What would you exchange for eternal youth?

3840 Views 28 Replies 12 Participants Last post by Leslie, Mar 23, 2009

Leslie

Discussion Starter · Feb 5, 2009

I know we have lots of fans of Rick R. Reed here....I am very happy to announce that one of his earlier books has been reissued as a Kindle publication and given new life: A Face Without A Heart.

And a description:

A Stunning Retake on the Timeless Themes of Guilt, Decadence, and Despair in Oscar Wilde's fin de siecle classic, The Picture of Dorian Gray. Amidst a gritty background of urban nihilism, a young man bargains his soul away, while his painfully beautiful holographic portrait mirrors his each and every sin and each nightmarish step deeper into depravity...even cold-blooded murder. A Face Without a Heart takes you on a thought provoking tour of the darkest sides of greed, lust, addiction, and violence.

Enjoy, everyone!

L

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Kind

· #2 · Feb 5, 2009

Leslie said:
The Picture of Dorian Gray. Amidst a gritty background of urban nihilism, a young man bargains his soul away, while his painfully beautiful holographic portrait mirrors his each and every sin and each nightmarish step deeper into depravity...even cold-blooded murder. A Face Without a Heart takes you on a thought provoking tour of the darkest sides of greed, lust, addiction, and violence.

L

Thanks for posting. Never heard of it but it sure does sound like a good read.

Lizzy

· #3 · Feb 5, 2009

On the way to his mansion he's gonna be dropping me off at the poor house if he keeps writing like this.

He's just such a good storyteller!

Leslie

Discussion Starter · #4 · Feb 6, 2009

And this one is a good story, too!

L

horrorauthor

· #5 · Feb 6, 2009

Hi All,

Leslie already beat me to the punch, but I just wanted to let you know that her fine publishing company, Bristlecone Pine Press, has just re-issued my award-winning 2000 novel, A Face Without A Heart.

You may have already read the book upon which A Face Without A Heart is based, Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, but my take on the classic story of a man who wishes he could always stay as young and beautiful as his portrait is modern-day and has the freedom to delve into modern-day decadence as even Wilde may not have imagined. If you're familiar with the story, you know that the young man's wish comes true, but he loses his soul in the bargain and his portrait ages and shows the wear of his lifestyle while he stays forever young and beautiful.

A Face Without A Heart has, I think, even more relevance today, with its emphasis on youth and beauty at any cost.

I hope you'll at least give A Face Without A Heart a sample. If you do, I'm pretty certain you'll want to read the rest. I know I couldn't resist a book that starts off with the line: "There is blood on my hands."

Amazon has not linked up this new Kindle version with its print edition, so if you want to check out the reviews, look here. This is my favorite of the sixteen reviews posted, written by Henry Wagner, an Amazon Top 500 Reviewer:

This novel's subtitle, "A Modern-day Version of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray" says it all. In Reed's version, Dorian Gray is Gary Adrion and artist Basil Howard is Liam Howard. Lord Henry Wotton, the Oscar Wilde analog from Dorian Gray, becomes drag queen Lady Henrietta Wotton. Here, Gary's visage is recreated holographically, resulting in an image so exquisite that he jokingly offers his soul in return for a promise to look like that forever. Of course Gary gets his wish, and soon after the hologram begins to display the ravages of his excessive lifestyle while he remains physically unscathed.

Like Gray, Adrion finds and loses love, but the object of his affection is an exotic dancer rather than an actress. Gary's unjustified rejection of the dancer launches him into a life of reckless depravity, one filled with meaningless sex, copious drug use, and even murder. The utter emptiness of his lifestyle eats at the fabric of his soul, causing him to loathe his existence, and eventually, to destroy the source of his eternal youth.

Reed does himself, and his excellent source material proud, masterfully juggling multiple viewpoint characters for maximum effect. Each has a distinctive voice, providing a different, but illuminating perspective on the events described. Like Wilde's story, Reed's is a commentary on contemporary life, a mirror held up to catch the images cast by the dark side of modern existence. Like the best books, Reed's goes beyond its narrow subject matter to invite reflection on deeper patterns of human behavior, in this instance, the self-destructive impulses we all must grapple with and master if we wish to stay sane. As such, it constitutes a penetrating morality tale, a journey into the very heart of darkness.

