A Song For The Dead

Download A Song For The Dead full books in PDF, epub, and Kindle. Read online A Song For The Dead ebook anywhere anytime directly on your device. Fast Download speed and no annoying ads. We cannot guarantee that every ebooks is available!

Song of the Dead

Author : Sarah Glenn Marsh
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 0448494434
Total Pages : 434 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (484 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Song of the Dead by : Sarah Glenn Marsh

Download or read book Song of the Dead written by Sarah Glenn Marsh and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2020-01-07 with total page 434 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The stunning conclusion to Sarah Glenn Marsh's Reign of the Fallen duology, now including an exclusive prequel to the series, Rise of the Sparrow. The Dead must stay buried. Karthia is nothing like it used to be. The kingdom's borders are open for the first time in nearly three hundred years, and raising the dead has been outlawed. Odessa is determined to explore the world beyond Karthia's waters, hoping to heal a heart broken in more ways than she can count. But with Meredy joining the ocean voyage, vanquishing her sorrow will be a difficult task. Despite the daily reminder of the history they share, Odessa and Meredy are fascinated when their journey takes them to a land where the Dead rule the night and dragons roam the streets. Odessa can't help being mesmerized by the new magic--and by the girl at her side. But just as she and Meredy are beginning to explore the new world, a terrifying development in Karthia summons them home at once. Growing political unrest on top of threats from foreign invaders means Odessa and Meredy are thrust back into the lives they tried to leave behind while specters from their past haunt their tenuous relationship. Gathering a force big enough to ward off enemies seems impossible, until one of Queen Valoria's mages creates a weapon that could make them invincible. As danger continues to mount inside the palace, Odessa fears that without the Dead, even the greatest invention won't be enough to save them. In this enthralling, heartrending sequel to Reign of the Fallen, Odessa faces the fight of her life as the boundaries between the Dead and the living are challenged in a way more gruesome than ever before.

Reign of the Fallen

Author : Sarah Glenn Marsh
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 044849440X
Total Pages : 402 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (484 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Reign of the Fallen by : Sarah Glenn Marsh

Download or read book Reign of the Fallen written by Sarah Glenn Marsh and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2019-01-08 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This edgy fantasy doesn't just blur boundaries of genre, of gender, of past and present, life and death--it explodes them." --Cinda Williams Chima, New York Times bestselling author of the Seven Realms series and the Shattered Realms series. Without the dead, she'd be no one. Odessa is one of Karthia's master necromancers, catering to the kingdom's ruling Dead. Whenever a noble dies, it's Odessa's job to raise them by retrieving their soul from a dreamy and dangerous shadow world called the Deadlands. But there is a cost to being raised: the Dead must remain shrouded. If even a hint of flesh is exposed, a grotesque transformation begins, turning the Dead into terrifying, bloodthirsty Shades. A dramatic uptick in Shade attacks raises suspicions and fears around the kingdom. Soon, a crushing loss of one of her closest companions leaves Odessa shattered, and reveals a disturbing conspiracy in Karthia: Someone is intentionally creating Shades by tearing shrouds from the Dead--and training them to attack. Odessa is forced to contemplate a terrifying question: What if her magic is the weapon that brings the kingdom to its knees? Fighting alongside her fellow mages--and a powerful girl as enthralling as she is infuriating--Odessa must untangle the gruesome plot to destroy Karthia before the Shades take everything she loves. Perfect for fans of Three Dark Crowns and Red Queen, Reign of the Fallen is a gutsy, unpredictable read with a surprising and breathtaking LGBT romance at its core.

