Robert Goolrick

Reliable Wife

Charlie Beale meets Sylvan Glass, the bride of the town's richest man, and Sam Haislett, the son of owner of the butcher shop where Charlie gets a job, and soon the interaction between Charlie, Sylvan, and Sam alters the town forever.

A Novel

Heading Out to Wonderful

A candid and deeply personal memoir of growing up in the seemingly idyllic world of a small Southern college town reflects on the devastating secrets behind the genteel faade and the effects of a family history of alcoholism on his life.

Scenes from a Life

The End of the World as We Know It

From the author of the bestselling A Reliable Wife comes a dramatic, passionate tale of a glamorous Southern debutante who marries for money and ultimately suffers for love—a southern gothic as written by Dominick Dunne. It begins with a house and ends in ashes . . . Diana Cooke was "born with the century" and came of age just after World War I. The daughter of Virginia gentry, she knew early that her parents had only one asset, besides her famous beauty: their stately house, Saratoga, the largest in the commonwealth, which has hosted the crème of society and Hollywood royalty. Though they are land-rich, the Cookes do not have the means to sustain the estate. Without a wealthy husband, Diana will lose the mansion that has been the heart and soul of her family for five generations. The mysterious Captain Copperton is an outsider with no bloodline but plenty of cash. Seeing the ravishing nineteen-year-old Diana for the first time, he’s determined to have her. Diana knows that marrying him would make the Cookes solvent and ensure that Saratoga will always be theirs. Yet Copperton is cruel as well as vulgar; while she admires his money, she cannot abide him. Carrying the weight of Saratoga and generations of Cookes on her shoulders, she ultimately succumbs to duty, sacrificing everything, including love. Luckily for Diana, fate intervenes. Her union with Copperton is brief and gives her a son she adores. But when her handsome, charming Ashton, now grown, returns to Saratoga with his college roommate, the real scandal and tragedy begins. Reveling in the secrets, mores, and society of twentieth-century genteel Southern life, The Dying of the Light is a romance, a melodrama, and a cautionary tale told with the grandeur and sweep of an epic Hollywood classic.

The Dying of the Light

A candid and deeply personal memoir of growing up in the seemingly idyllic world of a small Southern college town reflects on the devastating secrets behind the genteel façade and the effects of a family history of alcoholism on his life.

A widower advertises for "a reliable wife" and he chooses Catherine. To her surprise, Catherine learns to love Ralph and must, as a result, abandon the remaining traces of her former life and cope with the haunting effects of family secrets.

a novel

A reliable wife

Wenn Prinzen fallen

"In the spellbinding new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Robert Goolrick, 1980s Manhattan shimmers like the mirage it was, as money, power, and invincibility seduce a group of young Wall Street turks. Together they reach the pinnacle, achieving the kind of wealth that grants them access to anything--and anyone--they want. Until, one by one, they fall. With the literary chops of Bonfire of the Vanities and the dizzying decadence of The Wolf of Wall Street, The Fall of Princes takes readers into a world of hedonistic highs and devastating lows, weaving a visceral tale about the lives of these young men, winners all . . . until someone changes the rules of the game. Goolrick paints a magnificently authentic portrait of an era, tense and stylish, perfectly mixing adrenaline and melancholy. Stunning in its acute observations about great wealth and its absence, and deeply moving in its depiction of the ways in which these men learn to cope with both extremes, the novel travels from New York to Paris to Los Angeles to Italy to Las Vegas to London, on a journey that is as startling as it is starkly revealing, a true tour de force"--From publisher.

The Fall of Princes

In the spellbinding new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Robert Goolrick, 1980s Manhattan shimmers like the mirage it was, as money, power, and invincibility seduce a group of young Wall Street turks. Together they reach the pinnacle, achieving the kind of wealth that grants them access to anything—and anyone—they want. Until, one by one, they fall. With the literary chops of Bonfire of the Vanities and the dizzying decadence of The Wolf of Wall Street, The Fall of Princes takes readers into a world of hedonistic highs and devastating lows, weaving a visceral tale about the lives of these young men, winners all . . . until someone changes the rules of the game. Goolrick paints an authentic portrait of an era, tense and stylish, perfectly mixing adrenaline and melancholy. Stunning in its acute observations about great wealth and its absence, and deeply moving in its depiction of the ways in which these men learn to cope with both extremes, the novel travels from New York to Paris to Los Angeles to Italy to Las Vegas to London on a journey that is as seductive as it is starkly revealing, a true tour de force.

The Fall Of Princes

COUNTRY BUSINESSMAN SEEKS RELIABLE WIFE. COMPELLED BY PRACTICAL REASONS. REPLY BY LETTER. Rural Wisconsin, 1907. In the bitter cold, Ralph Truitt, a successful industrialist, stands alone on a train platform waiting for the woman who answered his newspaper advertisement. But when Catherine steps of the train she's not the woman that Ralph is expecting. She is both complex and devious. And, haunted by a terrible past, she is motivated by greed. Catherine's plan is simple. She will win Ralph's devotion. Later, she will leave him as a wealthy woman. What Catherine has not counted on however is that Ralph might have plans of his own for his new wife . . .

