Synopses & Reviews
Praise for
The Days of the King“Blyth spins out Florians second novel in sinuous prose . . . Its testament to the storys sharp humor and crisp voice—even those amorous passages narrated by the cat—that the reader lingers in each scene, sharing them with the characters moment-by-moment.”—Publishers Weekly
Praise for Little Fingers
“Reminiscent of Poe and Dostoevsky . . . the writing is deliciously foreign, even in translation.”—Susan Salter Reynolds, Los Angeles Times
“[Florian] employs a language that is both evocative and beautiful in the ranks of Gabriel García Márquezs . . . A captivating, mystical read.”—BOMB
“A novel of untamed imagination . . . it reminds readers of how good writing should appeal to our imaginations, give us inexhaustible meanings to grapple with, and link us to the world around us.”—Quarterly Conversation
“Florian weaves together several narratives in his debut novel, a strange story of war, death, alienation, politics, and bizarre miracles, told in brilliant prose.”—Publishers Weekly
Review
“Blyth spins out Florians second novel in
sinuous prose . . . Its testament to the storys sharp humor and crisp voice—even those amorous passages narrated by the cat—that
the reader lingers in each scene, sharing them with the characters moment-by-moment.”
-Publishers Weekly
"A genial tale about fate and romance..."
-Kirkus "Readers on the lookout for unique European literary voices and historical fiction fans looking for a challenge may be charmed by this poetic yet chaotic novel...[Florian] revels in the sensual details of Bucharest street life, food, sex, and dentistry..."
-Booklist
Synopsis
From the recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature, a “brilliant...enchanting novel” (New York Times Book Review) of romance, deceit, religion, and magic set in eighteenth-century Portugal at the height of the Inquisition. National bestseller. Translated by Giovanni Pontiero.
Synopsis
Joseph Strauss (a dentist and bachelor, client of the Eleven Titties brothel and of Der Große Bär beer cellar) leaves Prussia in the spring of 1866 and follows a captain of dragoons to Bucharest, where the officer is to ascend the throne as prince of the United Principalities of Romania. War is imminent in central Europe, but the company of a special tomcat, a guardian angel of sorts, helps him to overcome all dangers.
In Bucharest, Joseph will meet and fall in love with an attractive nanny, while the prince distances himself from the dentist, seeking to erase all stains from his past, particularly his involvement with a beautiful blind prostitute. But unbeknownst to him, she has given birth to a baby boy with a suspiciously aristocratic nose . . .
Nations are invented and dissolved overnight, kingdoms are for sale, Bucharest grows from a muddy pigsty into an elegant capital city, and love turns everything upside down in The Days of the King.
Synopsis
A novel about the adventures of a dentist and the future king of Romania, set in nineteenth-century Bucharest.
Synopsis
Joseph Strauss (dentist, bachelor, and client of the Eleven Titties brothel and Der Große Bär) leaves Prussia in the spring of 1866 to follow captain of dragoons Karl Eitel Friedrich Zephyrinus Ludwig of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen to Bucharest, where the officer is to ascend the throne as prince of the United Principalities of Romania. They are off on the adventure of their lives; the country they will make their new home is rough-and-ready, politically fractious, ethnically diverse, exciting and chaotic all at once. Luckily, Karl has Joseph, and Joseph has Siegfried, a tomcat given to scratching passionate psalms on the backs of upholstered chairs, who is his best friend.
All three will find love—and love’s complications—in Bucharest. But when Karl makes a dynastic marriage, he begins to distance himself from the dentist, trying to put behind him his seamier past, particularly his involvement with a beautiful blind prostitute. However, unbeknownst to the Prince, she has given birth to a baby boy with a suspiciously aristocratic nose . . .
About the Author
FILIP FLORIAN is the author of Little Fingers (HMH, 2009), which received numerous awards, including Best Debut Novel from the Romanian Writers' Union. He has also worked as a journalist and reporter for Radio Free Europe.