David Hogan's The Last Island is currently on promotion in Australia.
Anti-Valentine! Excerpt from CHARLIE P by Richard Kalich
From the chapter "The young harpist" At age fifty-seven Charlie P fell in love with a twenty year-old Bulgarian harpist entering Juilliard on scholarship. Besides being young and beautiful, she came from a good family, too. Her mother not only taught ethics at the university, but practiced what she preached. Her father discovered the cure … Continue reading Anti-Valentine! Excerpt from CHARLIE P by Richard Kalich
Valentine’s Day: “Let’s get that ring a mate”
Excerpt from Forever's Just Pretend by Craig McDonald "She bit her lip. “Have I scared you buying us a love nest, Hec?” “You, the nomad, bought a house?” Hector could hardly believe what he was hearing. Brinke was the consummate globetrotter. He bit his lip, watching her. Well, … Continue reading Valentine’s Day: “Let’s get that ring a mate”
Willow Weep for Me
"By the time the singer appeared, the house was full. Arlene Gray stepped elegantly on the stage and approached the microphone, one hand moving in time with the music, the other resting against the curve of her hip. There was warm applause. Light-skinned and full-figured, she wore a black, strapless sheath with sequins that sparkled … Continue reading Willow Weep for Me
A single kiss
"A shooting star zipped across the sky. I watched it streak behind the mountain on the other side of the island as I thought about the woman against the opposite side of the concrete wall, so very different from me – or anyone. She was a genuine being, pure in spirit and without pretense, willfully … Continue reading A single kiss
Come on, baby, light my fire
“Come with me, little girl,” said Fausto, leading me back inside. “I’ll light your candy cigarette for you.” The easiness of us surprised me. I had thought a relationship with an Italian man would be fuelled by arguments and accusations, judging by the amount of couples I came upon in the street doing their impression … Continue reading Come on, baby, light my fire
Hector Lassiter: a hero for women who love men who love women
From Craig McDonald's preface to the Hector Lassiter series: "The “hero” of this series, your guide through these books, is Hector Mason Lassiter, a shades-of-grey guy who is a charmer, a rogue, a bit of a rake, and, himself, a crime novelist. Some others in the novels say he bears a passing resemblance to the … Continue reading Hector Lassiter: a hero for women who love men who love women
In love? Read or offer to the Loved One one of these books
Valentine's Day gift ideas for Him or Her: http://viewbook.at/TheLastIsland http://viewBook.at/KillarneyBlues_OSullivan http://getBook.at/ForeversJustPretend http://getBook.at/SILK_Mallon
Australia, I’m Coming…
…just not in person. Nope. They’re sending Kat and Edward. You see, Silk for the Feed Dogs is now on Kindle Promotion for a limited period in Australia! Time to let everyone know Kat and Edward have landed. I’m calling all my Aussie blogging friends; poking on Facebook my fashion lovelies who are ahead of … Continue reading Australia, I’m Coming…
Love to travel? Read from THE LAST ISLAND by David Hogan
The Last Island is currently on promotion in Australia. "A full white moon glistened above and lit my way along the dusty road back to the cove. The walk was pleasant, and I took it leisurely, thoughtfully, kicking up rocks and staring at the sky, until I turned off the road into the unpaved path that led … Continue reading Love to travel? Read from THE LAST ISLAND by David Hogan
Love fashion? Read from SILK FOR THE FEED DOGS by Jackie Mallon
Silk for the Feed Dogs is currently on promotion in Australia. "I got into my dress and new Prada shoes, smeared Ravish-Me-Red on my lips, and arranged the netting of my hat over one eye. I grabbed my coat and couldn’t get out of that draughty warehouse fast enough. Instead of traffic, the streets were now … Continue reading Love fashion? Read from SILK FOR THE FEED DOGS by Jackie Mallon
Colin O’Sullivan’s review of THE NIHILESTHETE by Richard Kalich
Review of The Nihilesthete, by Richard Kalich (Betimes Books)
When social-worker Haberman finds a limbless wheelchair-bound man observing a street artist, it’s as if all his birthdays have come at once. He can now set about the task that he may always have been destined for, to take this unfortunate victim under his monstrous wing and systematically abuse him (mentally and spiritually) until he is somehow sated.
