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ACROSS THE ENDLESS NIGHT

$24.95

In this moving sequel to Letting the House Go, Robert Crooke returns to Richard Morris at the far end of his life. It is 2021, six years after the death of his ex-wife Irene, whose final counsel still guides him. Aging and increasingly fragile, Richard has devoted himself to the tangled, multi-generational family they created together. Surrounded by the unguarded love of his children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews, he is astonished by their generosity of spirit and by the future they imagine for themselves—one that feels both fragile and radiant amid a nation divided. As his health wanes and the world grows more uncertain, Richard reckons with memory, loss, and the limits of time. Familiar readers will recognize his once fierce self-absorption, now softened by hard-won humility. While revisiting the vivid Long Island setting and beloved cast of its predecessor, Across the Endless Night stands fully on its own as a resonant meditation on family, identity, and what we dare to hope will endure.

In this moving sequel to Letting the House Go, Robert Crooke returns to Richard Morris at the far end of his life. It is 2021, six years after the death of his ex-wife Irene, whose final counsel still guides him. Aging and increasingly fragile, Richard has devoted himself to the tangled, multi-generational family they created together. Surrounded by the unguarded love of his children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews, he is astonished by their generosity of spirit and by the future they imagine for themselves—one that feels both fragile and radiant amid a nation divided. As his health wanes and the world grows more uncertain, Richard reckons with memory, loss, and the limits of time. Familiar readers will recognize his once fierce self-absorption, now softened by hard-won humility. While revisiting the vivid Long Island setting and beloved cast of its predecessor, Across the Endless Night stands fully on its own as a resonant meditation on family, identity, and what we dare to hope will endure.

Praise for ACROSS THE ENDLESS NIGHT

Six years after the events of Letting the House Go, Richard Morris has grown into a man cherished by his family. An acclaimed novelist, he is using his wealth and fame to do good in his community, spearheading an effort to turn his boyhood home into a writer's retreat center. But ghosts linger. Facing health problems, bringing fresh flowers each week to his former wife's gravesite, and living in her home, he wonders "am I little more than an unexpected guest, a troubling memory?" This novel provides the answer. Across the Endless Night is that rare thing--a literary novel that moves. Tensions, dilemmas and dynamic action join shimmering settings of the North Fork of Long Island and beautifully crafted sentences. Dialogue illuminates character and provides welcome flashes of often self-deprecating humor. From scenes of enjoying a two-year-old's sorting game, to uncovering family secrets, from the explosive effects of PTSD on a veteran’s loved ones, to an academic discussion of art versus commerce, author Crooke keeps us engaged with his multi-generational cast of characters. Throughout Across the Endless Night this reader felt dropped into a life, not a novel.

—Eileen Charbonneau, author of Seven Aprils

In Across the Endless Night -- Robert Crooke’s perfect sequel to Letting the House Go -- successful novelist Richard Morris has much to be grateful for. Now in his mid-seventies, and taking a few health issues in stride, he is an active participant in the lives of his extended family, offering help when he can, advice, money, even the sacrifice of personal safety when a son-in-law goes off the rails. Through this charming, perfectly balanced, and elegant novel, runs the thread of Richard’s grief over the loss of his ex-wife six years earlier and a sister decades before that. Featuring a rich cast of characters, and the ups and downs of a busy daily life, the central question put to readers is this: What does it mean to anticipate mortality with grace and wit? Across the Endless Night is a lovely, nuanced exploration of acceptance, grief, regret, and reconciliation.

—Anne Leigh Parrish, author of The Hedgerow


 

About ROBERT CROOKE

Robert Crooke is a journalist, media executive, and author. His poetry has been published in the West Hills Review: A Walt Whitman Journal, while his short fiction has appeared in The Paragon Journal, Literary Orphans Journal, and Linden Avenue Literary Journal. He also has contributed book reviews and literary essays to Heavy Feather Review and Exacting Clam. He began his career as a sports reporter and columnist for the Newhouse-owned Long Island Daily Press, and for thirteen years, he served as North American press spokesman for Reuters. His critically-acclaimed novel, Letting the House Go (Unsolicited Press: 2022), was a 2023 Eric Hoffer Book Award Category Finalist. Across the Endless Night is its highly-anticipated sequel. He and his wife reside in Bridgewater, CT. 

Catch up with him at his website:www.robertcrooke.com.

 

Publisher’s Note

Across the Endless Night is the second half of a two-book journey. If you haven’t read Letting the House Go, we strongly recommend starting there. The emotional and narrative arc of this story was built across both books.

→ Get the 2-book bundle for $40 or take 25% off Letting the House Go with code TAKETHEJOURNEY at checkout when you buy Across the Endless Night.

  • Genre: Fiction / Novel

    ISBN:  978-1-963115-78-9

    Publication Date: August 4, 2026