When Passion turns to Poison

A Reliable Wife

“A heart-wrenching, beautiful, darkly comic, deeply necessary tale that stuns again and again with razor-sharp prose and glittering wit. Robert Goolrick is, without question, one of the greatest storytellers of our time.” —Téa Obreht, author of The Tiger’s Wife In the spellbinding new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Robert Goolrick, 1980s Manhattan shimmers like the mirage it was, as money, power, and invincibility seduce a group of young Wall Street turks. Together they reach the pinnacle, achieving the kind of wealth that grants them access to anything--and anyone. Until, one by one, they fall. Goolrick’s literary chops are on full display, painting an authentic portrait of a hedonistic era, tense and stylish, perfectly mixing adrenaline and melancholy. Stunning in its acute observations about great wealth and its absence, and deeply moving in its depiction of the ways in which these men learn to cope with both extremes, it’s a true tour de force. “An addictive slice of semiautobiographical fiction . . . Goolrick vividly plumbs the depths of fortune and regret. The result is a compulsively readable examination of the highs and lows of life in the big city.” —Publishers Weekly “A compelling, wholly seductive narrative voice . . . Goolrick’s stellar prose infuses this redemption story with a good deal of depth and despair, making it read like the literary version of The Wolf of Wall Street.” —Booklist “A dark, intoxicating morality tale . . . With his impeccable prose, Goolrick focuses his unflinching eye on the grittiness beneath the sleek facade of nightclubs, fashion, and monied Manhattan extravagance. Beautifully crafted, seductive, and provocative.” —Garth Stein, author of A Sudden Light and The Art of Racing in the Rain

A stranger. A small town. The wife of the town's richest man. There’s no stopping what’s about to happen in this searing new novel from million copy bestseller, Robert Goolrick. For fans of The Help, Tigers in Red Weather and The Great Gatsby. It is the summer of 1948 when a handsome, charismatic stranger, Charlie Beale, back from war in Europe, shows up in the sleepy town of Brownsburg, Virginia. All he has with him are two suitcases: one contains a fine set of butcher knives; the other is full of money. Charlie should have turned around and walked back the other way, for what follows – the most passionate and tragic story of a forbidden love affair – will threaten to destroy everything and everyone in its path. Told through the eyes of Sam, a young boy in the town whose world is changed forever by the events of that single year, Heading Out to Wonderful is a suspenseful masterpiece, a haunting, heart-stopping novel of obsession and love gone terribly wrong in a place where once upon a time such things could happen.

Olidligt spännande roman med filmisk känsla! En framgångsrik affärsman sätter in en annons i en dagstidning i Chicago. Han är på jakt efter en trogen hustru. Inom kort får han svar från en kvinna som beskriver sig själv som enkel och ärlig. Men hon visar sig vara allt annat än just det. Hennes hemliga plan är att gifta sig med mannen och sedan döda honom, sakta och omsorgsfullt, så att hon sedan kan leva livet som välbärgad änka. Vad hon inte alls räknat med är att mannen har egna planer Romanen utspelar sig 1907 i en snöig avkrok i Wisconsin. Huvudpersonerna Catherine och Ralph är båda känslomässigt skadade av upplevelser i det förflutna och deras motiv till att ingå äktenskap är ytterst olika. I takt med att deras respektive brokiga historia nystas upp växer det fram en verklig och uppriktig relation mellan dem. När så den försvunne sonen hittas utvecklas ett triangeldrama av yppersta klass. En av personerna måste bort, men vem? Spänningen hålls vid liv fram till sista sidan. En trogen hustru är en internationell bästsäljare som sålt över 700 000 ex bara i USA. Utgiven på 27 olika språk. Romanen är en riktigt dramatisk sidvändare som passar perfekt i bokcirklar, eftersom man känner så starkt för dess karaktärer. Författaren Robert Goolrick har tidigare skrivit den kritikrrosade The End of the World as We Know It. »Den är grymt spännande och i slutet av boken håller jag den så hårt att knogarna vitnar.« Bloggen Med näsan i en bok »En riktigt spännande bok, och otäck. Goolrick har ett sätt att skriva som griper tag i dig och får berättelsen att krypa under skinnet. Rent klaustrofobisk på sina ställen.« Djursholms bokhandel »Robert Goolrick håller läsaren på sträckbänken ända till sista meningen. Mycket bra historisk spänning med touch av dekadens, mörker, sex och ensamhet.« En bokcirkel för alla »Ett rasande triangeldrama där passion, svek, mord och tvära vändningar håller läsarens intresse vid liv långt in på småtimmarna. En fantastisk berättelse med inträngande personporträtt, målande miljöskildringar och mustiga relationsbeskrivningar. Det är mycket av allt och man nästan sugs in i handlingen för att efter sista sidan känna sig både vimmelkantig och liksom tillrufsad.« Biblioteket i Sunne »Det är en tät, intensiv, nästan surrealistisk berättelse, berättad med en annorlunda röst. Och inte alls vad jag förväntade mig.« Bloggen Hyllan »Robert Goolrick håller mig fångad från pärm till pärm och vändningarna är många och pusselbit läggs till pusselbit. Men trots det kan jag inte räkna ut hur det hela ska sluta och det gör boken extra läsvärd… Robert Goolrick är skicklig på att gestalta karaktärerna utan att avslöja för mycket och personerna växer på ett trovärdigt sätt fram. En berättelse full av kärlek, svek, vänskap, förfall, ensamhet, missbruk och sex. Ja här finns allt… Jag rekommenderar boken varmt om du är det minsta intresserad av mänskliga relationer!« Bloggen Erikas bokprat »Oerhört vackert skriven.« Bloggen Glamsorbet »… när deras drömmar och förhoppningar både krockar och flyter samman blir det riktigt intressant … allt som oftast lyckas Goolrick överraska och ge en bild av hur kärleken kan vara om man sliter bort den rosa slöja som oftast döljer den. Och resultatet är väldigt lyckat.« Bloggen Böcker rockar fett

Robert Goolrick

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