Will North

Will North

About

I think we can safely blame it on Margaret D’Ascoli, though I suppose Henry Wadsworth Longfellow may bear some responsibility as well.Mrs. D’Ascoli was my eighth grade English teacher, Longfellow was the author of—among other things—the epic poem, Evangeline, about which we had to write a critical essay. When the day came for the papers to be handed back, the class was awash in anxiety. Mrs. D’Ascoli was one tough cookie, and an even tougher grader. She walked through the aisles returning the essays to everyone but me, then went back to the front of the room and stood before the class until the rustle of papers ceased. Holding one last paper in her hand, she said, “As you know, I always give grades for both style and content. I have here a paper to which I have awarded not two, but three A’s: one for style, one for content, and one for something I cannot begin to explain to you. Then she handed me my essay. There was a silence like death, followed by excited whispers. I wanted to crawl into a hole and quietly die from embarrassment.It wasn’t until later, on the walk home from school, that I felt excited, and it wasn’t because of the three A’s. It was because, at an age when you know with absolute certainty that you’re a totally worthless speck in the universe, I’d learned there was something I could do better than anyone else I knew: I could write.Ever since then, writing’s been my “meal ticket.” It was my ticket out of a chaotic and sometimes frightening family in a steadily deteriorating neighborhood in Yonkers, just over the New York City border. It was my ticket to scholarships for an undergraduate degree in English, and then a graduate degree in journalism. It carried me through a series of jobs and ultimately, at the tender age of 30, to an appointed position in the Carter Administration. Much as I loved that job, one of the best things that ever happened to me was the election of Ronald Reagan, who promptly fired me and forced me to choose between holding a job and becoming an author. I chose the latter.Over the years, and under a different name, for Will North is a pen name, I’ve written more than a dozen non fiction books. Somewhere along the line, I also became a ghostwriter—for an American President, a Vice-President, a famous mountaineer and explorer, a team of Everest climbers, a group of dinosaur-hunters, and a pioneering doctor, among others. I also wrote a series of off-the-beaten-track guidebooks to the place I love most in the world: Britain. Then, one day, fiction showed up like an unexpected guest and the stories kept coming. The greatest joy of writing fiction is that every day is a surprise: I seldom know what my characters are going to demand of me. Mostly, I just try to listen to them and do what they say. They never cease to amaze me.

Size Zero (Visage Book 1)

Size Zero (Visage Book 1)

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Description

<p style="margin:0px 0px 14px;padding:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;"><strong>&quot;A somber, disturbing mystery fused with a scathing look at the fashion industry. </strong><strong>Mangin writes in a confident, razor-edged style.&quot;</strong><strong> - Kirkus Reviews</strong></p><p style="margin:-4px 0px 14px;padding:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;"><strong>Condom dresses and space helmets have debuted on fashion runways.</strong></p><p style="margin:-4px 0px 14px;padding:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">A dead body becomes the trend when a coat made of human skin saunters down fashion's biggest stage. The body is identified as Annabelle Leigh, the teenager who famously disappeared over a decade ago from her boyfriend's New York City mansion.</p><p style="margin:-4px 0px 14px;padding:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">This new evidence casts suspicion back on the former boyfriend, Cecil LeClaire. Now a monk, he is forced to return to his dark and absurd childhood home to clear his name. He teams up with Ava Germaine, a renegade ex-model. And together, they investigate the depraved and lawless modeling industry behind Cecil's family fortune.</p><p style="margin:-4px 0px 14px;padding:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">They find erotic canes, pet rats living in crystal castles, and dresses made of crushed butterfly wings. But Cecil finds more truth in the luxury goods than in the people themselves. Everyone he meets seems to be wearing a person-suit. Terrified of showing their true selves, the glitterati put on flamboyant public personas to make money and friends. Can Cecil find truth in a world built on lies?</p><p style="margin:-4px 0px 0px;padding:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;"><strong>In high fashion modeling, selling bodies is organized crime.</strong></p>

Story Behind The Book

Reviews

<p><span style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;">''[Will North is] a strong, vivid writer with a romantic's heart.'' --Patricia Gaffney, </span><i style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;">NY Times</i><span style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;"> Bestselling Author of </span><i style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;">Mad Dash</i><span style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;"> and </span><i style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;">The Goodbye Summer</i><span style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;"> </span><br style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;" /><br style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;" /><span style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;">''North's knack for characterization creates a memorable cast across generations.'' --</span><i style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;">Seattle Times</i><span style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;"> </span><em style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;line-height:19px;">--This text refers to the <a class="product" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1482924560/ref=dp_proddesc_1?ie=UTF8&amp;n=283155" style="color:rgb(0,102,192);">Audio CD</a> edition.</em></p> <p>Having read Will North's first two books, I was anxiously waiting for his new one, Seasons' End, and I was not disappointed. Will weaves a story filled with interesting characters who spend their summers on an island in Puget Sound. The characters are colorful and he paints a beautiful picture with words. This one is a bit darker than his first two, but still a story of passion, betrayal and love. I loved it and am looking forward to his next book, a mystery. Mr. North is fast becoming one of my favorite writers! I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes good story telling, in-depth characterizations, and wonderfully descriptive writing that takes you away to new places.  Five Stars. H. Fredericks</p>