A disturbing novel, which tells of the horrors born of boredom.
The first-person narrator, who remains nameless, has returned to his native town more or less against his will, to organise his father`s funeral. No great emotions are awakened within him; he is a stranger in this town. By chance he meets Max, an old schoolmate, who invites him to his castle where, every year, he spends the weekend with friends before a festival begins. There is no reason to refuse the invitation. The usual activities in the cellars of the castle are soon underway - alcohol flows like water, prostitutes are sent for, Hugo, a star cook from Reykjavik, serves obscene medieval dishes, the blow-out begins.
Suddenly a man rings the doorbell. Because of the colour of his skin he is assumed to be a drug-dealer and boisterously invited in for dinner. When the stranger turns out to be selling bibles, the situation escalates and the drunken lord of the castle becomes wantonly aggressive. No one steps in to help, not even when it becomes absolutely clear that action must be taken. Little by little, the castle turns into a terrible prison, from which there appears to be no escape for any of the people involved.
Johannes Gelich has staged a degenerate scenario - with frightening intensity, it calls into question the way we see ourselves.
The Author
Johannes Gelich, born in 199 in Salzburg, studied Theatre Studies and German in Vienna, then spent a study period in Madrid and two years as a foreign editor in Jassy (Rumania).
Publications: »Die Spur des Bibliothekars« (The Tracks of the Librarian, 2003), »Chlor« (Chlorine, 2006). The author lives in Vienna
Rights sold:
Bulgaria: Black Flamingo
Rights soldBulgarian: Black Flamingo Publishing Ltd.
