On Tuesday, July 8 Michael Farris Smith’s gripping 2011 novella, “The Hands of Strangers,” will experience its second release — this time by Simon & Schuster, in ebook form. The respected publisher recently obtained the rights to Smith’s earlier work, following the publishing house’s release in 2013 of the award-winning Columbus writer’s first full-length novel, “Rivers, to enthusiastic response.
“Simon & Schuster acquired the rights to ‘The Hands of Strangers’ a couple of months ago, which is very exciting, to move from a little press to a very big press,” said Smith Wednesday. The novella was originally released by Main Street Rag Publishing. The ebook release of “The Hands of Strangers” bridges the interval between “Rivers” and Smith’s follow-up project — a prequel to that post-apocalyptic novel set on a Mississippi Gulf Coast ravaged by an unrelenting series of storms. “In the Beginning” is expected to be out by the end of the summer.
“The Hands of Strangers” tells the wrenching story of a young couple in Paris struggling to cope with the abduction of their 9-year-old daughter. It has received significant praise.
“A fantastic debut … Smith eloquently captures the damaged souls of two people crumbling under the weight of uncertainty and waning hope. In this anxiety-ridden little gem, Smith captures the essence of the helpless, making more of an impact than most novels three times its size,” said a Publishers Weekly review.
Michael Kardos, author of “The Three Day Affair,” an Esquire Best Book of the Year, said, “The only sensible response to reading ‘The Hands of Strangers’ is to become a Michael Farris Smith fan for life. It’s a stunning novella. Smith gets straight to the essence of what tears us apart, and he does it with absolute humanity.”
“The Hands of Strangers” will be available in ebook format on Kindle, Nook and iTunes.
Read more about Smith’s work at michaelfarrissmith.com.
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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