It's the early 1980s--the country is in a deep recession, and life after college is harder than ever. In the cafés on College Hill, the wised-up kids are inhaling Derrida and listening to Talking Heads. But Madeleine Hanna, dutiful English major, is writing her senior thesis on Jane Austen and George Eliot, purveyors of the marriage plot that lies at the heart of the greatest English novels.



As Madeleine tries to understand why "it became laughable to read writers like Cheever and Updike, who wrote about the suburbia Madeleine and most of her friends had grown up in, in favor of reading the Marquis de Sade, who wrote about deflowering virgins in eighteenth-century France," real life, in the form of two very different guys, intervenes. Leonard Bankhead--charismatic loner, college Darwinist, and lost Portland boy--suddenly turns up in a semiotics seminar, and soon Madeleine finds herself in a highly charged erotic and intellectual relationship with him. At the same time, her old "friend" Mitchell Grammaticus--who's been reading Christian mysticism and generally acting strange--resurfaces, obsessed with the idea that Madeleine is destined to be his mate.



Over the next year, as the members of the triangle in this amazing, spellbinding novel graduate from college and enter the real world, events force them to reevaluate everything they learned in school. Leonard and Madeleine move to a biology Laboratory on Cape Cod, but can't escape the secret responsible for Leonard's seemingly inexhaustible energy and plunging moods. And Mitchell, traveling around the world to get Madeleine out of his mind, finds himself face-to-face with ultimate questions about the meaning of life, the existence of God, and the true nature of love.



Are the great love stories of the nineteenth century dead? Or can there be a new story, written for today and alive to the realities of feminism, sexual freedom, prenups, and divorce? With devastating wit and an abiding understanding of and affection for his characters, Jeffrey Eugenides revives the motivating energies of the Novel, while creating a story so contemporary and fresh that it reads like the intimate journal of our own lives.

Amazon Best Books of the Month, October 2011: Even among authors, Jeffrey Eugenides possesses a rare talent for being able to inhabit his characters. In The Marriage Plot, his third novel and first in ten years (following the Pulitzer Prize-winning Middlesex), Eugenides describes a year or so in the lives of three college seniors at Brown in the early 80s. There is Madeleine, a self-described “incurable romantic” who is slightly embarrassed at being so normal. There is Leonard, a brilliant, temperamental student from the Pacific Northwest. And completing the triangle is Mitchell, a Religious Studies major from Eugenides’ own Detroit. What follows is a book delivered in sincere and genuine prose, tracing the end of the students’ college days and continuing into those first, tentative steps toward true adulthood. This is a thoughtful and at times disarming novel about life, love, and discovery, set during a time when so much of life seems filled with deep portent. --Chris Schluep

In this collection of 23 short stories, Bill Pronzini, prolific, award-winning west-coast mystery writer and creator of the well-known "Nameless Detective" series, the author's style and versatility truly shine. These talesincluding three that feature his well-known series chararacter, the "Nameless Detective"run the gamut from psychological suspense ("Strangers in the Fog") to satire ("A Craving for Originality") to Western gothic ("The Hanging Man" and "His Name was Legion"). Of special note, "Proof of Guilt" is a dandy murder-in-a-locked-room puzzle; "Multiples" (written with Barry N. Malzberg) is an intriguing literary exercise about a man who can't decide whether to kill his wife or simply write about it; "Rebound" is a solid character piece about a washed-up reporter stalking a once-great basketball player; and "Peekaboo," about the lone tenant in a large, eerie house, has an ending guaranteed to deliver the shivers.

Crossroad Press is pleased to add this book by Bill Pronzini to a growing selection of Kindle titles by well-known mystery writers like John Lutz, Bill Crider, Tom Piccirilli, Raymond Benson and Ed Lynskey. Search CROSSROAD PRESS in the Kindle Store for titles ranging from mystery, to thrillers, horror to fantasy, science fiction, original series, biographies and much more. You'll find authors like William Bayer, Irving Wallace, Al Sarrantonio, Loren Estlman, Aaron Rosenberg, Steven Savile, and many more. Thanks for reading!

