Locust Bayou Legends: LOST

By Chad Tyler Merritt

The fifth summer changed everything.
By the summer of 1986, the kids of Locust Bayou are older now. What once felt endless suddenly feels fragile.

Chad, Emily, William, and Mark spend their days wandering creek bottoms, swimming at the blue hole, climbing fire towers, chasing stories through the woods, and trying to hold on to the last pieces of childhood before life begins pulling them in different directions.

But something has changed.

Mark is drifting away from the family. Strange new people have appeared around the old Caldwell place. Quiet arguments echo through the house late at night. And beneath the laughter, campfires, and long summer evenings, Chad begins to realize that growing up means learning that the people you love can carry burdens you cannot see.

As the group explores old trails, forgotten shacks, hidden places in the woods, and the legends surrounding Fern Ridge, the summer slowly unfolds into something deeper than adventure. What begins as another season in Locust Bayou becomes a story about friendship, first love, family, loss, and the painful understanding that time never stands still.

Told with warmth, humor, and the unmistakable voice that has defined the Locust Bayou Legends series, Lost is the most personal and emotionally powerful installment yet.

Some summers stay with you forever.

And some change you forever.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0H2S68PFD
• ISBN13: 9798198325814
• Release Date: May 2026
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 475 Pages
• Weight: 1.39 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 1.2" x 6.0"