Songs for the Dead Vol. 1

Author : Michael Christopher Heron
Publisher : Vault Comics
ISBN 13 : 1638490597
Total Pages : 148 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (384 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Songs for the Dead Vol. 1 by : Michael Christopher Heron

Download or read book Songs for the Dead Vol. 1 written by Michael Christopher Heron and published by Vault Comics. This book was released on 2018-09-11 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bethany is a minstrel, a wanderer, and a would-be hero seeking adventure. She's also a reviled necromancer, hated and hunted by all. To prove her magic isn't evil, Bethany needs help from a murderous mercenary, in other words, a friend. FRIENDS. MAGIC. SWORDS. DEATH. AND LIFE (AGAIN). Bethany is a minstrel with a heart full of adventure, a would-be hero determined to find a missing boy from the town of Llyne, and a friend to all woodland critters. But mostly the dead ones...because Bethany is also a necromancer. She's out to prove her magic isn't evil, and she'll need the help of a hot-headed, sword-swinging mercenary named Elissar—that is, she'll need the help of a friend. Collects the complete four issue series.

Playlist for the Dead

Author : Michelle Falkoff
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0062310526
Total Pages : 166 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (623 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Playlist for the Dead by : Michelle Falkoff

Download or read book Playlist for the Dead written by Michelle Falkoff and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2015-01-27 with total page 166 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A page-turner that combines genuine intrigue with heartbreak and desire.” —Holly Goldberg Sloan, New York Times bestselling author of Counting by 7s Part mystery, part love story, and part coming-of-age tale in the vein of Thirteen Reasons Why, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and The Spectacular Now, Michelle Falkoff’s debut is an honest and gut-wrenching novel about loss, rage, what if feels like to outgrow a friendship that’s always defined you—and the struggle to redefine yourself. There was a party. There was a fight. The next morning, Sam’s best friend, Hayden, was dead. And all he left Sam was a playlist of songs and a suicide note: For Sam—listen and you’ll understand. To figure out what happened, Sam has to rely on the playlist and his own memory. But the more he listens, the more he realizes that his memory isn’t as reliable as he thought. And it might only be by taking out his earbuds and opening his eyes to the people around him that he’ll finally be able to piece together his best friend’s story. And maybe have a chance to change his own. “An absorbing and sensitive read.” —Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books “Falkoff lightens the substantial topics of grief, bullying, and suicide with Sam’s engaging investigation.” —ALA Booklist “Realistic and well-written. The strong characters, dialogue and the use of the playlist to structure the book make this a good pick for struggling readers.” —School Library Journal “Falkoff treats a difficult topic with delicacy and care.” —Publishers Weekly “Truly powerful moments.” —Kirkus Reviews

Songs for Dead Parents

Author : Erik Mueggler
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 022648341X
Total Pages : 347 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (264 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Songs for Dead Parents by : Erik Mueggler

Download or read book Songs for Dead Parents written by Erik Mueggler and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2017-12-02 with total page 347 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a society that has seen epochal change over a few generations, what remains to hold people together and offer them a sense of continuity and meaning? In Songs for Dead Parents, Erik Mueggler shows how in contemporary China death and the practices surrounding it have become central to maintaining a connection with the world of ancestors, ghosts, and spirits that socialism explicitly disavowed. Drawing on more than twenty years of fieldwork in a mountain community in Yunnan Province, Songs for Dead Parents shows how people view the dead as both material and immaterial, as effigies replace corpses, tombstones replace effigies, and texts eventually replace tombstones in a long process of disentangling the dead from the shared world of matter and memory. It is through these processes that people envision the cosmological underpinnings of the world and assess the social relations that make up their community. Thus, state interventions aimed at reforming death practices have been deeply consequential, and Mueggler traces the transformations they have wrought and their lasting effects.

