That First Vision Begins To Go Wrong The Second You Start To Write

Second Sister by Chan Ho-Kei

Hardback: Nga-Yee, a librarian, lives a quiet life with her fifteen-year-old sister Siu-Man. After a difficult, impoverished upbringing and the deaths of their parents, they are finally finding a bit of stability.

Then one day, Nga-Yee comes home to find her teenage sister has jumped to her death from their twenty-second floor window.

Was it suicide, or was she pushed?

And does it have anything to do with a recent trip on the Hong Kong subway which left Siu-Man silent and withdrawn?

Nga-Yee cannot rest until she knows the truth about her sister - even if that means tracking down her sister's friends one by one and making them confess.

Part detective novel, part revenge thriller, Second Sister (2020, English translation) explores themes of sexual harassment, internet bullying and teenage suicide - and vividly captures the zeitgeist of Hong Kong today.

Second Sister is translated from the Chinese by Jeremy Tiang.

About the author: Chan Ho-Kei lives in Hong Kong. He has won the Mystery Writers of Taiwan Award for his short stories, and in 2011 he won the Soji Shimada, the biggest mystery award in the Chinese world.

About the translator: Jeremy Tiang's novel State of Emergency won the Singapore Literature Prize in 2018. He has translated more than ten books from Chinese, including Chan Ho-Kei's The Borrowed, and also writes and translates plays. He lives in Brooklyn.

Rating: 5/5

I Like To Write When I'm Not Supposed To Be Writing

Last Tang Standing by Lauren Ho

Paperback: Remember that your relatives are only human - that means they can be killed. - Ancient Chinese Proverb

Like all good Chinese children, Andrea Tang is doing her best to fulfil all her mother's plans for her life: she's on track to become partner at a top law firm in Singapore, she has a beautiful apartment in the right postcode and a perfect boyfriend who is practically made of husband material.

Except that those plans are unravelling fast: there's an unfairly attractive new lawyer out to steal her promotion, she has credit-card debt up to her eyeballs, her perfect boyfriend is now her perfect ex-boyfriend and the last single cousin in her family just got engaged, leaving her exposed to romantic meddling on all sides...

Last Tang Standing (2020) is a Crazy Rich Asians meets Bridget Jones’s Diary debut novel by a debut author. A funny and irresistible novel, it is a story of love and friendship, the pursuit of happiness, surviving one’s thirties intact, opening oneself up to love and last but not least, it is a story of the most intrusive people in the world: family!

About the author: Lauren is a reformed legal counsel who writes funny stories. She has previously worked for Doctors Without Borders and UNHCR. Hailing from Malaysia, she lived in the United Kingdom, France and Luxembourg before moving with her family to Singapore, where she is ostensibly working on her next novel. Last Tang Standing is not based on her mother. At all. Seriously.

She can be found here @hellolaurenho on Twitter, IG, FB and hellolaurenho.com.

Rating: 5/5

Articulate Thoughts

Stubborn Sense

The Missing American (PI Emma Djan Series) by Kwei Quartey

Paperback: Accra private investigator Emma Djan’s first missing persons case will lead her to the darkest depths of the email scams and fetish priests in Ghana, the world’s Internet capital.

When her dreams of rising through the Accra police ranks like her late father crash around her, 26-year-old Emma Djan is unsure what will become of her career. Through a sympathetic former colleague, Emma gets an interview with a private detective agency that takes on cases of missing persons, theft, and infidelity. It is not the future she imagined, but it is her best option.

Meanwhile, Gordon Tilson, a middle-aged widower in Washington, DC, has found solace in an online community after his wife’s passing. Through the support group, he has even met a young Ghanaian widow he’s come to care about.

When her sister gets into a car accident, he sends her thousands of dollars to cover the hospital bill to the horror of his only son, Derek. Then Gordon decides to surprise his new love by paying her a visit and disappears.

Fearing for his father’s life, Derek follows him across the world to Ghana, Internet capital of the world, where he and Emma will find themselves deep in a world of sakawa scams, fetish priests, and those willing to kill to protect their secrets.

The Missing American (2020) is a brand new series with female private investigator Emma Djan, from bestselling author Kwei Quartey! The Missing American has been optioned for film. The Missing American is dedicated to Ahmed Hussein-Suale, a Ghanaian journalist martyred on 16 January 2019.

The next book in the Emma Djan series - Sleep Well, My Lady - will be released on 12 January 2021.

About the author: Kwei Quartey is a crime fiction writer and physician living in Pasadena, California. Having practiced medicine for more than 20 years while simultaneously working as a writer, he has attained noteworthy achievements in both fields. Over the decades, Dr Quartey balanced the two professions by dedicating the early morning hours to writing before beginning a day in his clinic. In July 2018, Quartey retired from medicine to write full time.

