The Demon Who Peddled Longing

Set in post-war Vietnam, The Demon Who Peddled Longing tells the terrible journey of a nineteen-year-old boy in search of the two brothers who are drifters and who raped and killed his cousin. It brings together the damned, the unfit, the brave, who succumb by their own doing to the call of fate. Yet their desire to survive and to face life again never dies, so that when someone like the boy who is psychologically damaged by his family tragedy, who no sooner gets his life together after being rescued by a fisherwoman than falls in love with an untouchable girl and finds his life in peril, takes his leave in the end, there is nothing left but a longing in the heart that goes with him. REVIEWS Monday, November 24, 2014 Book Viral's Author of Choice "An absolute joy, without the contrivance of undue complexity, Khanh Ha delivers not only an emotive read, but an exquisite and beautifully observed image of a world few of us will see with such absolute clarity. Recommended without reservation, The Demon Who Peddled Longing is highly deserving of your attention whilst BookViral has no hesitation in naming Khanh Ha our fourth ever author of choice."―Book Viral"The Demon Who Peddled Longing takes you on the quest of an insular boy―a quest to avenge his cousin's murder and to win the heart of a fickle woman. His deliverance lies not in the consummation of these goals but in the dignity with which he pursues them. As poetic as Faulkner, as stark as Cormac McCarthy, The Demon Who Peddled Longing is an absorbing read." ―James Hanna, The Sand Hill Review "Compelling and beautifully written . . . a richly accomplished story set in a land still wounded by war." ―Stephen Evans, author of The Marriage of True Minds "An unnamed protagonist journeys through a Faulknerian dreamscape where redemption arises out of violence and beauty blossoms from the mire of loss. A rare achievement through a mesmerizing rhythm of language. That this novel is an artistic triumph is an understatement." ―John M. Gist, Red Savina Review "As with his debut novel, Flesh, Ha's writing is sweeping and lyrical . . . the story takes its time unfolding in an epic cinematic sprawl that emphasizes sensory details as much as a sense of the unknown . . . Ha delivers well-drawn characters and a suspenseful storyline that will keep readers turning pages."―Laura Roberts, Black Heart Magazine "Everything that occurs in THE DEMON WHO PEDDLED LONGING jumps off the page, thanks to Ha's vivid and poetic prose, and to his deep, intimate knowledge of the Vietnamese people. Ha not only knows how they live and work, but what they love, fear, despise and hold dear. Without a shred of sentimentality or falsity, he paints a memorable portrait of Viet Nam, a country with a life-force that seemingly will never be extinguished".―Willard Manus, Lively Arts "The Demon Who Peddled Longing is, like the title of the novel, a highly evocative, poetic work. Khanh Ha's descriptions of the physical environment are lushly poetic; the river, the fields, the vegetation form an intrinsic backdrop to Nam's journey, and beautifully complement the longing and love that propel the boy onward. A lovely novel by a refreshingly original author."―Literary Fiction Book Review"Khanh Ha's Flesh, a visceral and harrowing read, serves as a brilliant companion for his new novel. But whereas the tragic elements of experience seemed to engulf all other aspects of life in Flesh, there is a solid foundation of beauty in this work.Writers like Khanh Ha take the reader into ordinary and glorious places."--Buried In Print ABOUT THE AUTHOR Khanh Ha is the author of Flesh (2012, Black Heron Press). He is a five-time Pushcart nominee and the recipient of Greensboro Review's 2014 ROBERT WATSON LITERARY PRIZE IN FICTION.