The Rock And Roll Book Of The Dead

Author : David Comfort
Publisher : Kensington Publishing Corp.
ISBN 13 : 0806532122
Total Pages : 697 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (65 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Rock And Roll Book Of The Dead by : David Comfort

Download or read book The Rock And Roll Book Of The Dead written by David Comfort and published by Kensington Publishing Corp.. This book was released on 2009-08-25 with total page 697 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Once you're dead, you're made for life. --Jimi Hendrix Hendrix. Janis. Morrison. Elvis. Lennon. Cobain. Garcia. Their reckless brilliance held the key to their self-destruction. Their deaths had much in common--and, surprisingly, so did their lives. From lonely childhoods marred by loss to groundbreaking music and turbulent careers that ended tragically and suspiciously, David Comfort explodes the myths as he probes: • The sinister roles of Hendrix's manager and girlfriend in his death and subsequent cover-up • The bizarre odyssey of Jim Morrison's corpse • Why Kurt Cobain was worth more dead than alive to Courtney Love • The twisted motives that caused John Lennon to sail through the Devil's Triangle to Bermuda--nearly going down in a storm--shortly before he was fatally shot • The crippling disease and "miracle" drug that drove Elvis to suicide Charismatic and gifted, but also isolated and conflicted, these are not the rock icons you thought you knew. Here are their larger-than-life stories of turmoil and excess that led to their early deaths and ultimate immortality. It's a wild ride to the other side of fame. "Fame is the soul eater." --Jerry Garcia "Everybody loves you when you're six foot in the ground." --John Lennon Includes Rare Photos David Comfort is the author of three bestselling nonfiction books. His short fiction has appeared in numerous magazines, including Eclectic Literary Forum, Pacific Review, Coe Review, and Belletrist Review. He has been the recipient of several literary prizes and a finalist for such prestigious awards as the Nelson Algren Award and America's Best. A former rock musician, he has spent over 30 years studying rock music, particularly the revolutionary and fatalistic pioneers of the 1960s. He lives in Santa Rosa, California.

A Song for the Dead

Author : D.K. Hood
Publisher : Bookouture
ISBN 13 : 1837905088
Total Pages : 348 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (379 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis A Song for the Dead by : D.K. Hood

Download or read book A Song for the Dead written by D.K. Hood and published by Bookouture. This book was released on 2024-01-08 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As she steps out of the shower and wraps herself in a warm towel, her breath catches. There’s writing scrawled in the condensation on the mirror. I’m going to kill you. She doesn’t even have time to scream… It’s Halloween when a young woman is reported missing from the small town of Black Rock Falls and Sheriff Jenna Alton and her partner, Deputy David Kane, race to her remote home. But all they find are signs of a struggle and blood on the bathroom floor. Freya Richardson has vanished. With no leads on Freya’s whereabouts, Jenna hits a wall in the investigation. Then the bodies of three women are discovered buried in a local forest. Each one has been wrapped in a blanket. As Jenna takes in their pretty faces and long blonde hair, her blood runs cold. Freya isn’t here: but each body looks shockingly like her… Jenna soon links the victims with an unsolved case where the killer attacked blonde-haired women in their homes and buried the bodies. She’s convinced it’s the same murderer, and seeing that he always takes three victims, she realizes that two more women could be in serious danger… Working around the clock, Jenna’s heart sinks when a beloved friend makes a terrifying call telling her there’s an intruder in her house. Begging her to hide, Jenna and Dave race to the woman’s house. But can they get there in time to stop another innocent life from being taken? Truly gripping and absolutely unputdownable, fans of Lisa Regan, Melinda Leigh and Kendra Elliot will love this novel from USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author D.K. Hood. **Each Kane and Alton book can be read as part of the series or as a standalone** What readers are saying about A Song for the Dead: “Sends shivers down your spine… It’s a gripping, atmospheric read with lots of scares and frights.” Stardust Book Reviews, 5 stars “A page-turner, a cannot-put-down story of intrigue, mystery and mayhem.” NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars “I was kept guessing right till the end. A captivating rollercoaster ride!!… I always think I have it figured out and D.K. always manages to surprise me! 10 out of 10 stars!” Sip_andread, 5 stars “5 stars for another book that kept me guessing until the end.” B for Bookreview, 5 stars “WOW! Creepy, scary book!… Fabulous.” NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars “This story is a suspenseful, twisty mystery that leaves you clenching all of your muscles and needing to remind yourself to relax and breathe.” Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars “When a new Kane and Alton book comes out, I just have to stop everything and read it. This one was incredibly atmospheric and just really drew you in.” Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars “The crime was shocking and intense, I felt on edge. I didn’t want to put this down.” Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars “This book will grab you from the first page… A must-read for me.” NetGalley reviewer “Full of twists and suspense right to the end.” Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars “Keeps you on the edge of your seat… Unexpected twists and turns, keeping readers guessing until the very end… Thrilling crime fiction.” Goodreads reviewer “Another well-written, twisted and very creepy read.” Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars “A twisty page-turner.” Goodreads reviewer “Gripping… I was hooked… On the edge of my seat.” NetGalley reviewer “An outstanding read. You do not want to miss.” Tove Reads

