About the Author

Victor LaValle is the award-winning author of two previous novels, "The Ecstatic" and "Big Machine, " and a collection of short stories, "Slapboxing with Jesus." "Big Machine" was the winner of an American Book Award and the Shirley Jackson Award in 2010, and was selected as one of the best books of the year by the "Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, The Nation, " and "Publishers Weekly." He teaches writing at Columbia University and lives in New York.

Reviews

"A fearless exploration of America's heart of darkness . . . a dizzying high-wire act."--"The Washington Post"
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"LaValle never writes the same book and his recent is a stunner. . . . Fantastical, hellish and hilarious."--"Los Angeles Times"

"It's simply too bighearted, too gentle, too kind, too culturally observant and too idiosyncratic to squash into the small cupboard of any one genre, or even two."--"The New York Times Book Review"

"Embeds a sophisticated critique of contemporary America's inhumane treatment of madness in a fast-paced story that is by turns horrifying, suspenseful, and comic."--"The Boston Globe"

"LaValle uses the thrills of horror to draw attention to timely matters. And he does so without sucking the joy out of the genre. . . . A striking and original American novelist."--"The New Republic"

Advance praise for "The Devil in Silver"

"Literary horror just found a new master. Profound, and profoundly terrifying, Victor LaValle's "The Devil in Silver" is a page-turning delight."--Gary Shteyngart

""The Devil in Silver" is the rare work that takes seemingly disparate parts and brings them together seamlessly into something entirely original. There is madness here, and it is infused with brilliance, and the result is a story that is as illuminating as it is entertaining."--Mat Johnson, author of "Pym"

Praise for Victor LaValle's "Big Machine"

"Unruly and entertaining . . . a monumental dream work."--"Los Angeles Times"

"Spectacular . . . sprawling, fantastical."--"The Washington Post"

"Magnificent."--"Chicago Tribune"
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Winner of the American Book Award
Winner of the Shirley Jackson Award
Winner of the Ernest J. Gaines Award

In this inspired and haunting thriller from Victor LaValle, a monstrous devil is on the loose in a rundown, but still functioning, mental hospital in Queens, N.Y. And while the inmates have seen the creature, the hospital staff is working hard to keep it hidden away. But when the sun goes down, there's no telling what horrors will be unleashed. Soon a diverse group of inmates is forced to band together and ward off the dangerous beast. As a narrator, LaValle turns in a surprisingly layered performance that is as wonderfully creepy as his novel. With the thrills coming fast and often, LaValle's reading easily lures listeners into the story. Additionally, LaValle lends his characters original voices that are rarely over-the-top or stereotypical. A Random/Spiegel & Grau hardcover. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.