Best Selling Books by Matt Ruff

Now an HBO® Series from J.J. Abrams (Executive Producer of Westworld), Misha Green (Creator of Underground) and Jordan Peele (Director of Get Out) The critically acclaimed cult novelist makes visceral the terrors of life in Jim Crow America and its lingering effects in this brilliant and wondrous work of the imagination that melds historical fiction, pulp noir, and Lovecraftian horror and fantasy. Chicago, 1954. When his father Montrose goes missing, 22-year-old Army veteran Atticus Turner embarks on a road trip to New England to find him, accompanied by his Uncle George—publisher of The Safe Negro Travel Guide—and his childhood friend Letitia. On their journey to the manor of Mr. Braithwhite—heir to the estate that owned one of Atticus’s ancestors—they encounter both mundane terrors of white America and malevolent spirits that seem straight out of the weird tales George devours. At the manor, Atticus discovers his father in chains, held prisoner by a secret cabal named the Order of the Ancient Dawn—led by Samuel Braithwhite and his son Caleb—which has gathered to orchestrate a ritual that shockingly centers on Atticus. And his one hope of salvation may be the seed of his—and the whole Turner clan’s—destruction. A chimerical blend of magic, power, hope, and freedom that stretches across time, touching diverse members of two black families, Lovecraft Country is a devastating kaleidoscopic portrait of racism—the terrifying specter that continues to haunt us today.

Science fiction roman.

Andy Gage was born in 1965 and murdered not long after by his stepfather. . . . It was no ordinary murder. Though the torture and abuse that killed him were real, Andy Gage''s death wasn''t. Only his soul actually died, and when it died, it broke in pieces. Then the pieces became souls in their own right, coinheritors of Andy Gage''s life. . . . While Andy deals with the outside world, more than a hundred other souls share an imaginary house inside Andy''s head, struggling to maintain an orderly coexistence: Aaron, the father figure; Adam, the mischievous teenager; Jake, the frightened little boy; Aunt Sam, the artist; Seferis, the defender; and Gideon, who wants to get rid of Andy and the others and run things on his own. Andy''s new coworker, Penny Driver, is also a multiple personality, a fact that Penny is only partially aware of. When several of Penny''s other souls ask Andy for help, Andy reluctantly agrees, setting in motion a chain of events that threatens to destroy the stability of the house. Now Andy and Penny must work together to uncover a terrible secret that Andy has been keeping . . . from himself.

Jane Charlotte has been arrested for murder. During questioning, she tells the police that she is a member of a secret organisation. Her division, the Bad Monkeys, is an execution squad, determined to rid the world of evil people. But the man she has just killed was not on the target list. As her story becomes more bizarre the question becomes: Is Jane lying, crazy - or playing a different game altogether?

“Another virtuoso blend of horror, action, and humor. . . . Fans will find this a worthy sequel.”—Publishers Weekly In this thrilling adventure, a blend of enthralling historical fiction and fantastical horror, Matt Ruff returns to the world of Lovecraft Country and explores the meaning of death, the hold of the past on the present, and the power of hope in the face of uncertainty. Summer, 1957. Atticus Turner and his father, Montrose, travel to North Carolina to mark the centennial of their ancestor’s escape from slavery, but an encounter with an old nemesis leads to a life-and-death pursuit. Back in Chicago, George Berry is diagnosed with cancer and strikes a devil’s bargain with the ghost of Hiram Winthrop, who promises a miracle cure—but only if George brings Winthrop back from the dead. Fifteen-year-old Horace Berry, reeling from the killing of a close friend, joins his mother, Hippolyta, and her friend Letitia Dandridge on a trip to Nevada for The Safe Negro Travel Guide. But Hippolyta has a secret—and far more dangerous—agenda that will take her and Horace to the far end of the universe and bring a new threat home to Letitia’s doorstep. Hippolyta isn’t the only one keeping secrets. Letitia’s sister, Ruby, has been leading a double life as her white alter ego, Hillary Hyde. Now, the supply of magic potion she needs to transform herself is nearly gone, and a surprise visitor throws her already tenuous situation into complete chaos. Yet these troubles are soon eclipsed by the return of Caleb Braithwhite. Stripped of his magic and banished from Chicago at the end of Lovecraft Country, he’s found a way back into power and is ready to pick up where he left off. But first he has a score to settle . . .