As a crime fiction writer, Kwei Quartey made the Los Angeles Times Bestseller List in 2009. The following year, the G.O.G. National Book Club awarded him the title of Best Male Author. Wife of the Gods (2009) was the acclaimed debut novel in the Inspector Darko Dawson series, a police procedural set in Ghana. Next in the series came Children of the Street (2011), Murder at Cape Three Points (2014), Gold of Our Fathers (2016), Death By His Grace (2018). Death at the Voyager Hotel, a mystery e-novella not in the Darko series, was published July 2013.

Dr Quartey is a member of the Los Angeles chapter of Sisters in Crime, a fiction writers’ organization.

Rating: 5/5

The Life And Revelations Of Saint Gertrude The Great by St Gertrude the Great and the Religious of Her Monastery

Paperback: Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal Church, for those in my own home and in my family. Amen.

Our Lord revealed that the place on earth where He most delighted to be, after the Blessed Sacrament, was "in the heart and soul of Gertrude, My beloved." Therefore, we do not wonder that among all the most remarkable women Saints of the Church, St Gertrude is the one who carries the extraordinary title The Great.

The Revelations of St Gertrude the Great form one of the classics of Catholic writing. And although they would have to be classified as "mystical literature," their message is clear and obvious, for this book states many of the secrets of Heaven in terms that all can understand.

Recorded here are St Gertrude's many conversations with Our Lord, wherein He reveals His great desire to grant mercy to souls and to reward the least good act. In the course of their conversations, He reveals wonderful spiritual "shortcuts" that will help everyone in his or her spiritual life. Moreover, the Revelations of St Gertrude the Great actually open a window onto Heaven, where we can see the specific ways in which prayer, good works and liturgical celebrations on earth have very definite effects in Heaven-among the Saints and Angels and even with God Himself.

The Revelations of St Gertrude were authorized by Our Lord (pp.536-537) and they have been published in many editions, in various languages; they have inspired both clergy and laity for centuries. Surely the present generation of English-speaking Catholics will profit equally from this new edition of The Life and Revelations of St Gertrude the Great (2002, republication), who found such high favour with Our Lord that He chose to dwell in her heart in a special manner and to reveal to her many of the intimate secrets of His supernatural love for soul.

First published in English in 1862, The Life and Revelations of St Gertrude the Great is being principally a translation of the Insinuationes Divinae Pietatis. This edition is translated by The Poor Clares of Kenmare, Co Kerry.

About the author: St Gertrude the Great, a German Benedictine and mystic, was born in 1256 at Thuringia, Rome. As a youth, she enrolled with the Benedictine monastery of St Mary, under Gertrude of Hackeborn. Earnestly studying philosophy and theology, she later began to pursue perfection in the religious life, and also beheld a vision of Christ, Who permitted her to hear the beating of His heart. Her surviving works of literature include Life and Revelations and Spiritual Exercises. St Gertrude died around the seventeenth of November, 1302.

Responsible

The Adventurer's Son: A Memoir by Roman Dial

Hardback: In the predawn hours of 10 July 2014, twenty-seven-year-old Cody Roman Dial, the son of "adventure icon" (Outside) Roman Dial, slipped alone into Corcovado National Park, an untracked rainforest along Costa Rica’s remote Pacific Coast that shelters miners, poachers, and drug smugglers. He carried only a light backpack and machete, for he had been raised to be at home in the world's wildest places. On the eve of his departure, he emailed his father:

I am not sure how long it will take me, but I’m planning on doing 4 days in the jungle and a day to walk out. I’ll be bounded by a trail to the west and the coast everywhere else, so it should be difficult to get lost forever.

They were the last words Dial received from his son.

In the tradition of Into the Wild comes an instant classic of outdoor literature. A riveting work of uncommon depth, The Adventurer's Son is Dial's breathtaking account of his two-year quest to unravel the mystery of his son's fate - and, ultimately, the truth about their relationship.

As soon as he realized Cody Roman's return date had passed, Dial set off for Costa Rica. Trekking through the dense jungle, interviewing locals and searching for clues - the authorities suspected murder - the desperate father was forced to confront his own role in the events. Roman had raised his son to be fearless, instilling a love for the wild; they had travelled together across the globe, through rugged Alaska to remote Borneo, Bhutan, and Central America. In many ways, he had set his child on the path to Corcovado.

Was he ultimately responsible for his son’s fate? Did the young man, so full of confidence and ability, meet a dark end in this lawless wilderness that is notorious for sheltering drug smugglers, poachers, and illegal miners protective of their claims?