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Jen

· #6 · Feb 10, 2009

Well, even though I literally have 20 books on my to-read list, you sucked me in! That sounds great, I bought it and will put it at least near the top of my list

!

horrorauthor

· #7 · Feb 10, 2009

Thanks for the vote of confidence (and the buy), Jen! You'll have to let me know what you think when you're through. And if you love the book, I hope you won't keep it to yourself.

Rick

Leslie

Discussion Starter · #8 · Feb 11, 2009

It's a really good story. I highly recommend it!

L

robin.goodfellow

· #9 · Feb 11, 2009

I'm sure the book is great, and that Rick is a wonderful story teller, but am I the only person on the planet who thinks that "eternal youth" is a really hellish idea?

(More a commentary on the "younger is better" way of thinking than anything else. As you were.)

Jen

· #10 · Feb 11, 2009

robin.goodfellow said:
I'm sure the book is great, and that Rick is a wonderful story teller, but am I the only person on the planet who thinks that "eternal youth" is a really hellish idea?

(More a commentary on the "younger is better" way of thinking than anything else. As you were.)

No, you're not the only one! I'm pretty fascinated with our culture and it's obsession though. I'm turning 30 this year, and while most people freak out about it, I'm actually looking forward to being out of my twenties. Weird? Yes.

robin.goodfellow

· #11 · Feb 11, 2009

lol, when I left my 20s behind, it was more with a feeling of profound relief. Glad to see I'm not the only one.

horrorauthor

· #12 · Feb 12, 2009

Jen said:
No, you're not the only one! I'm pretty fascinated with our culture and it's obsession though. I'm turning 30 this year, and while most people freak out about it, I'm actually looking forward to being out of my twenties. Weird? Yes.

I think the whole idea behind the book (both mine and Oscar Wilde's) is that "eternal youth" truly is a "hellish idea."

standaman

· #13 · Feb 13, 2009

Just ordered it. Am looking forward to reading it later this month.

(I'm still in my twenties)

Kind

· #14 · Feb 13, 2009

robin.goodfellow said:
lol, when I left my 20s behind, it was more with a feeling of profound relief. Glad to see I'm not the only one.

Really? haha ... I don't wanna leave my 20's! I still have a while

robin.goodfellow

· #15 · Feb 13, 2009

lol, trust me, the idea grows on you.

Also, it beats the alternatives, which are
1. death, and
2. Finding a guy to paint your portrait so it ages and you stay young. Do you know how difficult it is to find a painter with that kind of skill? who also doesn't want to know if you've ever done nude modeling? Honestly. It's hardly worth googling names to try and find one.

I'm off to download a sample now. Victorian adjectives have kept me away from Dorian Gray. I'm assuming this version won't be nearly as...yeah.

Jen

· #16 · Feb 13, 2009

robin.goodfellow said:
lol, trust me, the idea grows on you.

Also, it beats the alternatives, which are
1. death, and
2. Finding a guy to paint your portrait so it ages and you stay young. Do you know how difficult it is to find a painter with that kind of skill? who also doesn't want to know if you've ever done nude modeling? Honestly. It's hardly worth googling names to try and find one.

Robin, you crack me up!

Kind said:
Really? haha ... I don't wanna leave my 20's! I still have a while

Part of my being excited to leave my twenties has to do with hoping that I might stop being called a 'kid' at work. After being here for 8 years it's pretty irritating, especially since I know more than half of the people calling me that. Hopefully once I'm 30 that will go away! Plus I feel smarter with every year I get older. Now, once I get to my 40's I might be singing a different tune....but for now, I'm quite okay with turning 30 in 9 months. Weird year - getting married, and turning 30....I guess I really am 'growing up'.

Leslie

Discussion Starter · #17 · Feb 13, 2009

robin.goodfellow said:
I'm off to download a sample now. Victorian adjectives have kept me away from Dorian Gray. I'm assuming this version won't be nearly as...yeah.

I couldn't plow through Oscar Wilde. Believe me, I tried. This version is much more readable.

L

Angela

· #18 · Feb 14, 2009

I have downloaded the sample... I am on a spending freeze until I can come up with enough change to purchase a new gift card!!

Leslie

Discussion Starter · #19 · Feb 17, 2009

Oh, this book just got a five star review on Amazon. Way to go, Rick!

http://www.amazon.com/A-Face-Without-Heart/dp/B001RIZEJ6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=digital-text&qid=1234829105&sr=1-1

L

horrorauthor

· #20 · Feb 17, 2009

Wow. Thanks for calling my attention to the review. And I don't even know the person who wrote it (so no innuendos about bribery, please).

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