The critically acclaimed author of Lovecraft Country returns with a thrilling and immersive virtual reality epic—part cyberthriller, part twisted romantic comedy—that transports you to a world where identity is fluid and nothing can be taken at face value. John Chu is a “sherpa”—a paid guide to online role-playing games like the popular Call to Wizardry. For a fee, he and his crew will provide you with a top-flight character equipped with the best weapons and armor, and take you dragon-slaying in the Realms of Asgarth, hunting rogue starships in the Alpha Sector, or battling hordes of undead in the zombie apocalypse. Chu’s new client, the pseudonymous Mr. Jones, claims to be a “wealthy, famous person” with powerful enemies, and he’s offering a ridiculous amount of money for a comprehensive tour of the world of virtual-reality gaming. For Chu, this is a dream assignment, but as the tour gets underway, he begins to suspect that Mr. Jones is really North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, whose interest in VR gaming has more to do with power than entertainment. As if that weren’t enough to deal with, Chu also has to worry about “Ms. Pang,” who may or may not be an agent of the People’s Republic of China, and his angry ex-girlfriend, Darla Jean Covington, who isn’t the type to let an international intrigue get in the way of her own plans for revenge. What begins as a whirlwind online adventure soon spills over into the real world. Now Chu must use every trick and resource at his disposal to stay one step ahead—because in real life, there is no reset button.

A mind-bending novel in which an alternate history of 9/11 and its aftermath uncovers startling truths about America and the Middle East 11/9/2001: Christian fundamentalists hijack four jetliners. They fly two into the Tigris & Euphrates World Trade Towers in Baghdad, and a third into the Arab Defense Ministry in Riyadh. The fourth plane, believed to be bound for Mecca, is brought down by its passengers. The United Arab States declares a War on Terror. Arabian and Persian troops invade the Eastern Seaboard and establish a Green Zone in Washington, D.C. . . . Summer, 2009: Arab Homeland Security agent Mustafa al Baghdadi interrogates a captured suicide bomber. The prisoner claims that the world they are living in is a mirage—in the real world, America is a superpower, and the Arab states are just a collection of "backward third-world countries." A search of the bomber''s apartment turns up a copy of The New York Times, dated September 12, 2001, that appears to support his claim. Other captured terrorists have been telling the same story. The president wants answers, but Mustafa soon discovers he''s not the only interested party. The gangster Saddam Hussein is conducting his own investigation. And the head of the Senate Intelligence Committee—a war hero named Osama bin Laden—will stop at nothing to hide the truth. As Mustafa and his colleagues venture deeper into the unsettling world of terrorism, politics, and espionage, they are confronted with questions without any rational answers, and the terrifying possibility that their world is not what it seems. Acclaimed novelist Matt Ruff has created a shadow world that is eerily recognizable but, at the same time, almost unimaginable. Gripping, subversive, and unexpectedly moving, The Mirage probes our deepest convictions and most arresting fears.

A satire of a surreal technocratic future by the national-bestselling author of Lovecraft Country: "Dizzyingly readable" (Thomas Pynchon). High above Manhattan, android and human steelworkers are constructing a new Tower of Babel for billionaire Harry Gant, as a monument to humanity''s power to dream. In the festering sewers below, a darker game is afoot: a Wall Street takeover artist has been murdered, and Gant''s crusading ex-wife, Joan Fine, has been hired to find out why, in this wild romp by the acclaimed author of Fool on the Hill and Lovecraft Country. The year is 2023, and Ayn Rand has been resurrected and bottled in a hurricane lamp to serve as Joan''s assistant; an eco-terrorist named Philo Dufrense travels in a pink-and-green submarine designed by Howard Hughes; a Volkswagen Beetle is possessed by the spirit of Abbie Hoffman; Meisterbrau, a mutant great white shark, is running loose in the sewers beneath Times Square; and a one-armed 181-year-old Civil War veteran joins Joan and Ayn in their quest for the truth. All of them, and many more besides, are about to be caught up in a vast conspiracy involving Walt Disney, J. Edgar Hoover, and a mob of homicidal robots . . . "[An] SF roller-coaster satirizing the horrors of our nascent technocracy . . . Told with breezy good humor, this exuberantly silly tale will find an audience among admirers of the day-glo surrealism of Steve Erickson and the tangled conspiracy theories of David Foster Wallace." — Publishers Weekly "A turbocharged neo-Dickensian hot rod [with] plenty of intellectual horsepower." —Neal Stephenson

