Standing by the Wall at the Near and Far is a sleuth action-adventure novel by Golden November. While driving down a deserted highway, Sapphire, a recovery agent for GN, realizes that her mark Simon was following her car in a helicopter. Eager for him to lose her trail, she ventures into the woods and disappears. After successfully retrieving the covert file for her boss, Cal, Sapphire completes a couple more missions before taking a much-deserved break. She is invited to the Channel 1994 award show, which also hosts a reunion party for former and current employees of GN. But as she mingles with her friends and listens to their extraordinary tales, Sapphire once again comes face to face with Simon, who followed her to the party.

Almost all the major characters of Golden November's previous books make an appearance in this fast-paced action-adventure tale that rarely gives you a moment to take a breath. In this installment, November drops you in the midst of action from the get-go. You will be hopping on a wild rollercoaster of a ride that you will find surprisingly enjoyable despite the unorthodox narrative style or the lack of usual expository scenes. In fact, those are the very aspects that make Standing by the Wall at the Near and Far such a unique and authentic piece of work. It is an acquired taste, no doubt, but if you go along and enjoy the ride with an open mind, you will have a wonderful time. Recommended to readers who love quirky adventure stories.

Standing by the Wall at the Near and Far is the second novel in the Milestoneville Book series by Golden November. The story follows Sapphire, our protagonist, as she is chased and lost. The story opens with Sapphire in a rented red convertible when she gets a strange phone call from a man named Simon. Simon believes Sapphire is Lisa, has an important file, and is now chasing her car via helicopter. Sapphire dodges him by driving into the woods. With the convertible in a ditch and Sapphire lost in the woods, she needs to get to safety before Simon catches up with her and realizes she has the file. Can she run away and complete her job, or will Simon capture her?

Golden November brings back the much-loved characters from the original Milestoneville series as he creates an action-packed story with Sapphire in the center. It is nice to see the original gang back at their shenanigans, but Sapphire is the real star of the story. The action is intense, the pace is fast, and the plot is entertaining; three ingredients of every Golden November novel. I love how Golden November doesn’t give us anything in terms of descriptions, yet I still read the dialogues for each character in a different and distinct voice. The dialogues are so powerful in this book that you will have a hard time not creating a mental image of each of the characters you come across. Simple yet effective, another job well done by Golden November.