George Dawes Green Libri

With an introduction by Neil GaimanBefore television and radio, before penny paperbacks and mass literacy, people would gather on porches, on the steps outside their homes, and tell stories. The storytellers knew their craft and bewitched listeners would sit and listen long into the night as moths flitted around overhead. The Moth is a non-profit group that is trying to recapture this lost art, helping storytellers - old hands and novices alike - hone their stories before playing to packed crowds at sold-out live events.The very best of these stories are collected here: whether it's Bill Clinton's hell-raising press secretary or a leading geneticist with a family secret; a doctor whisked away by nuns to Mother Teresa's bedside or a film director saving her father's Chinatown store from money-grabbing developers; the Sultan of Brunei's concubine or a friend of Hemingway's who accidentally talks himself into a role as a substitute bullfighter, these eccentric, pitch-perfect stories - all, amazingly, true - range from the poignant to the downright hilarious.

'The apotheosis of Southern Gothic Noir' NEIL GAIMAN 'Compelling characters and vivid settings make this impressive Southern narrative stand out among the best . . . not to be missed' KARIN SLAUGHTER 'A rich, sprawling, dazzling mystery . . . I savoured every page' RILEY SAGER It begins quietly on a balmy Southern night in Savannah as some locals gather at Bo Peep's, one of the town's favourite watering holes. Within an hour, a man will be murdered and his companion will have 'disappeared'. An unlikely detective, Morgana Musgrove, doyenne of Savannah society, is called upon to unravel the mystery of these crimes. Morgana is an imperious, demanding, and conniving woman, whose four grown children are weary of her schemes. But one by one she inveigles them into helping with her investigation, and soon the family uncovers some terrifying truths - truths that will rock Savannah's power structure to its core. Moving from the homeless encampments that ring the city to the stately homes of Savannah's elite, The Kingdoms of Savannah brilliantly depicts the underbelly of a city with a dark history and the strangely mesmerizing dysfunction of a complex family. 'I've never read a mystery novel any finer than this one . . . utterly satisfying' KURT ANDERSEN 'Green's novels may not come around often, but when they do, they hit hard and stay with you long after the end' KIRKUS, STARRED REVIEW

Romulus Ledbetter wasn't always homeless. He once was a devoted husband, father, and musician with a bright future. He now forages for food in the trash cans of the city's better neighborhoods and wages a strenuous one-man war against Cornelius Gould Stuyvesant, an evil -- and imaginary -- power broker who is responsible for society's ills, as well as the sinister Y- and Z-rays that are corrupting humankind. Then one wintry night, Rom finds a corpse at the mouth of his cave that rouses his well-defined sense of ethics and launches him on an obsessive quest for answers. Forced to reconnect with society, Rom leaves his world and journeys through a spiraling web of clues and hunches, straight into a sinister den of money, temptation, and murder--otherwise known as the "civilized" world.

When grifters Shaw and Romeo pull up at a convenience store in Georgia, their only thought is to fix a faulty tyre and be on their way to Florida. But this happens to be the store from which a $318 million Jackpot ticket has just been sold - and when the pretty clerk accidentally reveals to Shaw the identity of the winning family, he hatches a terrifyingly audacious plan. That night, he visits the Boatwright family's home and takes them hostage, while the sinister Romeo patrols the streets nearby, prepared to murder the Boatwrights' loved ones at the first sign of resistance. At first, the family offers none. But Shaw's plan depends on maintaining constant fear - merciless, unfaltering terror - and soon, under the pressure, everyone's sanity begins to unravel...

Annie is the perfect jury candidate to return a not guilty verdict. A single mother, she is under pressure to do so, as she and her son are the targets of the Mafia's most sinister representative, known as the Teacher. However, a woman protecting her child should never be underestimated.