Valerie Martin Libri

A timeless story of family, war, art, and betrayal from bestselling novelist Valerie Martin.

In this anthology, Valerie Martin presents stories about artists as they struggle beneath the tyranny of Art to reconcile their audience with their muse

From the acclaimed author of Orange Prize winning PROPERTY comes a fresh twist on the classic Jekyll and Hyde story, a novel told from the perspective of Mary Reilly, Dr. Jekyll's dutiful and intelligent housemaid. Faithfully weaving in details from Robert Louis Stevenson's classic, Martin introduces an original and captivating character: Mary is a survivor-scarred but still strong-familiar with evil, yet brimming with devotion and love. As a bond grows between Mary and her tortured employer, she is sent on errands to unsavory districts of London and entrusted with secrets she would rather not know. Unable to confront her hideous suspicions about Dr. Jekyll, Mary ultimately proves the lengths to which she'll go to protect him. Through her astute reflections, we hear the rest of the classic Jekyll and Hyde story, and this familiar tale is made more terrifying than we remember it, more complex than we imagined possible.

A secluded Tuscan villa, a mysterious death, a missing manuscript, a whiff of a ghost, and a smart young American woman tumbling helplessly into an unexpected affair--these are the ingredients of this beguiling and acutely observed new novel by the author of Mary Reilly. Lucy Stark--clever, pragmatic, capable--is the assistant to a best-selling but remarkably untalented writer named DV, who has spent the last several months in Tuscany searching for inspiration. One morning in Brooklyn, as Lucy sits at her desk reluctantly reading the first half of DV's latest novel, she receives a startling phone call: DV is dead, and the circumstances are suspicious. Soon Lucy finds herself in Italy, where her search for the rest of DV's manuscript leads her into the thick of various mysteries. Was DV murdered, or just the victim of his own stupidity? Was the ghost story he was writing pure fantasy, or did it hint at a darker reality? Is the devastating, married Massimo, who cares for Lucy in ways no one has before, as dangerously in love with her as she is with him? Part mystery, part romance, part meditation on the maddening but redemptive power of art, Italian Fever is a supremely satisfying novel: a funny, insightful portrait of the American abroad, and an irresistible exploration of our perpetual love affair with Italy.

A short, lush novel about sex, second chances and taking control in a man's world

The newest novel from Valerie Martin, winner of the Women's Prize for Fiction 'Beguiling' The Times 'Utterly brilliant' Daily Mail 'Intelligent, quick-witted and curious' Irish Times 1954. Nineteen years old, beautiful and blind since birth, Carita has taken control of her life by leaving home and working in Mrs Gulliver's reputed and exclusive brothel. On her first night there she meets Ian Droha[Bokinfo].

Katzenfrauen ist ein Roman der großen Gefühle und der kleinen persönlichen Siege. Valerie Martin erzählt von drei ungewöhnlichen, klugen und willensstarken Frauen, die alle drei gegen Kräfte kämpfen, die sie in ihrer Existenz bedrohen, von Frauen, die kämpfen müssen, weil ihre Gefühle und Träume sie zu Außenseiterinnen machen - von Katzenfrauen eben.

In einer Art Tagebuch berichtet ein junges Hausmädchen von der merkwürdigen Atmosphäre und den seltsamen Ereignissen im Hause des Dr. Jekyll.