Slipping into Paradise


Book Description

In the tradition of Under the Tuscan Sun and A Year in Provence, here is Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson’s ode to his personal paradise–his adopted home, New Zealand. After living in California, why did Masson settle– out of all the places on earth–in such a faraway land? It turns out that while visiting a beautiful sandy beach just fifteen minutes from bustling Auckland, Masson and his family were utterly seduced by the exotic locale. There was little deliberation. This place, surrounded by lush forest on a bay dotted with volcanic islands, would be their new home. Masson takes readers on a remarkable journey to another world, as he and his family “slip into” the paradise that is New Zealand. For anyone who has ever dreamed of finding utopia, Masson reveals a country where neighbors talk to one another and provide a sense of real community–rarely, outside of the big cities, locking their doors–and where politics are as mellow as the weather. New Zealand is also a land of spectacular scenery, made even more famous for being the shooting location for the Lord of the Rings films. The flora is plentiful. Mangroves, banana plants, papaya trees, and more than ten thousand species of ferns grow wild and freely. The fauna is benign. There are no snakes, tarantulas, or scorpions. Children can walk to school barefoot without a care– there is nothing to sting them, bite them, or give them a rash. In the blue waters near the lush coastline, dolphins and orcas abound. While describing his love affair with the country and his affinity for its citizens, Masson reflects on the meaning of home, the importance of acting on intuition, and what happens when we lose our connection to the place we live in. Responding to an impulse, Masson reveals, he realized a dream. Featuring a its glossary of phrases used by New Zealanders and important Maori words, as well as the author’s recommended travel itinerary, Slipping into Paradise is ideal for anyone planning a visit to this exquisite land. Full of photographs, delightful anecdotes, and little-known facts (jogging, for example, was invented in New Zealand), Slipping into Paradise is also a book for those who fantasize about dramatically changing their lives–and who imagine something better for themselves. Jeffrey Masson’s message: New Zealand awaits.




Slipping Into Paradise


Book Description

A tribute to the author's adopted home in New Zealand describes his decision to relocate to a lush bay area near Auckland, where his family and he thrived in the wake of its natural flora and fauna, dolphin-filled waters, and wildlife. By the author of The Pig Who Sang to the Moon.




Paradise Rot


Book Description

Jo is in a strange new country for university and having a more peculiar time than most. In a house with no walls, shared with a woman who has no boundaries, she finds her strange home coming to life in unimaginable ways. Jo's sensitivity and all her senses become increasingly heightened and fraught, as the lines between bodies and plants, dreaming and wakefulness, blur and mesh. This debut novel from critically acclaimed artist and musician Jenny Hval presents a heady and hyper-sensual portrayal of sexual awakening and queer desire.




Stumbling into Paradise


Book Description

In 1989 just as tourism was beginning in Costa Rica, the author moved to the tropics with his wife and two young daughters. This is the saga of their often humorous adventures in their new found paradise. The Costa Rican saying pura vida "pure life" summed up their hopes, but they soon learned that there's no such thing as heaven on earth. This is a must read for those contemplating dropping out to live on a tropical beach. Steve and Mary Lou now live in Montana and maintain their home in Manuel Antonio as a vacation rental, visiting as tourists when they can.




