The Phantom Glare of Day by M. Laszlo | Book Review, Author Interview
A book blog tour from Books Forward.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and Simone at Books Forward for providing me with the information for this tour.
Book Details
The Phantom Glare of Day: Three Novellas by M Laszlo Published by Spark Press on November 1, 2022
Genres: Adult Fiction 18+, Coming of Age, LGBTQIAplus, Historical Fiction
Format: eBook, Paperback
Pages: 321
Source: Books ForwardIn this trio of novellas, three game young ladies enter into dangerous liaisons that test each one’s limits and force them to confront the most heartrending issues facing society in the early twentieth century.
The Phantom Glare of Day tells of Sophie, a young lady who has lived a sheltered life and consequently has no idea how cruel public school bullying can be. When she meets Jarvis, a young man obsessed with avenging all those students who delight in his daily debasement, she resolves to intervene before tragedy unfolds.
Mouvements Perpétuels tells of Cäcilia, a young lady shunned by her birth father. She longs for the approval of an older man, so when her ice-skating instructor attempts to take advantage of her, she cannot resist. Not a month later, she realizes that she is pregnant and must decide whether or not to get an abortion.
Passion Bearer tells of Manon, a young lady who falls in love with a beautiful actress after taking a post as a script girl for a film company—and is subsequently confronted with the pettiest kinds of homophobia.
Specific to their time yet unquestionably relevant for women today, The Phantom Glare of Day is a compelling interrogation of who gets to decide what is right and what is wrong.
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Purchase Links for The Phantom Glare of Day
Amazon- One Link for All Countries
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My thoughts on The Phantom Glare of Day
The Phantom Glare of Day by M. Laszlo is a trio of novellas, featuring three young women facing daunting circumstances during World War One.
Sophie, Cäcilia, and Manon each encounter circumstances that alter their world. Whether it’s realizing the cruelty inflicted by bullies, making bad decisions while searching for a father-figure, or encountering homophobia everywhere you turn, the three protagonists give you a deeply personal glimpse into their life.
While this book didn’t resonate with me, it may be perfect for you.
If you are a fan of WW1 era fiction, descriptive prose, and thought-provoking themes, you really should check this book out.
I received a copy of the book for the tour. This review is my honest, unbiased opinion.
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About M Laszlo
M Laszlo is the pseudonym of a reclusive author living in Bath, Ohio. According to rumor, he based the pen name on the name of the Paul Henreid character in Casablanca, Victor Laszlo.
He has lived and worked in New York City, East Jerusalem, and several other cities around the world. While living in the Middle East, he worked for Harvard University’s Semitic Museum. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Hiram College in Hiram, Ohio and an M.F.A. in poetry from Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York.
His next work is now available from AIA Publishing. There are whispers that it purports to be a genuine attempt to explain the universe's riddle and is based on journals and idea books he made while completing his M.F.A. at Sarah Lawrence College.
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Author Interview
What inspired you to write a collection of short stories rather than one overarching narrative story?
Honestly, this work had to be a collection of different works because that was the easiest way to use all the disparate source material. It’s not always good to take the easiest way out, but this was my first book—so I figured why not? From here on, the challenge will be to break apart each idea book so as to create a singular narrative arc. As such, subsequent works will make The Phantom Glare of Day look like child’s play.
How did your time living in London affect your process with writing stories set in London? Did it help you capture the city in words?
London introduced me to Britspeak, British colloquialisms, and British phraseology—the kinds of things that don’t necessarily make it into great British novels. At any rate, London made me realize that dialogue has to be real—that characters ought to talk the way people really talk. In a sense, Britspeak does help capture London in that Britspeak makes the characters REAL.
What was the process of taking your journals and turning them into fiction like? How did it inspire your work?
At first, the process was entirely scientific: to make sense of all that teenage angst, it was necessary to cut things apart and to isolate variables. Having done that, only brainstorming could help to fill in the blank spaces and to turn the material into actual narrative arcs. Of course, that aspect of the process was anything but scientific.
What part of the writing process was most difficult?
It was easy to cut up the journals and to divide ideas into sensible categories. The brainstorming part was the difficult part, of course. After all these years, decades really, the process became a game of finding real, meaningful relationships between disparate concepts. And the stories followed of their own accord.
How do these historical stories fit into the narrative we are all facing in our current, modern lives? What will we learn from your characters?
The ethical issues that face modern society never really change all that much. The struggles are eternal and part and parcel of the human condition. My guess is that every reader will learn something different from interacting with my characters. It’s all down to the fact that every reader is unique and struggles with the big moral issues in his or her own way.
Why set the stories during WWI rather than in modern day?
Honestly, it all comes down to my love of steampunk and the peculiar technological contraptions of the early twentieth century. As odd as it seems, there’s nothing more romantic! Also, I really want these novellas to be timeless—and few events in history seem as hauntingly timeless as the Great War. At least, that’s always been my feeling.
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Easy Amazon Links
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