In this collection of 23 short stories, Bill Pronzini, prolific, award-winning west-coast mystery writer and creator of the well-known "Nameless Detective" series, the author's style and versatility truly shine. These talesincluding three that feature his well-known series chararacter, the "Nameless Detective"run the gamut from psychological suspense ("Strangers in the Fog") to satire ("A Craving for Originality") to Western gothic ("The Hanging Man" and "His Name was Legion"). Of special note, "Proof of Guilt" is a dandy murder-in-a-locked-room puzzle; "Multiples" (written with Barry N. Malzberg) is an intriguing literary exercise about a man who can't decide whether to kill his wife or simply write about it; "Rebound" is a solid character piece about a washed-up reporter stalking a once-great basketball player; and "Peekaboo," about the lone tenant in a large, eerie house, has an ending guaranteed to deliver the shivers.

Crossroad Press is pleased to add this book by Bill Pronzini to a growing selection of Kindle titles by well-known mystery writers like John Lutz, Bill Crider, Tom Piccirilli, Raymond Benson and Ed Lynskey. Search CROSSROAD PRESS in the Kindle Store for titles ranging from mystery, to thrillers, horror to fantasy, science fiction, original series, biographies and much more. You'll find authors like William Bayer, Irving Wallace, Al Sarrantonio, Loren Estlman, Aaron Rosenberg, Steven Savile, and many more. Thanks for reading!

Michael Brown has worked for MI6 for twenty years. He's in Malta to monitor a suspected cell of Dissident Irish Republicans. But what's the Iranian connection? And why is London picking up a big spike in chatter regarding Malta?

Michael Brown has worked for MI6 for twenty years. He's in Malta to monitor a suspected cell of Dissident Irish Republicans. But what's the Iranian connection? And why is London picking up a big spike in chatter regarding Malta?

The true story of the man who inspired Oliver Stone's JFK—now with a new foreword by Jesse Ventura.

• ISBN13: 9781582972947
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

Craft an Engaging Plot

How does plot influence story structure? What's the difference between plotting for commercial and literary fiction? How do you revise a plot or structure that's gone off course?

With Write Great Fiction: Plot & Structure, you'll discover the answers to these questions and more. Award-winning author James Scott Bell offers clear, concise information that will help you create a believable and memorable plot, including:

• Techniques for crafting strong beginnings, middles, and ends
• Easy-to-understand plotting diagrams and charts
• Brainstorming techniques for original plot ideas
• Thought-provoking exercises at the end of each chapter
• Story structure models and methods for all genres
• Tips and tools for correcting common plot problems

Filled with plot examples from popular novels, comprehensive checklists, and practical hands-on guidance, Write Great Fiction: Plot & Structure gives you the skills you need to approach plot and structure like an experienced pro.

Kelly had no idea that she had any living relatives let alone relatives with a huge estate. When she receives the news that she has been named in their will she drops everything and goes to Salem Massachusetts to hear the reading. Little does she know that what she is about to inherit is much more than an estate and her life may hang in the balance because there is a serial killer who wants the inheritance all to himself. Will she be able to stop him and prove what he has done or will she become his next victim?

Kelly had no idea that she had any living relatives let alone relatives with a huge estate. When she receives the news that she has been named in their will she drops everything and goes to Salem Massachusetts to hear the reading. Little does she know that what she is about to inherit is much more than an estate and her life may hang in the balance because there is a serial killer who wants the inheritance all to himself. Will she be able to stop him and prove what he has done or will she become his next victim?

When it comes to writing bestsellers, it's all about the plot. Trouble is, plot is where most writers fall down--but you don't have to be one of them. With this book, you'll learn how to create stories that build suspense, reveal character, and engage readers--one scene at a time.

Celebrated writing teacher and author Martha Alderson has devised a plotting system that's as innovative as it is easy to implement. With her foolproof blueprint, you'll learn to devise a successful storyline for any genre. She shows how to:

• Use the power of the Universal Story
• Create plot lines and subplots that work together
• Effectively use a scene tracker for maximum impact
• Insert energetic markers at the right points in your story
• Show character transformation at the book's climax

This is the ultimate guide for you to write page-turners that sell!