Monday, July 27, 2015

Paradise Rot by Larry Weiner Excerpt, Interview & Giveaway


Paradise Rot
The Island Trilogy
Book One
Larry Weiner

Genre:  Satire/Dark Comedy

Publisher: Booktrope

Date of Publication: May 30, 2015

ISBN:  978-1-5137-0031-1
ASIN: B00YLDWX66

Number of pages: 211

Cover Artist:  Larry Weiner

Book Description:

Kyle Brightman—late of the advertising industry and soon-to-be-late of the 5th floor psych ward—has a job offer he can’t refuse. A new resort in the Caribbean is looking for an art director.

Kyle soon finds himself on the Isle of St. Agrippina working alongside a beautiful copywriter with an icy handshake. Questions arise: Why does the resort management team sport spray-on tans in the Bahamas? How can the resort offer such cheap vacation packages? What does one do with vats of Astroglide?

To get the answers, Kyle must first navigate a series of wildly unpredictable events with a cast of even more wildly unpredictable characters, including a seductress jungle assassin, her partially paralyzed talking Chihuahua, an Ivy League Rastafarian seaplane captain, Kyle’s ex-psych ward roommate, a former Haliburton mercenary, and a French tavern owner with a fondness for goats, all set to the greatest hits of the 70’s. Pablo Cruise never felt so right.


Amazon    BN
Excerpt: Chapter One


 “THERE’S A REASON WE PUT PATIENTS IN RESTRAINTS THIS WAY,” Hap the orderly explained. “See before, when it became necessary to administer a four-point restraint on someone, we’d just do the standard two feet to each side of the gurney and two wrists by the waist. 

About the Author:

Larry Weiner is the author of PARADISE ROT (BOOK ONE), ONCE AGAIN, WITH BLOOD (BOOK TWO) and the forthcoming HINDU SEX ALIENS (BOOK THREE) that make up the Island Trilogy. Larry earned a degree in film from CSULA and was an award-winning art director. He lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest with his wife, two kids and a gaggle of animals. He plays bass and thus has poor hearing.

Interview
Where are you from?
Malden, Massachusetts
Tell us your latest news?
Paradise Rot, my first novel in a trilogy, is being re-release with Booktrope Publishing.
When and why did you begin writing?
I began writing in the 7th grade after I read “A day in the life of Ivan Denisovich,” in an English class taught by Mr. Gosserand, who became a I big influence.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I’m still waiting on that. Actually when I was 23, I wrote a mystery novel and just the mere fact that I completed made me think, “Huh. Well I guess I’m kind of a writer.”
What inspired you to write your first book?
My first two books are in a slag heap along with the dozens of movie scripts I’ve written. Paradise Rot was borne out of working in advertising where I felt I was trapped in a situation I couldn’t escape from. I’m also a Hitchcock fan and love the idea of taking an ordinary guy and place in him in an extraordinary situation and seeing what happens.
Do you have a specific writing style?
Lots of dialogue. This is a holdover from my screenwriting days. I love eavesdropping on conversations and am acutely aware of what works in a movie and what falls flat. I’d also say that my writing has a certain velocity to it – things move along rapidly.
How did you come up with the title?
Based it on Miltons’ Paradise Lost. Plus, zombies in the Caribbean – lots of rot going on there.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
I address a variety of things ranging from mental illness to mixing the perfect cocktail. My protagonist relies on friendships to pull him through the hard times – and laughter, lots of laughter.
How much of the book is realistic?
I pepper Paradise Rot with lots of pop culture references – all true – and as far as the parts about working on an advertising campaign – all true as well – except for the part where the clients are zombies – although in my career I often considered clients undead.
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
The protagonist works in advertising as an art director AND has been in the psych ward – both real life events for me. Also, I love boat drinks.
What books have most influenced your life most?
Anything by Vonnegut and Hiaasen and Hunter S Thompson’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.” Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass,” is a huge influence though it may not show it in my writing.
If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
Hunter S Thompson – his language just kills me.
What book are you reading now?
Armada by Ernest Cline.
Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?
Ernest Cline, Jamie Ford, Hugh Howey, Bridget Foley,
What are your current projects?
Working on a fourth novel, going over revisions of the third in my trilogy and promoting Paradise RotJ

What would you like my readers to know?

First, I’m happy to be here and second that my books are meant to bring a smile, be a little subversive and open people up to a new world of characters with flaws. Big flaws.

Visit his site at: http://www.larrynweiner.com  

Join his Twitter feed at: @LarryNWeiner






Tour giveaway

2 ebook copies of Paradise Rot

2 paperback copies of Paradise Rot

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