“In Chris McClain Johnson’s wildly entertaining and smart epistolary novella, Three Guesses, an unpredictable friendship is forged between three unlikely characters. When they meet, each is like a ‘lost character’ in a story or ‘missing comma’ in a poem, yet through their honest exchanges, they not only find each other but themselves. Frequently lyrical and rife with poems and stories, this intimate and funny book is filled with longing and heart. One of the three characters writes: ‘We’re all falling all the time. Some of us are lucky enough to have someone or something to catch us before we hit the ground.’ This at first hapless trio discovers they are not only willing, but able and eager to catch each other, and they not only catch but enthrall readers too. This book will move you. It will make you both plummet and rise with the love and hope strangers can and should bring to each other’s lives. Three Guesses restores and reinforces faith in humanity.”
—Deirdre Fagan, author of Find a Place for Me and Phantom Limbs

“In a day of instant communication and surface relationships, it is refreshing to read of a deep connection that evolves through old-fashioned ‘snail mail.’ Chris McClain Johnson weaves a gentle, slow-building ode to the transformative power of the written word in this lovely novella. She deftly draws readers into three distinct characters’ lives, and the result is a testament not only to the power of words, but also to the healing prospect of genuine, authentic friendship. I didn’t want it to end.”
—Tracey D. Buchanan, author of the award-winning Toward the Corner of Mercy and Peace

Three strangers, connected only by a mesmerizing painting named Three Guesses, embark on an extraordinary journey of friendship. Compelled by their agreement to communicate only by mail, Sam Brooks of Memphis, Tennessee, Richard Mabry of Phoenix, Arizona, and Pete Wren of New York City reveal surprisingly intimate, personal details in a series of letters over the course of seven years. Then, as each contends with critical turning points in their lives, the unlikely trio breaks their mail-only pact and makes a life-changing decision to finally meet in person at the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Humorous and heartbreaking, soulful and breathtaking, Three Guesses celebrates the power of friendship to carry us through the most joyful and the most difficult chapters of our lives.

Award-winning Southern author Chris McClain Johnson started writing stories as a child, inspired by the beauty and wonders of her family farms in Mayfield, Kentucky. After graduating from Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky, she settled in Memphis, Tennessee, where she continues to write stories, poems, music and essays. Her debut epistolary novel Three Guesses is the recipient of Regal House Publishing’ s 2023 Fugere Book Prize for Finely Crafted Novellas.