MARTIN CLANCY

Clancy MartinA dazzling, dizzying debut - a high-speed American tragicomedy and philosophical investigation into the nature of retail, sex and adulthood from an astonishing new talent. Bobby Clark is just sixteen when he drops out of school to follow his big brother Jim into the jewellery business. Bobby idolises Jim and, from the moment he steps off the plane from Canada, he's in awe of Jim's girlfriend Lisa, the best saleswoman at the Fort Worth Deluxe Diamond Exchange. Under their tutelage, Bobby is determined to learn all he can. How to Sell is the story of a young man's education in the two oldest human passions, love and money. It charts the swift rise of the Clark brothers and tallies the cost of their success on everyone around them, especially on the woman who becomes a lover to both men. Through the lens of this classic tragedy, Martin captures the luxury business in all its exquisite vulgarity, finding in the diamond and watch trade a metaphor for the American soul at work. How to Sell is a marvel of economy, observation, and emotional truth, from a writer whose skills and story arrive fully formed.

A passionate, addictive story of dangerous love, sex and reckless drinking under the Central American sun.Brett is in Central America, away from her husband, Paul, when she meets his friend Eduard. Though unimpressed with him at first, the two soon launch into a passionate affair.Unlike stable Paul, Eduard encourages Bretts dark side. Her sobriety soon slips out of her grasp, and she finds herself on a downward spiral of sneaking off for weeks with her lover and blacking out in hotels. Brett still has the clarity to see that she is destroying her life, but is unable to stop.Though coming undone is something we all try to avoid, Love in Central America is a fiery, powerful novel, marrying tragedy and comedy, that reminds us that going off the rails is sometimes part of the ride.