. The manor itself, with its haunted past and sprawling grounds, becomes a character—both sanctuary and prison.

Corynne's Charms and Ghosts

Corynne gives Trent a tour of Oxford, revealing her own complicated history and the town's deep ties to Faulkner and Southern myth. Their chemistry grows, but Corynne is haunted by abandonment and calls herself "damaged goods." The specter of her missing ex, Trigger, and the town's gossip add layers of tension. Trent's outsider status is both a liability and a source of fascination.

Preston's Story Begins

Preston's memoir unfolds: his family's entanglement with the Kennedys, the tragic death of his sister Audrey (allegedly at the hands of the Kennedys), and his father's suicide. These events ignite a lifelong vendetta. Preston's narrative is both personal and historical, blending fact and fiction as he claims responsibility for the deaths of Joe Kennedy Jr. and Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy, and hints at deeper involvement in American tragedies.

Family Ties, Kennedy Lies

As Preston's story deepens, the lines between victim and perpetrator blur. He describes his family's rise and fall, the corrosive effects of envy and betrayal, and the way personal pain can metastasize into historical violence. The Kennedy family, icons of American hope, are recast as villains in Preston's private mythology. Trent, both fascinated and horrified, becomes complicit as the chronicler of these confessions.

Tragedy and Vengeance Spark

Preston details his transformation from wounded youth to calculating killer. He learns the skills of sabotage and marksmanship, and his first acts of vengeance are chillingly methodical. The narrative explores the psychology of revenge, the allure of power, and the way trauma can justify atrocity. Preston's partnership with Matador, both romantic and criminal, adds complexity and pathos.

The Bookmaker's Life

Interwoven with Preston's confessions is Trent's own journey: his work as a bookmaker, his friendships, and his growing sense of belonging in Mississippi. The world of sports betting becomes a metaphor for risk, fate, and the illusion of control. As Trent is drawn deeper into the Walker family's orbit, he must confront his own values and the price of loyalty.

Football, Friendship, and Fields

The rhythms of Southern life—football games, barbecues, and late-night confessions—create a sense of home for Trent. He helps Matador and Jay (his best friend from California) revive the family's secret marijuana fields, forging a new, illicit enterprise. The lines between legal and illegal, right and wrong, blur further. Love blossoms between Trent and Corynne, offering hope amid the darkness.

The Kennedy Conspiracies

Preston's most explosive revelations come to light: his role (with Matador and others) in the assassinations of JFK and RFK. The narrative weaves together conspiracy theories, historical details, and personal motives. Oswald and Sirhan are recast as manipulated patsies, while Preston and Matador are the true architects of tragedy. The story is both a thriller and a meditation on the nature of evil, the unreliability of history, and the seductive power of narrative.

Love, Loss, and Legacy

As Preston's health declines, the family faces new challenges: his impending death, the question of inheritance, and the unresolved mysteries of the past. Trent and Corynne's relationship deepens, but is shadowed by grief and the burden of secrets. The family's criminal enterprises, both past and present, threaten to unravel. The question of what to do with Preston's story—publish it or bury it—becomes a central dilemma.

The Final Act in Dallas

Preston orchestrates a dramatic final act: a return to Dallas on the anniversary of JFK's assassination. In a public, symbolic gesture, he commits suicide at the very spot where Kennedy was killed, nearly taking his great-grandson with him. The act is both a confession and a plea for forgiveness, leaving the family—and Trent—with the weight of history and the challenge of moving forward.

Aftermath: Truths and Burdens

The aftermath is a whirlwind of grief, legal wrangling, and community mourning. Trent inherits not just Preston's story, but his secrets and responsibilities. A visit from Preston's estranged brother reveals that much of the family's history may be delusion or fabrication, raising questions about the nature of truth and the stories we tell ourselves. The family must decide whether to expose the past or let it lie.

New Beginnings, Old Shadows

Life at Walker Manor continues: weddings, births, and new ventures offer hope and renewal. Trent and Corynne find happiness together, but the past is never far away. A final letter from Matador reveals one last act of vengeance—the downing of JFK Jr.'s plane—tying up the last loose end in Preston's vendetta. The novel ends with Trent and Corynne on a Jamaican beach, choosing to keep the family's secrets buried, and embracing the possibility of a future unshackled from the sins of the past.

Characters

Trent Oster

Trent is a young Californian adrift in post-college malaise, numbing himself with gambling, drugs, and casual sex. His journey to Mississippi is both an escape and a search for meaning. As he becomes enmeshed in the Walker family's secrets, he is forced to confront his own values, loyalties, and the cost of complicity. Trent's arc is one of reluctant transformation: from passive observer to active participant, from outsider to family, from cynic to someone capable of love and responsibility.

Preston Walker

Preston is a Southern gentleman with a dark past and a terminal illness. His charm, intelligence, and storytelling prowess mask a soul consumed by grief, rage, and a thirst for vengeance. His confessions—real or imagined—recast American history as personal vendetta. Preston's relationship with Matador is both a source of strength and a complicating factor in his legacy. As death approaches, he seeks both absolution and an audience, using Trent as his final witness.