Unbury Our Dead with Song

Author : Mukoma Wa Ngugi
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781911115984
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (159 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Unbury Our Dead with Song by : Mukoma Wa Ngugi

Download or read book Unbury Our Dead with Song written by Mukoma Wa Ngugi and published by . This book was released on 2020-10-13 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Unbury our Dead With Song is a novel about four talented Ethiopian musicians - The Diva, The Corporal, the Taliban Man and Miriam, who are competing to see who can sing the best Tizita (popularly referred to as Ethiopian blues). Taking place in an illegal boxing hall in Nairobi, Kenya, the competition is covered by a US educated Kenyan journalist, John Thandi Manfredi, who writes for a popular tabloid, The National Inquisitor. He follows the musicians back to Ethiopia in order to learn more about the Tizita and their lives. As he learns more about the Tizita and the multiple meanings of beauty, he uncovers that behind each of the musicians, there are layered lives and secrets. A love letter to African music, beauty and imagination.

Music for the Dead and Resurrected

Author : Valzhyna Mort
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1526649896
Total Pages : 91 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (266 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Music for the Dead and Resurrected by : Valzhyna Mort

Download or read book Music for the Dead and Resurrected written by Valzhyna Mort and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2022-05-06 with total page 91 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: WINNER OF THE INTERNATIONAL GRIFFIN PRIZE A NEW YORK TIMES BEST POETRY BOOK OF 2020 Music for the Dead and Resurrected captures the complexity of living in the shadows of imperial force, of the vulnerability of bodies, of seeing with more than the eyes. Valzhyna Mort's work is characterised by a memorial sensibility that honours those lost to the violences of nation states. In Music for the Dead and Resurrected the poet offers us a body of work which balances political import with serious play. There are few poets writing with such an intuitive sense of the balance between arcane and contemporary currents in poetry. Mort's lines are timeless, finely honed to last beyond a single lifetime.

Singing for the Dead

Author : Paja Faudree
Publisher : Duke University Press
ISBN 13 : 0822354314
Total Pages : 332 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (223 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Singing for the Dead by : Paja Faudree

Download or read book Singing for the Dead written by Paja Faudree and published by Duke University Press. This book was released on 2013-05-29 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Singing for the Dead chronicles ethnic revival in Oaxaca, Mexico, where new forms of singing and writing in the local Mazatec indigenous language are producing powerful, transformative political effects. Paja Faudree argues for the inclusion of singing as a necessary component in the polarized debates about indigenous orality and literacy, and she considers how the coupling of literacy and song has allowed people from the region to create texts of enduring social resonance. She examines how local young people are learning to read and write in Mazatec as a result of the region's new Day of the Dead song contest. Faudree also studies how tourist interest in local psychedelic mushrooms has led to their commodification, producing both opportunities and challenges for songwriters and others who represent Mazatec culture. She situates these revival movements within the contexts of Mexico and Latin America, as well as the broad, hemisphere-wide movement to create indigenous literatures. Singing for the Dead provides a new way to think about the politics of ethnicity, the success of social movements, and the limits of national belonging.