Or was Cody Roman, in fact, safe and using his finely honed outdoors skills on an epic solo adventure from which he would return at any moment?

Part detective story set in the most beautiful yet dangerous reaches of the planet, The Adventurer’s Son rapidly emerges as a far deeper tale of discovery - a journey to understand the truth about those we love the most.

The Adventurer’s Son (2020) includes fifty black-and-white photographs, courtesy of the author with a couple of exceptions.

About the author: Roman Dial is a pioneering American adventurer and a professor of mathematics and biology at Alaska Pacific University. "Renowned for audacious feats in mountaineering, ice climbing, rafting, and gruelling backcountry endurance races," writes National Geographic, "Roman is a mythic figure." A former National Geographic Explorer, her received his PhD from Stanford University and lives in Anchorage.

St Rita of Cascia: Saint of the Impossible (Wife, Mother, Widow, Nun) by Fr Joseph Sicardo OSA

Paperback: She hath opened her hand to the needy, and stretched out her hands to the poor... She hath opened her mouth to wisdom, and the law of clemency is on her tongue... Her children rose up and called her blessed: her husband, and he praised her. - Proverbs 31: 20, 26, 28

For centuries, St Rita of Cascia has been one of the most popular saints in the Catholic Church. She is known as the "Saint of the Impossible" because of her amazing answers to prayer as well as the remarkable events of her own life.

Here are the classic stories from her life: the bees which attended her birth, her great early desire to be a nun, her disappointment in not being allowed to be one and her marriage to a cruel husband, his conversion and his murder; and how St Rita prevented her two young sons from taking revenge.

Here also is the story of St Rita's miraculous entry into the Augustinian Convent, her miraculous thorn wound, her severe penances and her many virtues.

Though little documentation on St Rita exists, Fr Sicardo has made her come alive again; his great love and admiration for her shine forth on every page. We are reissuing this book in the hope that many people will pray to her and let her prove to them the truth of her great name, Saint of the Impossible! 

St Rita of Cascia (1990) was originally published by D B Hansen as Life of Sister St Rita of Cascia in 1916.

St Rita of Cascia is translated from the Spanish by Fr Dan J Murphy OSA, who affectionately dedicated this book to the Very Reverend J F Green OSA whose pious and untiring zeal has done so much to spread devotion to St Rita OSA of Cascia.

About the author: The Rev Father Joseph Sicardo OSA was a Spanish priest and author of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. His biography of St Rita of Cascia: Saint of the Impossible was originally published in 1916 by D B Hansen and Sons, Chicago. Additionally, the work was translated by Fr. Dan J. Murphy, and is firmly based on the historical facts of the saint's life, as intended by the author. Father Sicardo's work was retypeset and reprinted by TAN Books in 1990, and also received the Cum Permissu Superiorum, Nihil Obstat, and Imprimatur upon publication.

Dialogues Of Sulpitius Severus

Paperback: In the first of his Dialogues, Severus puts into the mouth of an interlocutor (Postumianus) a pleasing description of the life of coenobites and solitaries in the deserts bordering on Egypt. The main evidence of the virtue attained by them lies in the voluntary subjection to them of the savage beasts among which they lived. But Severus was no indiscriminating adherent of monasticism. The same dialogue shows him to be alive to its dangers and defects.

The second dialogue is a large appendix to the Life of St Martin of Tours, and really supplies more information of his life as bishop and of his views than the work which bears the title Vita S Martini.

The two dialogues occasionally make interesting references to personages of the epoch.

About the author: Sulpicius Severus (c363 – c425) was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania in modern-day France. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours.

The above information is taken from Wikipedia.

The Book of Dust Volume One: La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman

Paperback: Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything but is not much noticed himself. And so perhaps it was inevitable that he would become a spy.

Malcolm's father runs an inn called the Trout, on the banks of the river Thames, and all of Oxford passes through its doors. Malcolm and his dæmon, Asta, routinely overhear news and gossip, and the occasional scandal, but during a winter of unceasing rain, Malcolm catches wind of something new: intrigue.

He finds a secret message inquiring about a dangerous substance called Dust--and the spy it was intended for finds him.

When she asks Malcolm to keep his eyes open, Malcolm sees suspicious characters everywhere; Lord Asriel, clearly on the run; enforcement agents from the Magisterium; an Egyptian named Coram with warnings just for Malcolm; and a beautiful woman with an evil monkey for a dæmon. All are asking about the same thing: a girl - just a baby - named Lyra.

Lyra is the kind of person who draws people in like magnets. And Malcolm will brave any danger, and make shocking sacrifices, to bring her safely through the storm. 

