# What would you exchange for eternal youth?



## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

I know we have lots of fans of Rick R. Reed here....I am very happy to announce that one of his earlier books has been reissued as a Kindle publication and given new life: *A Face Without A Heart*.



And a description:

*A Stunning Retake on the Timeless Themes of Guilt, Decadence, and Despair* in Oscar Wilde's_ fin de siecle_ classic, _The Picture of Dorian Gray._ Amidst a gritty background of urban nihilism, a young man bargains his soul away, while his painfully beautiful holographic portrait mirrors his each and every sin and each nightmarish step deeper into depravity...even cold-blooded murder. _A Face Without a Heart _takes you on a thought provoking tour of the darkest sides of greed, lust, addiction, and violence.

Enjoy, everyone!

L


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## Kind (Jan 28, 2009)

Leslie said:


> *The Picture of Dorian Gray. Amidst a gritty background of urban nihilism, a young man bargains his soul away, while his painfully beautiful holographic portrait mirrors his each and every sin and each nightmarish step deeper into depravity...even cold-blooded murder. A Face Without a Heart takes you on a thought provoking tour of the darkest sides of greed, lust, addiction, and violence.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


*

Thanks for posting. Never heard of it but it sure does sound like a good read. *


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## Lizzy (Nov 26, 2008)

On the way to his mansion he's gonna be dropping me off at the poor house if he keeps writing like this.    He's just such a good storyteller!


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

And this one is a good story, too!

L


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## horrorauthor (Dec 22, 2008)

Hi All,

Leslie already beat me to the punch, but I just wanted to let you know that her fine publishing company, Bristlecone Pine Press, has just re-issued my award-winning 2000 novel, A Face Without A Heart.

You may have already read the book upon which A Face Without A Heart is based, Oscar Wilde's _The Picture of Dorian Gray_, but my take on the classic story of a man who wishes he could always stay as young and beautiful as his portrait is modern-day and has the freedom to delve into modern-day decadence as even Wilde may not have imagined. If you're familiar with the story, you know that the young man's wish comes true, but he loses his soul in the bargain and his portrait ages and shows the wear of his lifestyle while he stays forever young and beautiful.

A Face Without A Heart has, I think, even more relevance today, with its emphasis on youth and beauty at any cost.

I hope you'll at least give A Face Without A Heart a sample. If you do, I'm pretty certain you'll want to read the rest. I know I couldn't resist a book that starts off with the line: "There is blood on my hands."

Amazon has not linked up this new Kindle version with its print edition, so if you want to check out the reviews, look here. This is my favorite of the sixteen reviews posted, written by Henry Wagner, an Amazon Top 500 Reviewer:

_This novel's subtitle, "A Modern-day Version of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray" says it all. In Reed's version, Dorian Gray is Gary Adrion and artist Basil Howard is Liam Howard. Lord Henry Wotton, the Oscar Wilde analog from Dorian Gray, becomes drag queen Lady Henrietta Wotton. Here, Gary's visage is recreated holographically, resulting in an image so exquisite that he jokingly offers his soul in return for a promise to look like that forever. Of course Gary gets his wish, and soon after the hologram begins to display the ravages of his excessive lifestyle while he remains physically unscathed.

Like Gray, Adrion finds and loses love, but the object of his affection is an exotic dancer rather than an actress. Gary's unjustified rejection of the dancer launches him into a life of reckless depravity, one filled with meaningless sex, copious drug use, and even murder. The utter emptiness of his lifestyle eats at the fabric of his soul, causing him to loathe his existence, and eventually, to destroy the source of his eternal youth.

Reed does himself, and his excellent source material proud, masterfully juggling multiple viewpoint characters for maximum effect. Each has a distinctive voice, providing a different, but illuminating perspective on the events described. Like Wilde's story, Reed's is a commentary on contemporary life, a mirror held up to catch the images cast by the dark side of modern existence. Like the best books, Reed's goes beyond its narrow subject matter to invite reflection on deeper patterns of human behavior, in this instance, the self-destructive impulses we all must grapple with and master if we wish to stay sane. As such, it constitutes a penetrating morality tale, a journey into the very heart of darkness. _


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## Jen (Oct 28, 2008)

Well, even though I literally have 20 books on my to-read list, you sucked me in!  That sounds great, I bought it and will put it at least near the top of my list   !


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## horrorauthor (Dec 22, 2008)

Thanks for the vote of confidence (and the buy), Jen! You'll have to let me know what you think when you're through. And if you love the book, I hope you won't keep it to yourself.

Rick


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

It's a really good story. I highly recommend it!

L


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## robin.goodfellow (Nov 17, 2008)

I'm sure the book is great, and that Rick is a wonderful story teller, but am I the only person on the planet who thinks that "eternal youth" is a really hellish idea?


(More a commentary on the "younger is better" way of thinking than anything else.  As you were.)


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## Jen (Oct 28, 2008)

robin.goodfellow said:


> I'm sure the book is great, and that Rick is a wonderful story teller, but am I the only person on the planet who thinks that "eternal youth" is a really hellish idea?
> 
> (More a commentary on the "younger is better" way of thinking than anything else. As you were.)


No, you're not the only one! I'm pretty fascinated with our culture and it's obsession though. I'm turning 30 this year, and while most people freak out about it, I'm actually looking forward to being out of my twenties. Weird? Yes.


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## robin.goodfellow (Nov 17, 2008)

lol, when I left my 20s behind, it was more with a feeling of profound relief.  Glad to see I'm not the only one.


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## horrorauthor (Dec 22, 2008)

Jen said:


> No, you're not the only one! I'm pretty fascinated with our culture and it's obsession though. I'm turning 30 this year, and while most people freak out about it, I'm actually looking forward to being out of my twenties. Weird? Yes.