The Armageddon Rag

Author : George R. R. Martin
Publisher : Bantam
ISBN 13 : 0553901230
Total Pages : 386 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (539 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Armageddon Rag by : George R. R. Martin

Download or read book The Armageddon Rag written by George R. R. Martin and published by Bantam. This book was released on 2007-01-30 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “The best novel concerning the American pop music culture of the sixties I’ve ever read.”—Stephen King From #1 New York Times bestselling author George R. R. Martin comes the ultimate novel of revolution, rock ’n’ roll, and apocalyptic murder—a stunning work of fiction that portrays not just the end of an era, but the end of the world as we know it. Onetime underground journalist Sandy Blair has come a long way from his radical roots in the ’60s—until something unexpectedly draws him back: the bizarre and brutal murder of a rock promoter who made millions with a band called the Nazgûl. Now, as Sandy sets out to investigate the crime, he finds himself drawn back into his own past—a magical mystery tour of the pent-up passions of his generation. For a new messiah has resurrected the Nazgûl and the mad new rhythm may be more than anyone bargained for—a requiem of demonism, mind control, and death, whose apocalyptic tune only Sandy may be able to change in time . . . before everyone follows the beat. “The wilder aspects of the ’60s . . . roar back to life in this hallucinatory story by a master of chilling suspense.”—Publishers Weekly “What a story, full of nostalgia and endless excitement. . . . It’s taut, tense, and moves like lightning.”—Tony Hillerman “Daring . . . a knowing, wistful appraisal of . . . a crucial American generation.”—Chicago Sun-Times “Moving . . . comic . . . eerie . . . really and truly a walk down memory lane.”—The Washington Post

The American Book of the Dead

Author : Oliver Trager
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 0684814021
Total Pages : 452 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (848 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The American Book of the Dead by : Oliver Trager

Download or read book The American Book of the Dead written by Oliver Trager and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 1997-12-04 with total page 452 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contains over 750 alphabetically-arranged entries that provide information about the rock group Grateful Dead, featuring profiles of band members and associated musicians, filmmakers, photographers, composers, and others, and descriptions of the band's albums and solo releases.

Sing the Dead Man's Songs

Author : Arthur Burke
Publisher : Camel Press
ISBN 13 : 9781942078302
Total Pages : 210 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (783 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Sing the Dead Man's Songs by : Arthur Burke

Download or read book Sing the Dead Man's Songs written by Arthur Burke and published by Camel Press. This book was released on 2021-09-08 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Eddie Jackson is one of the biggest rock stars in the world. When he dies in a car crash, a lot of people stand to lose money, so his death is hushed up. Eddie's bandmate, Clem, is determined the truth must come out. As pressure is put on Clem to play along, he suspects he's part of a bigger conspiracy and that Eddie's death was no accident.

Dead Man's Song

Author : Jonathan Maberry
Publisher : Kensington Books
ISBN 13 : 1496705432
Total Pages : 512 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (967 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Dead Man's Song by : Jonathan Maberry

Download or read book Dead Man's Song written by Jonathan Maberry and published by Kensington Books. This book was released on 2016-08-30 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Members of a town terrorized by a monstrous evil search for its source in this horror novel by the Bram Stoker Award–winning author of Ink. Something evil has awakened in the town of Pine Deep. While a local newsman tries to piece together the gruesome events of a long-buried crime, others are preparing for the return of an unstoppable scourge. Bodies mutilated beyond description, innocents driven to acts of vicious madness—a monstrous legacy is preying on the living and the dead. There are those in Pine Deep who are not what they seem. Who are driven by a thirst for blood and revenge. And who are quietly building an army of the undead . . . Second in the Pine Deep Trilogy Praise for Ghost Road Blues “Maberry supplies plenty of chills, both Earth-bound and otherworldly, in this atmospheric horror novel . . . . This is horror on a grand scale, reminiscent of Stephen King’s heftier works.” —Publishers Weekly Praise for New York Times bestselling Author Jonathan Maberry “Jonathan Maberry’s horror is rich and visceral. It’s close to the heart . . . and close to the jugular.” —Kevin J. Anderson “Maberry has the chops to craft stories at once intimate, epic, real, and horrific.” —Bentley Little “Maberry spins great stories. His (Pine Deep) vampire novels are unique and masterful.” —Richard Matheson “Maberry’s works will be read for many, many years to come.” —Ray Bradbury