New York im Jahr 2023: Tief unten in der Kanalisation tummelt sich Meisterbrau, ein mutierter weißer Hai und Liebhaber klassischer Musik. Währenddessen wird hoch über den Schluchten Manhattans ein neuer Turm zu Babel gebaut, nach dem Willen des visionären Trillionärs Harry Gant, der seinen Reichtum mit der Erfindung von Automatischen Dienern begründet hat. Und ausgerechnet so ein Roboter soll den Tycoon Amberson Teaneck erschlagen haben? Auf der Suche nach dem Mörder wird ein gigantisches Komplott entdeckt.

Mouse erwacht in Betten fremder Männer, ohne sich an den Weg dahin erinnern zu können. Andrew hingegen teilt seinen Körper mit einem sexbesessenen Teenager, einer tollen Tante, grummeligen Cousins und anderen Gestalten. Mit großem Einfühlungsvermögen und schrägem Humor erzählt Matt Ruff die Geschichte zweier junger Menschen mit multipler Persönlichkeitsstörung. Begleitet von jeder Menge "Personal" brechen die beiden zu einem wilden Road Trip in ihre verstörende Vergangenheit auf ...

Uma jornada fantástica e assustadora, adaptada para virar série na HBO com produção do diretor de Corra!, Jordan Peele, e J.J. Abrams Nos Estados Unidos segregados da década de 1950, Atticus é um rapaz negro, veterano da Guerra da Coreia, fã de H. P. Lovecraft e outros escritores de pulp fiction. Ao descobrir que o pai desapareceu, ele volta à cidade natal para, com o tio e a amiga, partir em uma missão de resgate. Na viagem até a mansão do herdeiro da propriedade que mantinha um dos ancestrais de Atticus escravizado, o grupo enfrentará sociedades secretas, rituais sanguinolentos e o preconceito de todos os dias. Ao chegar, Atticus encontra seu pai acorrentado, mantido prisioneiro por uma confraria secreta, que orquestra um ritual cujo personagem principal é o próprio Atticus. A única esperança de salvação do jovem, no entanto, pode ser a semente de sua destruição — e de toda a sua família. E esta é apenas a primeira parada de uma jornada impressionante. Estruturado ao mesmo tempo como uma coletânea de contos e um romance, Território Lovecraft apresenta, além de personagens memoráveis, elementos sobrenaturais, como casas assombradas e portais para outras realidades, objetos enfeitiçados e livros mágicos. Um retrato caleidoscópico do racismo — o fantasma que até hoje assombra o mundo —, a obra de Matt Ruff une ficção histórica e pulp noir ao horror e à fantasia de Lovecraft para explorar os terrores da época de segregação racial nos Estados Unidos.

1954, Chicago. A huszonkét éves leszerelt katona, Atticus Turner édesapjának nyoma vész, ezért felkerekedik, hogy megkeresse. Vele tart George bácsikája, a Néger útikönyv szerkesztője, és gyerekkori barátja, Letitia is. Útjuk Samuel Braithwhite vidéki kúriájához vezet New Englandben, arra a birtokra, ahol annak idején Atticus ősei rabszolgaságban senyvedtek. Menet közben nemcsak a fehérek Amerikájának hétköznapi borzalmaival szembesülnek, hanem olyan ártó szellemekkel is, amelyek mintha George kedvenc fantasztikus történeteiből lépnének ki. Atticus az apja keresése révén rábukkan egy titkos szektára, melynek rejtélyes szertartásában történetesen ő maga hivatott kulcsszerepet játszani. Ahhoz, hogy élve megússza a kalandot, olyan dolgokra kényszerítik, amelyek a Turner-klán pusztulásához vezethetnek. A Lovecraft földjén időn és téren átívelő, varázslattal, hatalommal, reménnyel és szabadsággal játszadozó, elsöprő erejű kaleidoszkópja két fekete család egymástól sokban különböző tagjain keresztül rajzolja meg a rasszizmus portréját, annak máig kísértő, szörnyűséges hatásait. Matt Ruff kozmikus horrorból, gótikus fantasyből és tudományos fantasztikumból táplálkozó regénye egyöntetű kritikai sikert aratott mind a szépirodalmat, mind a sci-fit/fantasyt olvasók körében, ráadásul 2020-ban sorozatra adaptálta az HBO.

