 |
Signet Paperbacks, a
Penguin-Putnam Imprint
|
The
author says...
"I'm happy and proud to introduce you to
Wolfgang Schmitt, the hero of BAIT AND SWITCH, and my most complex and
appealing character yet. The story opens with Wolf nursing a broken
heart and an impending mid-life crisis, which makes the
once-in-a-lifetime (albeit dangerous) opportunity that plops squarely in
his lap all the more tempting, not to mention timely. Key to Wolf's good
fortune is the fact that, in an attempt to understand the detonation of
his relationship, he's been writing magazine articles on the side that
deal with romantic relationships. Specifically, how to make them work,
based on the long and distinguished list of mistakes he's made
personally. One of Wolf's articles was actually part of the original
manuscript of the novel, and though it was subsequently cut in a random
act of self-inflicted editing cruelty, it remains an interesting glimpse
into the mind of a man who wishes he'd done things differently. |
|
|
Signet Paperbacks, a
Penguin-Putnam Imprint
February, 2003 |
The
author says...
"This book is a departure for me, and a bit of a
risk, since my protagonist is a woman. Readers say they've enjoyed the
female voices of my first two thrillers, and if you've read them you
know I have a lot to say about romantic/sexual relationships. I thought
it might be interesting to turn the point of view inside out and tread
the same path in different shoes, preferably high heeled. I wanted to
craft a story you haven't read before - easier said than done, I might
add - in a setting that would be horrifically familiar yet enticing,
with enough twists to put you in literary traction. Serpent's Dance is
about boundaries, about where the fine line of morality resides in the
close proximity of great wealth, sweet revenge and the fulfillment of
one's deepest desires. The closer you are, the the more the line bends.
When it snaps - or doesn't - defines you." |
|
|
Onyx Books, a
Penguin-Putnam imprint
2001 |
"Performance seminars
have long been the bane of the corporate world, yet few authors have
explored them in fiction to the candid degree that Brooks (Darkness
Bound) does here. The first third of this addictive thriller introduces
Brad Teeters, Mark Johnson and Pamela Wiley, three dedicated yet bitter
senior employees at Wright & Wong, a successful Seattle-based ad
agency. When the trio propose to buy out the firm, Wong agrees,
stipulating that all three employees must first attend The Seminar, a
week-long retreat for executives at a secluded site in northern
California. In detailed prose, Brooks captures the first 60 hours of The
Seminar, during which facilitators simulate airplane crashes and hostage
takeovers in an effort to teach inner strength and trust. But when one
of The Seminar's mind games goes awry, Teeters, Johnson and Wiley become
unwittingly ensnared in an evil scheme masterminded by Wong and Beth,
Teeters's sexy, manipulative wife. Beth, who up to this point has been a
secondary character, becomes the focal point of an intricate conclusion
involving betrayed friendships, apparent suicides and kinky sex games. A
master of terror and suspense, Brooks crafts his characters with care,
lending them opaque dimensions that make them appear both sympathetic
and loathsome." Publisher's Weekly |
|
|
Onyx Books, a
Penguin-Putnam imprint
October 2000 |
"Teasingly erotic,
Brooks' first novel is that rarest of sexual thrillers, in which the sex
isn't gratuitous but a convincing means to an end. Unfortunately, the
book's erotic cover may cause horror/thriller fans to overlook this
title on the bookshelf. What begins as a way for Seattle stockbroker
Dillon Masters to live out his sexual fetishes turns into a high-stakes
game of strategy and deceit, in which the prize is life. The players in
this game are few - including Masters, his wife, his mysterious lover
(whom he calls "The Dark Lady"), her husband, a detective, a
psychiatrist and a lawyer friend of Masters - but the many extremes each
takes to destroy the others are shocking. Midnight phone calls, secret
dalliances and dangerous play-acting ensue until Masters realizes he's
caught in a complex scam and could be pegged for murder. The novel's
final scenes burst with the intensity of a first-rate horror film, and
it's difficult to detect a loophole in the intricate plot."
Publisher's Weekly
|
