A Contented Man

About this edition A man waiting in a tower to be killed by an Albanian sworn virgin as part of a blood vendetta. A mythical Irish puca who refuses to take no as a response to his presence. A man obsessed with a long-dead woman in an Impressionist painting. A boy haunted by what might have happened to a woman pulled dead from a lake. Everything is sharply observed and tightly woven, with a heavy dash of psychological suspense. The four stories in this mini collection create an undertow that the reader cannot escape. With an acute eye for both the phases of life and varying mental states, Zoë Beck has created an unforgettable array of compelling stories about people who find themselves enmeshed in situations beyond their control. In addition to her thrillers, Zoë Beck is an accomplished master of the short story, with her uncanny knack for compressing shifting interpersonal constellations into small prose jewels. Her cool, direct, unsentimental, and precise language makes Beck's unique contemporary twist on timeless themes all the more apparent.