The Absentee
to find more, be sure to visit my account and explore the deverse selection available.
A young man wakes up in a college dormitory with no idea who he is, where he is or how he got there. Soon he discovers a secret within himself that marks him as an outcast and places him in danger. He tries to solve the riddle of his nature –and whether it means he has a special purpose for good or ill. After the loss of the one person he loves, cryptic clues steer him toward a quest to the ends of the Earth, from Peru to Kyrgyzstan to Tasmania. A time is coming when he will be called on to summon what courage he has for the sake of the humans.Inspirations: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi and Definitely Maybe by Arkady and Boris Strugastsky.Tone: Darkly humorous outsider fiction.Ideal for whom? Introverts. The hero is not by nature a man of action –his fate was thrust upon him. He is insular, observant and barely social. He feels the pull of the humans yet flees them as a mortal peril.Praise from early readers:“Paked with piercing wit exploring what it is to be both human and a hero from a character who believes he is neither, the story introduces us to the curious case and unforgettable creation of Sawyer as he attempts to negotiate a world where he knows he does not belong. From an incredibly evocative start, this is a voyage of discovery full of intrigue, dark humor and intellect. And it’senriching to see male friendship represented in such a moving, funny and vulnerable way. What a compelling and unexpected book this is.”Jackie Copleton, author of A Dictionary of Mutual Understanding, a
Richard &Judy Book Club winner and longlisted for the Women’sPrize“Iloved The Absentee. McKenzie balances humor and surprise beautifully, keeping us intrigued the whole time. He creates a wonderfully detailed world, establishing not just his protagonist, but his supporting cast as well. The Absentee is a page-turner and worth your time.”Andy Milder, actor with credits including Weeds and Frost/Nixon“Fat-paced and tightly written, The Absentee is an unusual, challenging, thought-provoking delight.”Joan Barfoot, author of the Booker-longlisted novel Critical Injuries“InThe Absentee, Rob McKenzie has fashioned an original, energetic and enjoyable sci-fi mystery, with action and offbeat existential observations stirred together in nearly equal parts.”Luke Jerod Kummer, author of The Blue Period and creator of Takers Mad“Th naïveobserver at odds with the surrounding world throws light on ourselves. There is a travel writer’seye in much of the description, notably the scene with the porcupine. And the ending is rather wonderful.”Stephen Cox, author of Our Child of the Stars