"The famously insatiable lover is
brought brilliantly to life in this lively, suspenseful debut
novel by Abrams. Framed as Don Juan's long-guarded diary, the
narrative picks up at a gallop and never relents…The story
unspools with the invigorating trajectory of a thriller and the
emotional draw of historical romance."
--Publishers Weekly
--Publishers Weekly Debut Fiction Profile
"Douglas Carlton Abrams’s
fiction presents one of the most compelling Don Juans in literary
history….With its lush, cinematic sweep of swashbuckling
adventure, social intrigue and probing psychological insight,
this fiery love story should spark global interest."
--Kirkus Reviews
"Awesome. The word is
over-used but is there a better word for a book like The Lost
Diary of Don Juan, so rich, so detailed, so colorful? It is a
magic carpet of a book, a picaresque adventure that will have
you clawing yourself with pleasure. On that carpet you are wafted
back 413 years to a time and place blazing with excitement and
discovery. Doug Abrams writes with such polish, immediacy and
authority, you pause to admire his mastery of narrative. You are
impressed, too, with what is obviously deep research. The book,
like its hero, is a seducer and you want to return for second
helpings."
--Frank McCourt, #1 New
York Times bestselling author of Angela’s Ashes
"This wonderfully written
novel will take you on a ride to the mysterious Sevilla of the
sixteenth century--the city that once ruled the world and that
gave birth to the legend of Don Juan. This journey, I assure you,
will be unforgettable!"
--Javier Sierra, New York
Times bestselling author of The Secret Supper
"The Lost Diary of Don
Juan is a thrilling and sexy book that is at the same time a profound
meditation on the ways of love, its perversities and wonders,
and especially on the intersection of human and divine loves.
The Diary takes us deep into the mysteries of early modern Spain,
in the moment of its greatest wealth and strength and deepest
fears, and gives us a surprising Don Juan—a man of compelling
and seductive ideas as well as of powerful sexuality. The story
is positively gripping and the historical details stunning. The
book glows, its interiors compel—crowds sweat and tables
groan—like a painting of Velasquez or the Dutch Masters.
The Diary has real epigrammatic power: I found myself wanting
to write out some of its beautifully crafted phrases about love
and desire. I cannot think of another novel that so passionately
lays open the heart of Catholic culture, in all its richness and
all its darkness, or that so movingly traces the braiding of pain
and love in that culture's imagination. I was asked to review
the book as a scholar of Catholicism; better to have been asked
my opinion as a man who has loved, and as such, I was utterly
taken by it."
--Robert Orsi, Chair, Study
of Religion, Harvard University, and author of The Madonna
of 115th Street
"Is it still possible
to write stories of love and seduction? If anyone can, it is Don
Juan Tenorio, one of the most celebrated lovers in history. And
he does it from the shadowy terrain between fiction and reality
in this mysterious diary. The best kept secrets from his art of
seducing virgins, widows, and wives reveal a great deal of wisdom
that is far from the typical machismo that one might imagine.
The portrait is completed by a detailed description of 16th-century
Spain, the so-called Golden Age, which takes the reader on a fascinating
journey through time. Doug Abrams succeeds in entering the mind
of this great seducer and creates a story of intrigues and romance
that is filled with unforgettable characters."
-- Fietta Jarque, Books
and Culture Editor, EL PAÍS newspaper, Madrid |