Searching for the Sound

Author : Phil Lesh
Publisher : Hachette+ORM
ISBN 13 : 0316027812
Total Pages : 331 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (16 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Searching for the Sound by : Phil Lesh

Download or read book Searching for the Sound written by Phil Lesh and published by Hachette+ORM. This book was released on 2007-09-03 with total page 331 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The legendary bass player tells the full, true story of his years with Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead in this "insightful and entertaining" (Austin Chronicle) memoir of life in the greatest improvisational band in American history. In a book "as graceful and sublime as a box of rain" (New York Times Book Review), the beloved bassist tells the stories behind the songs, tours, and jams in the Grateful Dead's long, strange trip from the 1960s to the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995 and beyond. From Ken Kesey's "acid tests" to the Summer of Love to bestselling albums and worldwide tours, the Dead's story has never been told as honestly or as memorably as in this remarkable memoir. "A fun ride...Even for the most well-read Deadhead, there's enough between the covers to make Searching for the Sound worth a look." —Associated Press

Conan and the Songs of the Dead

Author : Joe R. Lansdale
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781593077181
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (771 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Conan and the Songs of the Dead by : Joe R. Lansdale

Download or read book Conan and the Songs of the Dead written by Joe R. Lansdale and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In the harsh deserts of Stygia, a sorcerer grasps for the immortal power that lies beneath the shifting sands. In his way stand Conan and his unlikely allies: Alvazar, a rogue interested in little more than wine, women and more wine; and Ohala, daughter of a mystical order of warrior women sworn to retrieve a very dangerous book" -- Page [4] of cover.

The Quick and the Dead

Author : Joy Williams
Publisher : Vintage
ISBN 13 : 030776382X
Total Pages : 319 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (77 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Quick and the Dead by : Joy Williams

Download or read book The Quick and the Dead written by Joy Williams and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2010-09-01 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST • From one of our most heralded writers comes the “poetic, disturbing, yet very funny” (The Washington Post Book World) life-and-death adventures of three misfit teenagers in the American desert. Alice, Corvus, and Annabel, each a motherless child, are an unlikely circle of friends. One filled with convictions, another with loss, the third with a worldly pragmatism, they traverse an air-conditioned landscape eccentric with signs and portents—from the preservation of the living dead in a nursing home to the presentation of the dead as living in a wildlife museum—accompanied by restless, confounded adults. A father lusts after his handsome gardener even as he's haunted (literally) by his dead wife; a heartbroken dog runs afoul of an angry neighbor; a young stroke victim drifts westward, his luck running from worse to awful; a sickly musician for whom Alice develops an attraction is drawn instead toward darker imaginings and solutions; and an aging big-game hunter finds spiritual renewal through his infatuation with an eight-year-old—the formidable Emily Bliss Pickless. With nature thoroughly routed and the ambiguities of existence on full display, life and death continue in directions both invisible and apparent. Gloriously funny and wonderfully serious, The Quick and the Dead limns the vagaries of love, the thirst for meaning, and the peculiar paths by which all creatures are led to their destiny. A panorama of contemporary life and an endlessly surprising tour de force: penetrating and magical, ominous and comic, this is the most astonishing book yet in Joy Williams's illustrious career. Joy Williams belongs, James Salter has written, "in the company of Céline, Flannery O'Connor, and Margaret Atwood."