Bøger af Clifford Garstang

"Aislinn Givens leaves a settled life in Manhattan for an unsettled life in Singapore. That painting radiates mystery and longing. So does Clifford Garstang's vivid and simmering novel, The Last Bird of Paradise." -John Dalton, author of Heaven Lake and The Inverted ForestTwo women, nearly a century apart, seek to rebuild their lives when they reluctantly leave their homelands. Arriving in Singapore, they find romance in a tropical paradise, but also find they haven't left behind the dangers that caused them to flee.In the aftermath of 9/11 and haunted by the specter of terrorism, Aislinn Givens leaves her New York law practice and joins her husband in Southeast Asia when he takes a job there. Seeking to establish herself in a local law firm, Aislinn begins to understand the historic resentment of foreigners who have exploited the region for centuries. Learning about the turmoil of Singapore's colonial period, she acquires several paintings done by an English artist during World War I that she believes are a warning to her. The artist, Elizabeth Pennington, tells her own tumultuous story through diary entries that come to an end when the war reaches the colony with catastrophic results. In the present, Aislinn and her husband learn tragically that terrorism takes many shapes when they are ensnared by local political upheaval and corruption.In a lyrical blend of historical and contemporary drama, The Last Bird of Paradise explores the consequences of power imbalances-both domestic and geopolitical, against a lush, tropical backdrop. Clifford Garstang, author of the award-winning novel Oliver's Travels, once again draws on his decades of experience in Asia to tell an unforgettable story of romantic intrigue.

Skyline 2015, the second in a series of annual publisher's anthologies produced by Cyberworld Publishing, showcases the prose and poetry talents of Central Virginia writers. The anthology consists of thirty-nine works by nineteen authors in four sections: fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and, since this is a writer's anthology, a section on writing and publishing. There is no overarching theme for the works in this anthology, so each can be discovered and appreciated for its own context and merits. Over half of the works found here are works by Central Virginia writers that ranked high in various writing contests during 2014. The foundation is the 2014 writing contest of the Blue Ridge Writers Chapter of the Virginia Writers Club. Also included in this anthology are other works selected from the portfolios of these contest selectees, special contributor works by established writers in the region, and poems from recently published works by Central Virginia writers.

Ollie Tucker, a recent college graduate and student of philosophy, is obsessed with truth and the source of knowledge, questioning the validity of everything he hears from his parents, his girlfriend, and even the voices inside his head. In pursuit of the truth and life's deeper meaning, he invents an alter ego, Oliver, who lives the adventurous and exotic existence Ollie cannot. But Ollie has another problem--a repressed memory of his uncle Scotty that threatens to derail his life, his relationships, and his sexuality. But the memory is a blur. And what he thinks he remembers, he knows is unreliable. The uncertainty is paralyzing. What is the truth? What has his subconscious fabricated? When he learns that his uncle, long-presumed dead, is in fact alive and well, Ollie realizes that to move on with his life and find peace, he must confront his uncle.