Apocalypse in Paradise


Book Description

Apocalypse in Paradise is a supernatural story that is a manifestation of the end time prophecies from the Word. Themes in modern society that are most troubling are reflected in this supernatural thriller. These disturbing events speak to the presence of evil in our society and around the globe. Issues like genocide, racism, white supremacy, gun proliferation, severely debilitating drug abuse, increased epidemics of infectious diseases, pedophilia, sexual assault, and the lack of a moral compass in modern society. Just like Babylon. the story takes place on a tropical island that has a military installation with a diabolical colonel, who like Captain Cook, tries to destroy the Polynesian islanders. Furthermore, he has his sights set on the rest of mankind. Colonel Strauss, like Hitler before him, wants to fully restore the Aryan race. Disgusted about the election of an African American president, Colonel Strauss is bent on ridding the world of the colored people, black and brown. and let's not forget the Jews. They'd missed some in the gas chambers and death camps. His diabolical plan is to insert a horrible plague-a fatal disease-into humanity. the only hope is a life-saving vaccine that will only be given to white people. the story begins with a prologue that highlights the catastrophic events occurring on the beautiful tropical island called Nardei (Nar-day), located in the southern Pacific Ocean, as a result of the implementation of Colonel Strauss's diabolical plan. It has been twenty-nine days since the ill-fated luxury ocean liner, Tropicana, left the port of Honolulu. Most of the passengers were either sick or dead. Kate, the nurse from the cruise ship, was now sick too. She still could not believe that evil could exist in a place so beautiful that it had been compared to the Garden of Eden. In this majestic setting, evil was running amok. and why not? Lucifer could quietly get his hold on the world from such a remote location. A sneak attack, if you will. Kate, the nurse on the Tropicana, has just found love with a Hawaiian warrior named Kimo, the leader of the island's people. and sadly, now she was dying of the sickness. She knows that the end draws near. the evil present on the island is reminiscent of the days of Captain Cook, when he sailed into Kealakekua Bay in 1788 and exploited the island's people. Ghastly incidents occurred, like decapitations, mutilations, human sacrifices, and rape of women and children, darkening the sunny days that were once bright and majestic in this tropical paradise. Now history was repeating itself. Today, the village is burning. Once again, the decapitation of the warrior men was happening. the heads were stuck on stakes in front of the village heiau, an ancient temple of worship. the same demon in Cook's day is orchestrating the unfolding calamity on Nardei--a horror so great that scores of local people are taking their own lives, jumping from the high cliffs into the raging ocean crashing below on sharp outcroppings of rocks, death by drowning. Kate was not going to give in to the compulsion to commit suicide. Kimo, her new love, and the other village men are currently on a mission to invade and occupy the military installation to steal the life-saving vaccine. They dared to enter the lair of the beast. Colonel Strauss, a Nazi, a white supremacist, has a plan to restore the Aryan nation. He intends to destroy not only the island but he seeks to impose the eugenic goals of Adolf Hitler. Would Kimo and his men really be able to defeat the military of the United States? the odds were against them. Pastor Kua, the village preacher, joins Kate on the beach where she is watching the magenta sunset. Would it be her last? After all, she has the sickness. Pustules, sores that were bleeding, covered most of her body. She was already experiencing the hemorrhaging from her eyes, nose, and mouth. It gave her a dead vampire look. Despite one disaster after another, Pastor and Kat




A Beast in Paradise


Book Description

A French bestseller and winner of the Le Monde Literary Prize. A “powerful, feverish” novel about a lineage of women possessed by their land (Femme Actuelle). Emilienne’s life is Paradise, her isolated farm at the end of a winding path. After the sudden death of her daughter and son-in-law, this is where she farms alone, with her courage and her land as her only resources, along with her two little grandchildren: Blanche and Gabriel. As seasons pass, Blanche grows older and develops an even stronger connection to her home and the generations of women who have guarded it, like her mother and grandmother before her. When she meets Alexandre, Blanche falls into a devastatingly deep love from which she can never recover. Alexandre, devoured by his ambition, wishes to move to the city to make a name for himself, while the passion Blanche dedicates to Paradise dominates her completely. Almost immediately, their differences become irreconcilable, tearing their worlds apart. Years later, when Alexandre shows up once again on her doorstep, ingratiating himself back into her life, Blanche believes that now she can finally be happy again. But all is not what it seems when there is a darkness lurking at every corner—and Blanche would do anything to protect Paradise. “Coulon’s new novel gives an enthralling voice to the rural world.” —La Croix “A harsh and combative novel which pays homage to the courage and persistence of women to stay alive and standing. Readers will emerge shattered and nourished with an undeniable and mysterious energy.” —Le Parisien “This sensual, bold novel will surprise and delight.” —Publishers Weekly “A quiet tale of love and vengeance.” —Kirkus Reviews




Last Day in Paradise


Book Description

Swisher's moving novel about the shrinking west, greed, love, devotion, and murder makes a statement that all mankind should have the right to live the way they choose and can work through their differences.




Another Day in Paradise


Book Description

The black-and-whites lay sprawled across my desktop: about two-dozen 8 x 10s, each taken through the grimy window of a cheap motel room, each depicting the unclad images of Mr. Ronald Hillard and his mistress—her long hair styled in thick braided cornrows. I glanced at the photos one last time and sighed. Mr. Hillard certainly has an unusual—some would say disturbing—style of lovemaking. Well, to each his own. My name is Cecelia Love but everyone calls me C. C. for short. I am a Private Investigator and solving crimes is my new profession.




Milton's Kinesthetic Vision in Paradise Lost


Book Description

The author demonstrates that the apparent contradictions in the poetic, dramatic, and conceptual framework of Paradise Lost are purposive, indeed central, to Milton's kinesthetic poetics.




Stranger in Paradise


Book Description

Discover the mysteries that unfold in Stranger in Paradise by Amanda Stevens, which was originally published by Harlequin Intrigue in 1996. When Emily planned on hyping her new B&B by republicizing a 15-year-old unsolved murder, she never dreamed the townspeople would react so bitterly. Or that attempts on her life would be part of the deal... Her life in Paradise quickly became a living hell. But then Matthew Steele blew into town... and everything changed. As Emily sized up the mysterious stranger astride his motorcycle, she found herself lost in his arresting gray eyes. Was it a mere coincidence that he resembled the alleged killer from all those years ago, or could he possibly be her knight in shining black leather?