Letehetetlen regény a Ready Player One és Neal Stephenson rajongóinak! John Chu egy „serpa”, aki társaival együtt jó pénzért virtuális kalandokra kíséri ügyfeleit online szerepjátékokba, ahol jól felszerelt karakterekkel élhetnek át felejthetetlen izgalmakat: sárkányokat ölhetnek, űrcsatákban vehetnek részt, bankot rabolhatnak vagy zombihordákkal küzdhetnek. Az új ügyfelük a titokzatos, magát gazdag és ismert személynek mondó Mr. Jones rengeteg pénzt kínál azért, hogy átfogó idegenvezetést kapjon a virtuális valóság játékvilágáról. Chu számára ez az álommunka, de ahogy belevágnak a kalandozásba, gyanítani kezdi, hogy Mr. Jonest inkább az emberek felett gyakorolt hatalmi potenciál, semmint a szórakozási lehetőségek megismerése vezérli. A fergeteges online kalandnak induló megbízás aztán hamarosan átszivárog a való világba, ahol Chunak minden leleményességére szüksége van, hogy egy lépéssel előrébb járjon mindenkinél – mert a valóságban nincs újraindító gomb. Matt Ruff legújabb regénye egyrészt tisztelgés a videojátékok világa és a videojátékos közösségek előtt, másrészt izgalmas jelenetekbe ágyazott észrevételek sora arról, hogy mi rejlik a virtuális valóságban, és egyben milyen veszélyekre kell felkészülnie az embereknek a jövőben.

Teils Detektivgeschichte, teils Science-Fiction-Thriller – und ganz der neue, witzige Roman von Kultautor Matt Ruff. John Chu liebt seinen Job. Als Sherpa begleitet er zahlungskräftige Kunden in Online-Rollenspiele wie das populäre Call to Wizardry und zeigt ihnen die Kniffe des Games. Das Geschäft brummt, und John würde sich als glücklich bezeichnen, wären da nicht zwei klitzekleine Probleme: Zum einen hat seine Ex-Freundin nach einer unglücklich verlaufenen Trennung geschworen, seine berufliche und private Existenz zu vernichten. Zum anderen vermutet er, dass es sich bei seinem neuesten Kunden in Wirklichkeit um den nordkoreanischen Diktator Kim Jong-un handelt, der die virtuelle Welt studieren möchte, um sie für seine politischen Zwecke zu instrumentalisieren. John versucht, der wahren Identität des ominösen »Mr. Jones« auf die Spur zu kommen – und verstrickt sich in ein Komplott, das ihn den Kopf kosten könnte. Für Leser*innen von Ernest Cline, Jasper Fforde und Douglas Adams.

Liefde in veelvoud Het is een ongelooflijk liefdesverhaal: een man en een vrouw, voor elkaar bestemd, beiden met een meervoudige persoonlijkheidsstoornis. Twintig mensen, verliefd op twintig mensen. Matt Ruff levert in Verliefde zielen een ongelooflijke prestatie door hiervan een gecompliceerde, grappige (niet elke persoonlijkheid is het met de andere eens) en tragische, maar vooral mooie roman te maken. Een verhaal dat je niet loslaat. Matt Ruff werd in 1965 in New York geboren. Zijn eerste roman, de cultklassieker Fool on the Hill verscheen in 1988. Verliefde zielen werd onderscheiden met diverse prijzen en beurzen. Ruff woont in Seattle, samen met zijn vrouw Lisa Gold. ''Ruff heeft twee personages gecreëerd wier avonturen even spannend als grappig zijn. Samen discussiëren ze wat af in wat uiteindelijk vooral een romantisch verhaal is: zelfs de moeilijkste episodes worden met warmte gebracht.'' O, The Oprah Magazine

