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DOUGLAS KENNEDY reads from his novel THE BLUE HOUR

The Blue Hour (Atria Books)

“Do you know what this time of day is called?”… “The blue hour”…“The hour at daybreak or dusk when nothing is as it seems; when we are caught between the perceived and the imagined.” From #1 internationally bestselling author Douglas Kennedy, comes The Blue Hour. Perfect for fans of Patricia Highsmith, The Blue Hour follows American travelers to the exotic unknown, where an electrifying twist will leave readers breathless. Lauded “the best book about Morocco since The Sheltering Sky” by Phillip Kerr and “a gripping thriller” by Louise Doughty, Kennedy has returned with a psychological thriller that transports readers to the mysterious –and dangerous – deserts of far-off Morocco. Robin Danvers is a single woman in her late-thirties, an accountant living a quiet life in Buffalo, New York when she meets and marries Paul Leuen. He is an artist and a flamboyant spender with a life as messy as hers is orderly. He’s reckless and bohemian, she’s responsible and a bit buttoned-down. The couple are opposites in many ways but their differences draw them to one another (“We are often attracted to whatever is contrary to our nature.”). Robin knows Paul isn’t perfect, but he says he loves her and that they’re lucky they found each other.  As she nears age forty, desperate to have a baby, she knows he’s right.  As she and Paul struggle to conceive and she learns of his mounting debts, her anxiety runs high and he consoles her with a surprise trip to Morocco.

In the heady strangeness of Morocco, he is everything she wants him to be—passionate, talented, adoring. She is convinced that it is here she will finally become pregnant. Then she discovers that Paul has committed the ultimate betrayal. She leaves him an angry note and proof of his deceitful deed, but when she comes back, Paul has disappeared, and Robin finds herself the prime suspect in the police inquiry. As her understanding of the truth starts to unravel, Robin lurches from the crumbling art deco of Casablanca to the daunting Sahara, caught in an increasingly terrifying spiral from which there is no easy escape. The Blue Hour takes the reader on an evocative, riveting journey into a heart of darkness that asks the question: what would you do if your life depended on it?

Praise for The Blue Hour

“The best book about Morocco since The Sheltering Sky. Completely absorbing and atmospheric.” --Philip Kerr

“Douglas does it again! This is the kind of novel you absolutely cannot put down, the kind that gets your pulse racing, to such an extent you have to switch off your phone, ignore your entourage, and devour to the very end. Brilliantly compelling, startling, and exotic, definitely one of Kennedy's best works.” --Tatiana de Rosnay

“A gripping thriller, this book poses a universal question: how far are we prepared to go in pursuit of the truth, and do we really want the answers when we find them?” --Louise Doughty

“Morocco—vividly described—is a shock of heat, smells, and searing colors…. Kennedy is one of the few writers to understand that people in love are basically insane; this love story darkens into a thriller as the methodical Robin pursues the truth. Romance noir, superbly written.” --The Times 

Douglas Kennedy is the author of eleven previous novels, including the international bestsellers The Moment and Five Days. His work has been translated into twenty-two languages, and in 2007 he received the French decoration of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. He divides his time between London, New York, and Montreal, and has two children.

Event date: 
Saturday, April 23, 2016 - 5:00pm
Event address: 
1818 N Vermont Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027
The Moment: A Novel By Douglas Kennedy Cover Image
$31.99
Possibly out of print. Email or call to check availability and price.
ISBN: 9781451608595
Published: Atria Books - November 15th, 2011