In these hauntingly beautiful stories of abandonment and vengeance, extreme situations lead to disturbing conclusions. A missionary is sent to a place so distant he finds his God has no power there; a husband abandons his wife as they honeymoon in the South American jungle; a splash of water triggers an explosion of violence; and a boy's drug-induced transformation leads to cruelty enjoyed and suffered. Masterfully written, these are chilling tales from sun-drenched and brutal climes.
Queensland: Nahe des Zeltplatzes in einem Wildpark findet die Journalistin Abby Bardot ein ohnmächtiges junges Mädchen. Abby fällt sofort deren Ähnlichkeit mit mehreren jungen Frauen auf, die vor einigen Jahren im selben Wildpark tot aufgefunden wurden. Die Fälle wurden nie aufgeklärt, der benachbarte Ort Gundara hüllt sich in Schweigen. Dann verschwindet das gerettete Mädchen spurlos, und Abby macht sich gemeinsam mit dem Krimiautor Tom auf die Suche nach ihr. Doch als beide in Toms Haus ein verborgenes Zimmer entdecken, wird Abby mit den Dämonen ihrer eigenen Vergangenheit konfrontiert ...
Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald, musa dell’«età del jazz», rappresentava il prototipo della ragazza spregiudicata degli anni venti. Si descriveva come una persona priva di sentimenti d’inferiorità o principi morali. Pubblicato nel 1932, il suo unico romanzo narra la storia di Alabama Beggs, una giovane del Sud che sposa un artista e vive un'esistenza infelice viaggiando tra Europa e America, mentre cerca di esplorare i suoi talenti artistici. Quest'opera è profondamente autobiografica e riflette episodi della vita coniugale di Zelda, molti dei quali influenzeranno il capolavoro di Francis Scott Fitzgerald, Tenera è la notte. Zelda, ispiratrice di molte protagoniste femminili nei romanzi del marito, incarna una figura affascinante e tragica. Nonostante il glamour dei ruggenti anni venti, che li vedeva come la coppia più in vista di New York, Zelda affrontava un profondo vuoto e ansia di appagamento, cercando di esprimersi attraverso la scrittura, la danza e la pittura, fino a giungere alla schizofrenia. L'opera rappresenta un disperato tentativo di dominare i propri demoni e un'introspezione nella psiche dei personaggi, tanto da spingere il marito a dire: «Non ho mai conosciuto una donna che si esprimesse con tanta grazia e originalità».
When Theo Calvert was driven out of the family home by his wife's cloying piety he had determined that his daughters would follow him, but in the face of the law, the girls' health and his wife's intransigence, he failed. But, if he lost the battle for their souls in life, he would make amends in death, craftily shaping his will to benefit them so long as they did not follow their mother's example. His daughters felt they had lost either way, especially Anna. She had promiscuously turned her back on her mother's teachings, but watched in horror as her sister Therese followed those same lessons and naively accepted the faith which Anna was certain had ruined their lives. In her rebellion against such blind belief she at first doesn't notice the worm in their midst when the convent where Therese has settled employs a new gardener. And when she does wake up to the danger she realises she may have left it too late to save their legacy and their lives.