I think the whole idea behind the book (both mine and Oscar Wilde's) is that "eternal youth" truly is a "hellish idea."


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## standaman (Feb 11, 2009)

Just ordered it. Am looking forward to reading it later this month.  (I'm still in my twenties)


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## Kind (Jan 28, 2009)

robin.goodfellow said:


> lol, when I left my 20s behind, it was more with a feeling of profound relief. Glad to see I'm not the only one.


Really? haha ... I don't wanna leave my 20's! I still have a while


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## robin.goodfellow (Nov 17, 2008)

lol, trust me, the idea grows on you.

Also, it beats the alternatives, which are 
1. death, and 
2.  Finding a guy to paint your portrait so it ages and you stay young.  Do you know how difficult it is to find a painter with that kind of skill?  who also doesn't want to know if you've ever done nude modeling?  Honestly.  It's hardly worth googling names to try and find one.



I'm off to download a sample now.  Victorian adjectives have kept me away from Dorian Gray.  I'm assuming this version won't be nearly as...yeah.


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## Jen (Oct 28, 2008)

robin.goodfellow said:


> lol, trust me, the idea grows on you.
> 
> Also, it beats the alternatives, which are
> 1. death, and
> 2. Finding a guy to paint your portrait so it ages and you stay young. Do you know how difficult it is to find a painter with that kind of skill? who also doesn't want to know if you've ever done nude modeling? Honestly. It's hardly worth googling names to try and find one.


Robin, you crack me up!



Kind said:


> Really? haha ... I don't wanna leave my 20's! I still have a while


Part of my being excited to leave my twenties has to do with hoping that I might stop being called a 'kid' at work. After being here for 8 years it's pretty irritating, especially since I know more than half of the people calling me that. Hopefully once I'm 30 that will go away! Plus I feel smarter with every year I get older. Now, once I get to my 40's I might be singing a different tune....but for now, I'm quite okay with turning 30 in 9 months. Weird year - getting married, and turning 30....I guess I really am 'growing up'.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

robin.goodfellow said:


> I'm off to download a sample now. Victorian adjectives have kept me away from Dorian Gray. I'm assuming this version won't be nearly as...yeah.


I couldn't plow through Oscar Wilde. Believe me, I tried. This version is _much_ more readable.

L


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## Angela (Nov 2, 2008)

I have downloaded the sample... I am on a spending freeze until I can come up with enough change to purchase a new gift card!!


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

Oh, this book just got a five star review on Amazon. Way to go, Rick!

http://www.amazon.com/A-Face-Without-Heart/dp/B001RIZEJ6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=digital-text&qid=1234829105&sr=1-1

L


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## horrorauthor (Dec 22, 2008)

Wow. Thanks for calling my attention to the review. And I don't even know the person who wrote it (so no innuendos about bribery, please).


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

I was thrilled this morning to receive a notice of a rave review that has been posted for A Face Without A Heart by Rick Reed. You can read the review here:

http://reviewsbyjessewave.blogspot.com/2009/03/face-without-heart.html

A few quotes to whet your appetite:

...A Face Without A Heart is a modern retelling of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray you do tend to automatically think certain things: (a) this is obviously not going to end well, and (b) what new aspect can the author possibly bring to this story.

In many ways the first is a given; however, this did not stop me from being caught up and gobbling page after page of the book. This can be partly attributed to the writing style of this author, which is sheer joy to read. ::insert further superlatives here:: 

and:

A Face Without A Heart will not be for everyone, but I would recommend this novel to those readers who are interested in great character studies and like to challenge themselves with confronting themes and issues.

Intrigued? The book is available for the Amazon Kindle. Here's a link:



Enjoy!

L


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## Cowgirl (Nov 1, 2008)

I just ordered it.  I was looking for my next book...sounded good.


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## CS (Nov 3, 2008)

Leslie said:


> I couldn't plow through Oscar Wilde. Believe me, I tried. This version is _much_ more readable.
> 
> L


Well, that answers the question I had about this. I was wondering if knowledge of the Wilde text significantly increased the enjoyment of this one. Guess it doesn't matter either way. After Orientation (which was AWESOME, BTW), I'll definitely be reading more of Rick's work.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

I am always excited when one of our member authors gets a great review of a book. Check out this review for *A Face Without A Heart* by Rick R. Reed:

http://reviewsbyruth.wordpress.com/2009/03/12/a-face-without-a-heart-by-rick-r-reed/

_...All too often, when classics are rewritten into a contemporary setting, the result is depressingly unsatisfactory. Happily, award-winning author Rick R. Reed succeeds in recreating the greed and decadence hidden behind the beautiful face of the ageless Dorian who keeps pushing the envelope of evil until he finally goes too far and the devil literally gets his due. Reed achieves the delicate balancing act of being true to Wilde's tale while putting a patina of his own shivery vision over it, enhancing but never obscuring the original...._

Way to go, Rick!

L


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## kevindorsey (Mar 4, 2009)

I wouldn't exchange anything.  I can't wait to get off this planet


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## Cowgirl (Nov 1, 2008)

I just finished the book and it was really good. I would definitely recommend it.  I was a little leary at first considering Rick has horror novelist after his name and I'm not into that but went with Leslie's recommendation.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

Cowgirl said:


> I just finished the book and it was really good. I would definitely recommend it. I was a little leary at first considering Rick has horror novelist after his name and I'm not into that but went with Leslie's recommendation.


Thank you, Cowgirl! I appreciate your kind words! I'm glad you enjoyed the book, too.

L


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## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

Eternal youth....well at least I would have a small chance being able to get thru my "to read on Kindle" backlog!!


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

Another great review for Rick's book:










To read the whole thing, go here:

http://rainbow-reviews.com/?p=1092

Congratulations, Rick!

L


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