Exclusive – The Stranger by Max Frei (excerpt)
Today at BSC I have an exclusive excerpt from a novel I’ve been hearing a lot about for several months now. Max Frei’s The Stranger is set to be published by Overlook Press on April 15th.
Synopsis:
Russian literary sensation Max Frei makes his English language debut in The Stranger, a highly philosophical comic fantasy infused with extraordinary wit, a voice that is beyond unique, and a complex web of clues that keeps the pages turning. A bestseller in Europe for years, this astonishing story is the fantasy epic for a new century.
Once a self-described “classic loser” who, if it weren’t for bad luck, wouldn’t have any luck at all, Max is an insomniac who sleeps all day, a night owl in a world of larks, a social outcast and a glutton with nothing to show for himself but empty cigarette packs. At twenty-something, Max is never the early bird and he never gets the worm. Then one day he suddenly finds himself transplanted into an alternate dream universe in the city of Echo, summoned by the chief of the Secret Police. In this world, he is deemed a species of magical secret agent, is made a member of the Department of Absolute Order, and must solve unimaginably extravagant cases with his exceptional new powers. Fate smiles on Max in the city of Echo, where everything that happens to him happens for a reason, and the one-time slacker is known reverently as the “unequalled Sir Max.” As Max learns how to navigate through his bizarre new reality, he takes readers on the journey of a lifetime punctuated by incredible events and a cast of unforgettable characters.
In an additional twist of fantasy, the true author behind the endearing narrator of The Labyrinths of Echo series is revealed in reality as Russian writer Svetlana Martynchik.
BSC would like to thank Overlook Press for allowing us to present the following excerpt at our venue!
Please check out all of our other exclusives for more chapters/excerpts from novels and complete short stories from collections and anthologies. BSC is the choice for publishers to bring you the goods!
I hope you enjoy!