Das Attentat erschüttert die Vereinigten Arabischen Staaten (VAS) bis ins Mark: Am 9.11.2001 steuern christliche Fundamentalisten zwei Flugzeuge in die Türme des Welthandelszentrums von Bagdad, ein drittes ins arabische Verteidigungsministerium in Riad, während mutige Passagiere das vierte, für Mekka bestimmte in der Wüste zum Absturz bringen. Die wirtschaftliche Supermacht sagt dem Terror daraufhin den Kampf an und besetzt die Ostküste von Amerika - Entwicklungsland und mutmassliche Heimat der Terroristen. Acht Jahre später neigt sich der Krieg dort seinem Ende zu. Die Terrorgefahr ist allerdings nicht gebannt. Von einem verhafteten Selbstmordattentäter erfahren Mustafa, Samir und Amal, Bundesagenten für Innere Sicherheit, Unglaubliches: In Wahrheit sei Amerika die Grossmacht, die arabischen Staaten hingegen rückwärtsgewandte Dritte-Welt-Länder. Die?New York Times? vom 12.9.2001, die beim Attentäter gefunden wird, scheint dies zu bestätigen. Bald entdecken Mustafa und sein Team, dass auch noch andere von dieser vermeintlichen Parallelwelt wissen und vor nichts zurückschrecken, um die Wahrheit darüber zu verschleiern ... Matt Ruff,1965 in New York geboren, wuchs als Sohn eines lutherischen Pfarrers in Queens auf. Er studierte Englische Literatur und Creative Writing und lebt heute in Seattle.

Tale of fairies, dragons, gypsies, mythical horses, and students on Harleys in a fictitious university setting.

In the summer of 2009, Arab Homeland Security agent Mustafa al Baghdadi is plunged into a conspiracy involving Suddam Hussein, Osama Bin Laden, and the head of the Senate Intelligence Committee when a captured suicide bomber claims that the world in which they live is a mirage.

New York, 2023. Une nouvelle tour de Babel sera bientôt achevée. Son promoteur, le milliardaire Harry Gant - pourtant sujet au vertige - a déjà fait bâtir à Atlanta les plus hautes constructions jamais réalisées, refuges d''où il peut contempler l''étendue de son pouvoir et ce qui lui reste à conquérir. Loin de ces considérations, le monde souterrain abrite des travailleurs moins bien lotis, dont Joan Fine, l''ex-femme de Harry. Employée par le Bureau Zoologique, elle lutte contre la prolifération des bestioles mutantes dans les égouts de New York. C''est néanmoins la première fois qu''elle croise un grand requin blanc... Mais le dangereux squale n''est qu''une infime partie de la conspiration que Joan va peu à peu mettre à jour et qui impliquerait Disney, John Hoover, une cinéaste féministe adepte de l''amour en groupe, et une flopée de robots tueurs. L''éco-terroriste Philo Dufresne, l''enfant trouvé inuit Vingt-Neuf Mots pour Neige, la Coccinelle douée de parole Betsy Ross et un mort réincarné en intelligence artificielle vont croiser le chemin de la jeune femme. Mais de là à lui simplifier la vie... Matt Ruff lâche la bride à son imagination délirante pour cette fresque d''anticipation burlesque et foisonnante.

Andy Gage souffre de troubles de la personnalité multiple. Sa tête abrite plus d''une centaine d''âmes, toutes " nées " à la suite de traumatismes, et qui tentent de cohabiter. Andrew, sa dernière âme, a pris le contrôle de son corps et peut-être enfin réussi à mettre un peu d''ordre dans la " maisonnée "... Jusqu''à l''arrivée dans la vie d''Andy Gage de Penny, atteinte du même mal. Lorsque certaines âmes de Penny implorent Andrew de les aider, celui-ci accepte à contrecœur. Au risque de mettre en péril son propre équilibre et de causer sa perte... Thriller psychologique, jeu de rôles redoutable, voici un roman à suspense qui opèrera sur le lecteur une étrange fascination... Matt Ruff avait reçu le soutien enthousiaste du mythique Thomas Pynchon pour son premier roman, Fool on the hill.