Why does he do this? What unfortunate events in his past have compelled him to carry out such atrocities? Wrong question. It’s like asking how Winnie got buried in sand in Beckett’s “Happy Days”: the fact is that she just happens to be buried in sand; the fact is that Haberman just happens to be this way, like Simenon’s Frank Friedermaier in Dirty Snow perhaps, bad to the bone. Those looking for easy armchair-psychology rationalizations have come to the wrong anti-hero.
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Head Games Returns! by Craig McDonald
"This month, Head Games, my debut novel and the book that launched the Hector Lassiter series, returns in some slick new packaging from Betimes Books. Of all my novels, HG has traveled the widest, become the most translated, and is now in the final steps of being transformed into a graphic novel. The book has been out … Continue reading Head Games Returns! by Craig McDonald
Helmut Lang Exhibition by Jackie Mallon
Kirsten for Lang back in the day
As a devotee of his runways in the late 90s and early aughts, I was mighty curious to see this exhibition. The press release describes his use of materials “with a certain history, elements with irreplaceable presence and with scars and memories of a former purpose.” Right then. I was all ready for a nostalgia trip, a slideshow of campaigns featuring his favorite model, Kirsten Owen, captured by his favorite photographer Jurgen Teller, washing softly over my eyeballs as I walked to the Bowery.
Inside I was rewarded with an opportunity for contemplation that would last longer than the time I spent in the gallery and it looks like I won’t arrive at any conclusions during this post either: there’s always time for ruminating on the longevity of fashion; the recycling of clothing; the myth of a fashion icon and the destruction of…
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Colin O’Sullivan on Random pointless questions from rock music obsessives
Like the character of Bernard in my debut novel, Killarney Blues, many of my friends are music obsessives, the kind of people who wouldn’t be out of place in Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity.
These cardigan-wearers (to which I am a fully fledged and flouting member) often fire out pointless emails asking all kinds of random music questions. These have been happening for years, and the sad fact is that I have begun to cherish the arrival of these useless inquisitions.
Below are an example of some of the kinds of questions my muso buddies like to ask, and my deeply considered answers (we’re talking hours people, days). Please note also that these answers are liable to change. For example, when recently asked about my favourite Bowie album I instinctively answered Low, but on the following day could just have easily said Station to Station or Hunky Dory. Such is the kind…
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HEAD GAMES available for pre-order!
Our edition of highly acclaimed HEAD GAMES, the Edgar® and Anthony Awards finalist, will be released on the 24th of February 2015 and is now available for pre-order here: getBook.at/HeadGames_preorder "Craig McDonald, a genuine expert on the history of crime fiction, gives free rein to all his obsessions in a debut novel that's a berserk 1957-based … Continue reading HEAD GAMES available for pre-order!
Richard Kalich’s interview on Books Go Social
"I’m not completely nihilistic. I believe that as long as we can still ask questions about the meaning of it all, there’s hope for an authentic life." Richard Kalich in conversation with Lucy Sweeny Byrne on Books Go Social http://buff.ly/1Abb7VC
A new trailer for a new edition of HEAD GAMES!
"Few writers can blend a contemporary feel with what drew us to old-style pulp and original paperbacks: that momentum, that craziness, the thrill of the downhill slide and crash. Head Games is smart, it's funny, and it moves like a roach when the lights go on -- what's not to love?" -- James Sallis … Continue reading A new trailer for a new edition of HEAD GAMES!
A sneak preview of the next Hector Lassiter novel
Two final, never-before-seen Lassiter novels will appear in the second half of 2015. First up, will be a novel featuring Hector and James Bond creator Ian Fleming in 1962 Japan, and, a bit later, in Istanbul, witnessing the filming of the classic Bond novel, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE. Japanese author Yukio Mishima will also have … Continue reading A sneak preview of the next Hector Lassiter novel
Salman Rushdie condemns attack on Charlie Hebdo
English PEN condemns today’s shootings at the offices of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo as a shocking assault on press freedom and free speech. Writer and PEN Pinter Prize winner Salman Rushdie has issued the following statement about the horrifying events in Paris "Religion, a mediaeval form of unreason, when combined with modern weaponry becomes a real threat to … Continue reading Salman Rushdie condemns attack on Charlie Hebdo
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