La Belle Sauvage (2017) is the winner of the Waterstones Book of the Year 2017, Author of the Year in the British Book Awards and UK Author in the National Book Awards 2018. 

This edition comes with new original illustrations by Chris Wormell.

About the author: Philip Pullman is one of the most highly respected children's authors writing today. Philip was born in Norwich and educated in England, Zimbabwe, Australia and Wales. He studied English at Exeter College, Oxford. His first children's book, Count Karlstein, was published in 1982. To date, he has published 33 books read by children and adults alike. Winner of many prestigious awards, including the Carnegie of Carnegies and the Whitbread Award, Pullman's epic fantasy trilogy His Dark Materials has been acclaimed as a modern classic. It has sold 17.5 million copies worldwide and been translated into 40 languages. The Amber Spyglass won the Whitbread Book of the Year Award, the first time that prize was given to a children's book. In 2002, he received the 2002 Eleanor Farjeon Award for children's literature and in 2005, he was awarded the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. He lives in Oxford. 

Rating: 5/5

On Acquisition Of The Holy Spirit by St Seraphim of Sarov

Paperback: The venerated teachings of the ascetic monk Saint Seraphim of Sarov are here presented in their entirety.

Renowned and respected as one of the wisest monks of Russia, Saint Seraphim promoted the monastic discipline within the wider context of the Christian faith. Lay persons hearing his sermons and lessons would be encouraged to contemplate their place on Earth as one of God's creatures, while practising a modest existence mindful of others.

This text encapsulates the beliefs and core teachings of St Seraphim, including an introduction to his life and achievements and the tenets of his philosophy in faith. Famously ascetic and harsh on himself, Seraphim would often greet others with kindness and gentleness, going so far as to prostrate at their feet.

Seraphim for much of his life lived in the rugged, harsh terrain of the Russian countryside and woods; one heinous incident of his life saw thieves beat and seriously wound him, yet during their trial the monk - permanently hunchbacked from the attack - plead to the judge to have mercy on the perpetrators.

Pope John Paul II formally confirmed Seraphim a saint, and today imagery and relics depicting St Seraphim of Sarov are displayed throughout many churches in Russia and elsewhere. His existence, replete with a strong and unrelenting commitment to the Christian way of life has inspired many believers to follow his footsteps around the world.

In November 1831, a pious Orthodox Christian named Nicholas Motovilov met with St Seraphim and recorded his conversation. The notes by Motovilov were transcribed and published by SergiusNilus. The book recorded everything word for word of the Saint without any interpretations of the publisher or other persons.

About the Saint: Saint Seraphim of Sarov was born in the city of Kursk in 1759. His parents were pious Orthodox Christians, examples of true spirituality. At the age of ten, Seraphim was miraculously healed from a serious illness by means of the Kursk icon of the Theotokos. As a boy, he immersed himself in church services and church literature. He began monastic life at the hermitage of Sarov at the age of nineteen. He was tonsured as a monk when he was twenty-seven, and soon afterwards was ordained a deacon. The intensity and purity of Seraphim's participation in the Divine services are evident as he was allowed to see angels and during the liturgy on Holy Thursday, he saw the Lord Himself.

At thirty-four, Seraphim was ordained as a priest, and was assigned as the spiritual guide of the Diveyevo convent. At this time, he also received a blessing to begin life as a hermit in the forest surrounding Sarov. He lived in a small cabin, devoting himself entirely to prayer, fasting, and the reading of the Scriptures and the Holy Fathers. Seraphim would go to the monastery on Sundays to receive Holy Communion; and then return to the forest.

In 1804, Seraphim was attacked by robbers and almost beaten to death. Permanent injuries sustained from this attack caused him to always be bent over and the need of a staff to walk. After this event, the Saint began more fervent prayers, incessant for a thousand days and a thousand nights; spending the better part of his time kneeling on a stone near his cell crying out, "Lord, be merciful to me, a sinner." Then he spent three years in absolute silent seclusion.

Obeying the request of the elders of the monastery, Seraphim returned to the monastery in 1810 but continued to live in prayer, and silent seclusion for another ten years. In obedience to a heavenly vision, Seraphim ended his silence and began to speak for the benefit of others. The Saint greeted all who came to him with a prostration, a kiss and the words of the Pascha greeting: "Christ is Risen!" He called everyone, "my joy." In 1825, he returned to his forest cell, where he received thousands of pilgrims from across Russia. Granted the gift of clairvoyance, the wonder-working Saint Seraphim of Sarov gave consolation and guidance to all.

Saint Seraphim died on 2 January 1833, while kneeling before an icon of the Theotokos.