BEFORE WE WERE MONSTERS
by Katniss Hsiao
Description
PERFUME meets SILENCE OF THE LAMB in contemporary Taipei, with a touch of Mariana Enriquez. A dark, searing, astonishingly confident debut that announces the arrival of a major crime writer.
Eve is a young and quiet crime scene cleaner. A former "super smeller", she lost her sense of smell after a tragic incident, only to have it come alive at scenes of death and decomposition. One night, she is tasked to cleaning up a suicide, not knowing it was a murder scene. With all trace evidence gone, she becomes the police’s No. 1 suspect. Even begins a desperate quest to clear her name, following the elusive scent left by the murderer, even enlisting the help of notorious serial killer/artist, Triple C, to understand the inner workings of a psychopathic mind. To hunt the monster, she must become a monster herself.
More Information
Rights Information
Eksmo (Russia)
Kobiece (Poland)
Nha Nam (Vietnam)
Suhrkamp (Germany)
Offer (Thailand)
TV rights optioned by Outland Film
Endorsements
"BEFORE WE WERE MONSTERS is the ideal title for my line. A young, very versatile female author from Taiwan (Asia is the topic here at the moment) with enormous potential, who presents an absolutely unusual, highly intelligent novel on a very high literary level. Suspense and ambition are extraordinary, the handling of literary traditions (Suskind etc.) surprising, original and virtuosic. In addition, complex, multi-layered characters, tragedy and comedy in equal measure. Moreover, the novel allows for different readings - psychological thriller, serial killer novel, novel - which guarantees a broad base of acceptance and attention. I couldn't think of a better constellation." - Thomas Wörtche (Suhrkamp)
Author Biography
Katniss Hsiao is a young novelist and screenwriter. She has a BA in History from National Taiwan University. A lifelong reader of crime fiction and film buff, Katniss currently works for a film production company. BEFORE WE WERE MONSTER is her debut novel.
The Grayhawk Agency
Founded in 2008 by Gray Tan, we are a leading literary agency in Asia, representing over 200 foreign publishers and agents in China, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia. We also represent a select list of Asian authors in film/tv and translation, whose works have been licensed in over 30 countries and to production companies in Asia, Europe, and Hollywood.
View all titlesBibliographic Information
- Publisher Ink
- Orginal LanguageChinese complex
- ISBN/Identifier 9789863875772
- Publication Country or regionTaiwan
- FormatPaperback
- Pages383
- ReadershipGeneral
- Publish StatusPublished
- Original Language TitleChinese Complex
- Copyright Year2022
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