Corynne Walker

Corynne is Preston's granddaughter, a single mother marked by abandonment and self-doubt. Her intelligence, warmth, and vulnerability draw Trent in, but her past—especially the disappearance of her ex, Trigger—casts a long shadow. Corynne's journey is one of healing and self-acceptance, as she learns to trust, love, and claim her own legacy amid the chaos of her family's history.

Matador (Mattheus Orslavsky)

Matador is Preston's lifelong companion, both in love and crime. A former rodeo hand turned marijuana farmer, he is pragmatic, resourceful, and fiercely devoted. His role in the assassinations is both literal and symbolic: he is the steady hand behind Preston's rage. Matador's final act—avenging Preston by downing JFK Jr.'s plane—cements his place as both accomplice and tragic figure, forever bound to a legacy of violence.

Jay Dresden

Jay is Trent's childhood friend and partner in crime, both in California and Mississippi. His easygoing nature, loyalty, and street smarts make him indispensable. Jay's move to Mississippi, his relationship with Dayla, and the birth of their child represent the possibility of new beginnings and chosen family. Jay's presence grounds Trent and offers a counterpoint to the darkness of the Walker legacy.

Dayla Devin

Dayla is Jay's partner, a strong, independent woman with a tough exterior and a caring heart. Her arrival in Mississippi brings both color and stability to the household. Dayla's pregnancy and marriage to Jay symbolize hope and the potential for redemption, even amid chaos.

Delotta Carter

Delotta is the housekeeper and de facto mother figure at Walker Manor. Her history with the family spans generations, and her wisdom, warmth, and resilience keep the household together. Delotta's relationship with her son Darnell and her support for Corynne and Tucker highlight themes of chosen family and the enduring power of kindness.

Marcus Walker

Marcus is Corynne's brother, a drug-addicted, embittered figure who resents his family and squanders his opportunities. His presence is a constant source of tension, and his eventual departure is both a relief and a warning about the dangers of self-destruction and the corrosive effects of legacy.

Otto Bailey

Otto is Trent's former boss and partner in the bookmaking business. His tough love, street smarts, and eventual move to Mississippi (to open a bar with Trent) represent the possibility of reinvention and the enduring bonds of friendship.

Jimmy Ray Upshaw, Esq.

Jimmy Ray is Preston's lawyer, responsible for managing the family's affairs and facilitating Trent's contract. His presence underscores the legal and ethical ambiguities of the Walker legacy, and his role in the inheritance process highlights the intersection of law, money, and morality.

Plot Devices

Framing Device: The Memoir as Confession

The novel's central device is Preston's offer to Trent: write my story, get rich, and learn the truth behind history's greatest mysteries. This structure allows for a blend of first-person immediacy and retrospective analysis, blurring the lines between fact and fiction, memory and myth. The memoir becomes both a literal and metaphorical inheritance, forcing Trent (and the reader) to grapple with the burden of knowledge.

Unreliable Narrator and Layered Truths

Preston's confessions are detailed, persuasive, and possibly delusional. The arrival of his brother Phillip late in the novel casts doubt on everything, suggesting that much of what we've read may be fantasy or self-justification. This device invites the reader to question the nature of truth, the reliability of personal narrative, and the seductive power of storytelling.

Interwoven Timelines and Parallel Lives

The novel alternates between Preston's historical confessions and Trent's contemporary journey, drawing parallels between their struggles with loyalty, guilt, and the search for meaning. The use of sports betting, marijuana farming, and small-town life as counterpoints to the grand historical narrative grounds the story in lived experience and everyday choices.

Foreshadowing and Symbolism

The recurring imagery of weapons, burning fields, and haunted houses foreshadows both literal and metaphorical destruction. The family's marijuana operation, hidden in plain sight, mirrors the secrets at the heart of the Walker legacy. The final act—Preston's suicide at Dealey Plaza—serves as both culmination and erasure, a public confession that is also a final act of control.

The Burden of Inheritance

The question of what to do with Preston's story—publish it, bury it, or let it fester—drives the novel's final act. The inheritance of land, money, and secrets forces each character to confront their own values and the price of silence. The novel ends with the choice to keep the past buried, embracing the possibility of a future unshackled from old sins.

Analysis

The Bookmaker is a genre-blending novel that uses the conventions of crime, conspiracy, and coming-of-age fiction to explore deeper questions about history, family, and the nature of evil. At its core, the book is about the seductive power of narrative: how we use stories to make sense of pain, justify our actions, and shape our identities. By recasting the Kennedy assassinations as personal vengeance, Fraser invites us to question the official histories we inherit and the private myths we construct. The novel's greatest strength is its refusal to offer easy answers: truth is always provisional, legacy is always double-edged, and redemption is possible only when we choose to let go of the past. In a world obsessed with secrets and revelations, The Bookmaker suggests that sometimes the bravest act is to turn away from the darkness and build something new.

Last updated: July 7, 2025